I'm replacing the front rotors on my 97 4x4 Pathfinder and what I am seeing doesn't match the service manual. After you remove the C clip and the 6 nuts that holds drive flange on, is the silver ring in front of the drive flange suppose to come straight off? Looking at the ring with the C clip off, it doesn't look like it would clear the spline. In fact, the spline looking end just looks like a cap that is on the end of the center of the flange.



http://s289.photobucket.com/albums/ll233/mbrinkman72/?a...current=IMG_3817.jpg


http://s289.photobucket.com/albums/ll233/mbrinkman72/?a...iew¤t=clip.jpg

OK, reading your post is a little confusing.

1)Remove Hub cap.
2) remove snap ring( what you questioning in the picture posted)
3) remove drive flange.
4) remove lock washer
5) remove wheel bearing lock nut
6) remove hub and rotor assembly
7) remove and replace rotor from wheel hub. Make sure to use lock tight when reinstalling rotor dis bolts.

Yes the drive flange will slide right off after you remove the snap ring.

In the first picture the C-clip looks like it is still on. Once that C-clip is off the drive flange will come off but not without persuasion.

quote:

Yes the drive flange will slide right off after you remove the snap ring.

Hardly It can take quite a bit of prying to get a drive flange off.

On my QX4 I had to get the screw driver between the hub and drive flange to get it off gently using the screw driver as a wedge around each side until the hub drive flange came off.

Thanks Guys. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing a step.

That's odd. I changed the CVs on a 98 recently and I didn't have trouble with that. It came apart easily.

You shouldn't have to pull the drive flange to get the CVs off/on.

yes the flange has to come off to remove the CV. there is a c clip behind the little dust cap of the drive flange that keeps the CV in place.

quote:

yes the flange has to come off to remove the CV. there is a c clip behind the little dust cap of the drive flange that keeps the CV in place

So you take the dust cap off, remove the c-clip LEAVE THE FLANG ON and pull the CV out the back once the two top knuckl bolts are removed from the strut... hold on let me get you a picture from the FSM.




The ONLY two things keeping that CV from coming out of the hub are the snap-ring on the end of the drive flange under the dust cover and the fact that it physically won't come out unless you unbolt the knuckle. So if we unbolt the knuckle from the strut and remove the dust cover then snap ring the CV will come right out of the knuckle.