4x4 Advice requested

Hello everyone!

I live in Arizona and just bought a 2004 4x4 Xterra. Our requirements when buying it were to be able to tow a trailer and to (hopefully) be able to pull the trailer out of sand or mud if it got stuck (hence the 4x4).

Now that we have it, we are itching to take it out and try it out 4-wheeling. I didn't get the limited slip rear end on it (we wanted the 2004 incentives and there wasn't much in the way of selection. . .), so I don't quite know what to expect.

My father has an amazingly capable Toyota Landcruiser, and I know better than to expect that kind of performance, but I am curious to know what I should expect.

Can anyone tell me definitively what happens if I have one tire off the ground? Will I be immobile? Or does it take one tire off the ground from each axle to render me immobile?

I am trying to figure out if I want/need to get an arb locker or similar to even be able to take the thing out for off roading.

If anyone can point me at a message board that actually deals specifically with 4x4 Xterras I would really appreciate it.

Thanks for any help! :)

-Verxion

Starters congraulations on the new ride. :)

off road mods.

#1. Sliders (IMHO) there is debate between Calmini and Shrockworks, I like the Shrockworks because of the pivioting and side fending ability. also very easy to use a hi-lift on.

www.shrockworks.com

#2. TIRES... I say tires 2nd because new stock tires have good treads. once half of the tread is gone replace them, if you are going off road. BFGoodrich ALL terrain AT/KO's 31x10.5R15 are excellent.!!

regarding the locker right now there is only the ARB for the xterra
some have done some serious mod'ing and put in Detroit's
also LocRight has one. not selectible. you won't really need it unless you really like deep mud or rock gardens where you never know what shoe is hitting the ground.

With open diffs, if you lift a tire, that end of the vehicle is going to do nothing at all.
It is possible to have diagonally-opposite tires unweighted and spinning while you're "teeter-tottering" on the other two which will leave neither of the two tires that are firmly planted putting any useful power down. This is where a rear locker comes in very handy, as you will always have at least one corner firmly planted AND receiving power.
However, I suspect for your needs a locker would be overkill, it is very unlikely that you would get the trailer stuck to the point where the usual 4WD would not suffice.

Brent

I thought Powertrax made a locker for the X?

Oh, and this forum does deal with 4x4 X's. Use the search features to help locate topics. Towing a trailer you might consider an aftermarket transmission cooler.

No, no, no, no, no... Powertrax does NOT make a locker for the Xterra. They make a 31-spline H233B locker, but ALL V6 Xterras have the 33-spline H233B diff.

I'll be surprised if I see on in our offroading club. All the utility seems to have been taken out of the body design, and it looks like it would be more vulnerable to damage in the winding tree alleys we have for trails here in the NW. There are some good mechanical changes, HP being a major one, but nothing that having an ARB locker and 4:1 gears in my 2000 would make me miss. :D