2001 R50 Pathfinder Build-up.

[Weekender41]

Front Bumper

TheExBrit on NPORA showed me how he modified a Rough Country front bumper that is meant for a XJ and used it for the Pathfinder with relatively simple steps. I will be doing the similar thing,
the first thing I do when the bumper shows up will be to sand blast it and start modifying the sides to fit the pathfinder better. I will also be adding parts to make the front skid integrate into the
bumper a little better. The Rough Country is a super high clearance bumper and works with the pathfinder but there are some things I don't like about it. But for the price its hard to beat.

 

[wreckdiver1321]

In this part of the country I almost consider a steel bumper essential. There are a lot of animals running around out there...

 

[Weekender41]

In this part of the country I almost consider a steel bumper essential. There are a lot of animals running around out there...

Thats a big part, I will be beefing up the mounts to help. Also, having the ability to winch would be grand! And it should look better too

 

[marty1977]

Mate your pathy is looking really nice :drool:. All the mods you did are looking great. I hope in the future i will have something similar in the back.
I cant wait to start putting expo kinds stuff on mine but for now its stuck in the garage undergoing some much needed preventing maintenance and i also need to get handy with my welder to repair all the rust and after will start building stuff like you . Looking forward to the front bumper project.

 

[Weekender41]

Mate your pathy is looking really nice :drool:. All the mods you did are looking great. I hope in the future i will have something similar in the back.
I cant wait to start putting expo kinds stuff on mine but for now its stuck in the garage undergoing some much needed preventing maintenance and i also need to get handy with my welder to repair all the rust and after will start building stuff like you . Looking forward to the front bumper project.

Well thank you! Much appreciated but remember, ExPo has gotten me to this point. I have gone through tons of other build threads and have gained advice from just about everyone. The toyota forum has helped me the most with builds... Specifically boo's lexus build. If you ever need advice or an ear... We are here!
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Preventative maintenance is always a first priority. And is generally the most fun because even though you're not giving your vehicle that BA look, you know the PM is 100000 times more worth it. Keep it up!

 

[richard310]

In this part of the country I almost consider a steel bumper essential. There are a lot of animals running around out there...

We get animals running rampant down here too, and they are everywhere... Southern California drivers. I'd slap on a metal front bumper just to minimize damage when these idiots eventually run into me. Heck, I'd use it to push them out of my way if I could...

 

[wreckdiver1321]

We get animals running rampant down here too, and they are everywhere... Southern California drivers. I'd slap on a metal front bumper just to minimize damage when these idiots eventually run into me. Heck, I'd use it to push them out of my way if I could...

Just a couple of weeks ago I smashed into a whitetail that ran in front of me at night in the mountains. Luckily I was driving my dad's F250, which has a steel bumper from the factory, so there were no issues.

 

[richard310]

Just a couple of weeks ago I smashed into a whitetail that ran in front of me at night in the mountains. Luckily I was driving my dad's F250, which has a steel bumper from the factory, so there were no issues.

Yikes, glad to hear you're alright and the F250's alright. When I drove up to Big Sur a few hours north of me, there were random deer roaming around late at night and almost obliterated one along with my my mom's Sienna. I swear it's face was right at the driverside window when I saw it last minute. I saw the eyes, nose and ears in my peripheral... scared the crap out of me. My gf was screaming "DEER! DEER!" and I'm yelling out WHERE? WHERE? After that fiasco, I made sure to tell her that I need to know which direction the deer were coming from. Made for quite a drive that night as we passed by quite a number of deer but made it to our campsite unscathed.

 

[Allof75]

I obliterated a hare the other day, does that count? Or a family of raccoons right after I bought the pathy? Seriously though, my LEDs have saved me from numerous deer strikes, including a moose strike (really bad news). Lights go a long way, and can help spot the eyes of the dang things before you're even close.

 

[stioc]

Some photos.
View attachment 222478
View attachment 222485
View attachment 222486



View attachment 222487

Looks great!

 

[Weekender41]

Haha I live in mule deer and elk areas. Racoons and rabbits, foxes and coyotes are around here as well. What I worry about is everytime I go to carbon county (where I do 80% of my trips) there are moose. Always. Moose can be very aggressive and so I give them a wide berth but when travelling, they pop out of nowhere. Mule deer have never ran across the road for me so I have been lucky there. I got a few more ideas on how I want the bumper to look in the front. With the kit coming from Rough Country, I will take it to the break and open it up a little and extend the front down a little. Ill also be adding a bolt on piece that goes from bumper to front skid. If you check out CBI's website, the way they have large openings for their Tacoma bumpers.. I will also be doing that once the bumper comes in.
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Oh and today Im going to the front page and re writing it. I love the list look and will do that.

 

[Weekender41]

Ordered a Front Winch Bumper!

Rough Country Jeep XJ bumper order was placed yesterday! :wings:
Today I took off the stock bumper and air intake reservoir. It looks ghetto so I wont post a photo but Im just waiting for Wednesday to arrive so I can get to installing the new one.
I already have figured out how I want to attach it. The tow hooks and stock bumper are attached all on a flat piece of the subframe. I will be cutting a flat piece of 1/4" steel to use all those holes which
mean I can connect the bumper with 5 bolts per side which will be great! The only thing I am really worried about is the rough country bumper is bolted together... Should I bolt it together and then weld
the pieces together as well? That causes me hesitation. Also the bar that you can purchase for the bumper to mount lights to (think the curved bar for our ARB) is very small and only covers the the grill. It
also bolts on. I will be welding pieces to it to extend it over the lights but that will be well after the bumper is mounted and fixed. Stay tuned on Wednesday for the pathfinder's nose job!

Here is the bar and same winch I have. You can see it is pretty small and if I want to add lights on the bar Im pretty sure Ill just make my own.

The jeep pictured also doesn't have the clevis mounts (the 4 screws in a square) I will be purchasing those since the factory tow hooks will be removed.
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Cheers

 

[Allof75]

That's going to look great, interested in seeing your impressions

 

[Weekender41]

Just a heads up: Photos are taken with a GoPro so they are slightly distorted.

Ok so this is how the pathfinder looks right now. The arrival date for the bumper was today, I got home and had a package on the porch! SWEET!! unfortunately it was only 1 of 2 and 2 of 2 seems to be lost.
It was last updated on the 17th of this month in TN and has not been updated since. So tomorrow I will start an investigation for the package. Major bummer because now I have no Idea when the bumper will
be getting here and I cant start making custom mounting brackets until I get the bumper.
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Package 1 of 2 was the winch mount and mounting brackets along with the hardware bag.. That part looks good! the winch plate is extremely beefy! It seems to be 1/4" and with very good powder coating.

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Hopefully this gets resolved soon

 

[marty1977]

I hope all gets resolved and you get your other parts. I will pray to car gods for you . There is nothing worse then getting half your stuff and not being able to start your work. Im getting a lot of inspiration from your build to keep going on mine.

Cheers