To buy, or not to buy a suspension lift

[xyeller]

I have been checking out this board for a couple of weeks now and finally decided to add my first post. Im not a huge car guy but i know what i like. I saw an Xterra on a lift pass me the other day and since then I have decided that I HAVE to get one put on my 2001 Xterra XE 2wd V-6.

I have checked out all of the 3 or 4 lifts available that I was able to find and I have finally decided on the AC rancho 3" suspension lift. I know nothing about the mechanics of a car so I need some advice. Does the lift from AC come with everything I will need. I have seen some people who have also bought the AC AAL's 14 pack to go along with the lift. I want to put Goodyear 32x11.5 MT/R's under it once it is lifted. I don't want to have to do any trimming. I don't normally go off-roading, but occassionally I have to (its every mans duty). Can anyone tell me everything I will need to add the lift and it be perfect, and should I let an expert put it on or is it an easy do-it-yourselfer?

~Xyeller:smoka:

[ozxterra]

I just did a Calmini AAL setup and new torsion bars. A arms and shackles are in the works. I have 31' Wrangler MT/R's under it. A very nice setup.. I am not sure about the Calmini quick disconnects for my swaybar though.. there isnt really anything "quick" about them...

The job wasnt hard but any more than that and you are looking at putting in some serious time and you will want at least one other mechanically inclined buddy to help you out. Plenty of large C-clamps and tools help too.

You might want to talk to Mosi or Anti Tree Hugger. They have done that sort of thing before to an X.


PS - why do you want to lift a 4X2?? just curious....

[Schludwiller]

I don't have the AC lift, but you might want to research some complaints about difficulty with alignment and a-arms that are too long with their lift kit.

The 14-leaf spring pack is a Rancho pack supposedly manufactured by National Spring. SLR also has a similar leaf pack without the load leafs. It makes a very big improvement on the rear susupension if you can afford it.

You don't necessarily need to buy the entire lift from the same company. Check out www.spencerlowracing.com and www.purenissan.com for additional options.

The biggest pain in the ass with doing the lift yourself is removing the stock upper a-arm. With the SLR lift you also need to drop the front differential and remove the busings with a press or burn them out. If you're not mechanically inclined you might want to have someone do it to make sure it's done right. Personally I think if you're going to start modifying your truck out of the Nissan design, it's good to know how it works and how it's installed in case things go wrong out on the trail. Not to mention the parts are expensive enough without paying labor on top of it.