Newest Challenge for Veteran JDM Car Modifier? A Bone Stock '80s Pathfinder

Brandon Miller is not your average car enthusiast. Something about the cars he finds and builds just hits different. He's crossed our pages before with an R30 Nissan Skyline RS-Turbo from the 1980s, and a mind-bendingly cool 300ZX that rocked SEMA last year from its perch in the Toyo Treadpass area . That car, unfortunately, dropped a valve. While plans were set in motion to get it back onto the road, Miller decided to explore another facet of his enthusiasm. That's why, instead of a BMW with an LS swap, or a straight-six-powered Z 300ZX, we're looking at a bone stock 1980s Nissan Pathfinder.

Not that Miller can leave it alone. No, it won't be modified, but rather improved and refinished. It is a refreshing and intriguing change of pace for a guy who can't seem to leave good enough alone on any of his vehicles. We caught up with Miller to find out why a tired old SUV has captured his heart, and if he'll be tempted to improve it down the road.

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MT: You've been featured on our pages a few times, being the brains behind some of the most interesting builds involving highly modified classic JDM sports cars. And now ... a bone-stock U.S.-market Pathfinder? Tell us how you got here and why this old SUV appeals to you.

BM: It's good to be back. That's correct, I have always modified my vehicles since the very beginning going back to 1995. Even the brand new Tacoma I bought in 2019 only remained stock for about four hours. I really enjoy customizing cars and trying to create OEM-plus visions of how I would have wanted them to come from the factory. 

The hunt for a red 1987 Nissan Pathfinder SE has actually been going on for more than a decade. And it's taken two years to convince the previous owner to sell this one to me. I have basically been a Nissan fanatic since birth. My dad purchased his first Datsun 240Z in 1971 after watching Jon Morton race the BRE 46 car around road Atlanta. He only owned Nissans and Porsches when I was growing up. 

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Run us through some of your past builds. Do any of those have nostalgic or emotional components, or were they just cool cars?

The most notable past builds would likely be the currently owned naturally aspirated RB I-6-swapped Nissan Z31 300ZX, the LSx 427-swapped BMW E39 528i Touring, the supercharged S62-swapped BMW E38 740i, the R30 Nissan Skyline , the currently owned S212 Mercedes E63 AMG wagon and the turbo M52-swapped BMW E34 525i. There have been plenty of others, but far lesser known and/or milder builds.

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If I recall, there have been 35 vehicles under my ownership since 1995. The Z and R30 were more nostalgia builds but the rest are just basically trying out all different vehicles that attract me, trying to see what I like best. The Pathfinder is far more nostalgic and personal/emotional for me. 

Can you possibly be satisfied keeping the Pathfinder stock? Any subconscious desire to, I dunno, twin-turbo it and make some sort of alternate universe Bronco Raptor-fighter?

I know it's hard to believe but for some reason, I just love the way a stock Pathfinder SE looks. Sure, I considered building an amazing restomod vision of what could be and to be honest, if this were in lesser condition, I would have been open to just that. But my goal in the search over this last decade has been to find the most original and mint specimen I could find. When I first saw this one, I knew it was what I needed. 

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However, the photos I saw didn't really show the condition of the paint. When it arrived here in Virginia, I was a bit let down. The entire passenger side was chalk red. It looked like the clearcoat had been baked right off from the California sun. And although the driver side looked much better, it had buffer burn marks over the entire surface. This process had done quite a bit of damage to the factory stripe. Luckily the passenger side stripe was near perfect. I attempted to do some hand polishing which didn't do much. But then I tried a very light wet sanding in a few areas and quickly realized this paint might just be salvageable. My good friend brought his paint meter over and I was ecstatic to learn there was quite a bit more paint on it than I expected. This allowed another good friend of mine, who owns and operates Blackops Auto Pro , to spend an entire week doing a full paint correction. 

