Outiffing '03 SE/SC for expedition use

[Skobi]

Hey Everyone!

Well, about 2 months ago I purchased a new 2003 Xterra. Supercharged with Leather and full load of options. Last weekend I participated in an offroad driving class with Offroad Academy in Vancouver. I highly recommend this course to anyone in the area! It was awesome, and really showed you the limitations of your vehicle. Anyway, now it is time for me to consider upgrades for my X. I want to stay as stock as possible and only do worthwhile upgrades as my goal is to build a reliable all purpose offroad expedition machine (a la Camel Trophy style).

As with most vehicles I gather tires are the first upgrade.

I would like to stay away from lifts of possible but can I reasonably fit a 32" tire on my truck and still have usable suspension travel? Also Could a lift be done easily by just using shackles in the rear and tightening the tortion bars up front (perhaps upgrade them)?

One problem is that I have 17" wheels on the truck that came with the SC model. Naturally I have not been able to find any M/T that will fit on 17". Does anyone have any recommendations? A/T's are also an option, specifically Geolanders.

Full underbody protection will be my next step and then a bullbar with hydraulic winch. Any recommendation there?

Any and all info is appreciated! I am very much looking forward to building up my X over the next while.


Cheers,

Skobi

[pnwbeers]

Tires are definately the first priority to upgrade. 32s will fit stock with no problems, you may need to do some extremely minor plastic trimming up front with a dremel or exacto knife. I am actually running the exact shackle setup you described - 1.5" calmini shackles in back and a T-bar crank up front. It looks much better than stock and cuts down (but doesn't eliminate) the minor rubbing you'll get with the tires. I have BFG AT/KOs and I love them. If you want an AT tire they are the best on the market, in my opinion. Others prefer Dueler Revos, which are also a great choice. From what I've heard, the Geolanders are a good tire, but wear rather quickly. As far as your wheels go you can probably sell your rims on ebay for quite a bit, and then use the proceeds to pick up some used stock 15s or 16s.

One other thing - if you are going to be doing much offroading you should lose the brush guard. It hurts your approach angle and if you slide into a ditch or hit something you will compound the damage signifcantly.

[ChuckH]

If you're going to be doing a lot of offroading and expeditions I would get some 15" wheels for your offroad tires. With the money you will save on the tires you will easily be able to pay for the wheels and you end up with tons more tire choices and an easier time getting a replacement tire out in the sticks, if you need one. You will also get a better ride when offroad due to the extra sidewall.

As far as tires go, the Geolander is a good A/T for mild offroading, but it's not as sturdy and won't last as long as the BFG A/T. I would say the Bridgestone Revo would be the next in line to the BFG with more onroad performance, but not as sturdy offroad. If you go with an M/T, the Bridgestone DUeler M/T and the BFG M/T seem to be the best compromise between offroad and onroad. Most other M/T's are too agressive for street use and either won't last long or will vibrate badly on the the road.

If you put a bullbar and winch on you will definately want to upgrade the torsion bars. Get some Bilstien shocks too while you're at it.

Skids are a good idea. The ones Nissan gives you aren't much more than decoration. The engine oil pan has no cover at all, nor does the automatic transmission pan, if you have the auto. If you're not rock crawling and you're careful, you can probably get by, but you should definately keep them on your list.

Rock sliders are a good idea too! Calmini and Schrockworks make nice ones.

Good for you for taking the course at Offroad Academy! A few of us have spent time with them and their setup is most excellent. Nice guys too!

[Schludwiller]

Shackles will just flatten out the lame nissan leaf springs and you'll have a terrible ride in the back. 3-leaf AAL from Spencer Low Racing is you best best, then HD torsion bars up front to even things out. Then shocks too, oh and while you're through all that you might as well get the new a-arms. Hey, I guess you just bought yourself a lift.

Get some 15" steel wheels from your service department. They have great deals if you work 'em a bit.

[pnwbeers]

Originally Posted by Schludwiller

Shackles will just flatten out the lame nissan leaf springs and you'll have a terrible ride in the back.

I don't really think that's true, at least to a point. Longer shackles don't increase the load on the spring at all - it's still got exactly the same amount of weight on it. It may slightly change the proportion of weight between the front and rear of the spring, but it's not going to have much of an impact. Driving it offroad a lot or carrying a lot of weight in the back is what causes the crappy springs to flatten.

[hobbes69]

This is only a guess, but I'll make a stab at it. I think the problem with shackles is that it allows your factory leaf springs to flex beyond what they are designed for therefore wearing them out prematurely. Dunno, sounds good anyway

Richard

[Schludwiller]

I just go on experience. A couple years back, us old 2000'ers. were all slapping 2" shackles on our trucks. Not long after, just about everyone had flattened springs. There are also problems with the Rancho AAL as the Nissan leaf can bend past the shorter/stiffer Rancho-leaf and cause metal stress where the leaf starts to bend over the new leaf.

Originally Posted by hobbes69

This is only a guess, but I'll make a stab at it. I think the problem with shackles is that it allows your factory leaf springs to flex beyond what they are designed for therefore wearing them out prematurely. Dunno, sounds good anyway

Richard

[Skobi]

Thanks for all the great info guys! I have found some old stock 15' steel rims that I will pick up Monday. I have decided to fit 31x10.5 Goodyear MT/R tires. They have gotten rave reviews and are decent on tarmac for a off road tire. Skid plates will be next since I dont think I will need a lift with 31's.

I'll post pics once I get the tires and let you know how they are.

Cheers,

Sven

[Schludwiller]

Get 32's. They'll fit without a lift, and you'll want 32's when you do get a lift. Just saves you $$$.

[pnwbeers]

Originally Posted by Schludwiller

Get 32's. They'll fit without a lift, and you'll want 32's when you do get a lift. Just saves you $$$.

Emphatic ditto!

[4tuna]

Regarding comments on shackles, ChuckH posted the following in the suspension forum:
"Shackles don't stress the springs by themselves. WHat happens is they allow the spring pack to flex more before it encounters the bumpstop. The extra flex is what eventually hurts the springs. If you're not offroading they are fine, but the AAL's are still a more sensible first step."