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And I must admit that my expectations were far exceeded. I could not believe how rich and vibrant the paint could look. Knowing that paint correction was first on the list, I set out to start acquiring as many NOS parts as I could from Nissan. Luckily, I have a friend who works the parts department at a Virginia dealer and he tracks down rare parts for me, providing me with the PN and dealer number. More often than not, the inventory is wrong and the parts are missing but sometimes, I do get lucky. 

I found a new passenger side front fender flare, hood vents, Nissan emblem, driver side stripe kit, rear dome light, exterior door handles, front door window seals and lower molding/squeegees along with some various other pieces. 

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New BFG A/T 31"x10.5"x15" tires were installed along with new Bilstein shocks. Although the OEM adjustable suspension still worked, they were just too far gone to keep. With the new shocks, a new center drag link and a fresh alignment, this vehicle drives remarkably well. The original head unit was long gone so I did fit it with an aftermarket Blaupunkt that is styled like the '80s model, albeit with Bluetooth. 

The only items remaining on the docket are dry ice blasting of the engine bay, chassis and wheel wells, painting the front and rear bumpers, and then just doing some minor cosmetics like replacing the driver side armrest, finding a replacement sunroof cover, and replacing the driver side seat bolster foam. The original owner of this vehicle averaged less than 3,000 miles a year until he parked it for seven years, until 2020. The California weather kept rust at bay and I have actually never seen any chassis cleaner on a vehicle like this. The wheel studs and suspension bolts are still fully cad plated with no corrosion. It's quite remarkable and for all these reasons, this vehicle must remain as close to stock as possible. They are only original once and it's important to preserve vehicles like this for people to be able to see and experience what they were like new. 

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Seems like the Pathfinder invokes strong memories of your dad. How does it reflect who he was, his interests and personalities?

My history with '87 Pathfinders is quite strong. As mentioned before, my dad has had a huge influence over my love for all things automotive. And being a Nissan guy through and through, that's where my passion started. I remember having Datsun 510s all over the place growing up. There were four or five at one time, and I have fond memories of pretending to drive an old empty shell in the backyard. My dad traded in his 1984 Nissan 720 ST for a blue Pathfinder XE in 1987. It was a base model with no radio and no A/C but I absolutely loved it. I will never forget how cool those rear triangle pop out windows were to me. I really don't know why I was so attached other than that, but I always loved them.

Although my first vehicle was another similar example to one my dad bought new in 1987, the Nissan Maxima SE, I decided to sell that one day when I saw a red '87 Pathfinder SE in a local driveway. I convinced the guy to sell it and I drove it from about 1997-2000. I then found another one locally in early-mid 2000s and convinced him to sell that too. Don't really recall why I sold it, but have pretty much wanted another ever since. 

Are there any specific memories you want to make with the Pathfinder ... perhaps reliving some adventure you had in it as a kid?

I just want to enjoy it. It's a great vehicle to drive, albeit slow as hell. It gets lots of looks and thumbs up. I am pleased that my 9 year old son seems to love it like I used to and so I hope to create some fond memories with him. My dad loves it, too, and states that it's his favorite vehicle I have purchased in a long time. 

What's the latest on the 300ZX that was one of our highlights at the 2021 Toyo Treadpass area at SEMA last year?

The Z had an unfortunate incident on Christmas day of 2021. My son and I were out for a cruise since it was 70 degrees out. We were coming home from a nice long drive and while revving out to about 9,000 RPM, a valve in the number five cylinder dropped. I cut the vehicle off immediately but it was already too late. Luckily, I found someone who gave me a great deal on a factory new RB26 head and it's currently getting a milder build with Headgames. Similar cams but stock sized valves and pocket port only. It may not make as much peak power but it will likely be more fun under normal driving situations.

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I will need to get new pistons made and with a borescope, it appears that the cylinder wall can be honed. Will know more on that when I finally pull the engine. Hoping to have it back on the road by the end of the year.