mjotrainbrain

I think I get it now, but just to be sure: Stock springs are weakest Ones I linked to are strongest OME springs would be in the middle

So if I want to keep with stuff designed for the R50 the ones I linked to are the best out there? How much firmer are they than stock?

I am looking for new rear coils for my 02 QX4. I notice that it sags fairly significantly (to the point where my lift disappears and beyond) when I load it up with gear for camping or when towing a relatively light trailer. I currently have fleury's 2" spacer lift installed which is great off-road and helps keep it off the bump-stops when loaded up, but it still squats. In my search for a better solution, the best I have found is these "medium duty coils". http://www.4x4parts.com/i-18981486-pathfinder-medium-duty-rear-coils.html I am hoping that something tougher exists, but I can't seem to find it. Also, does something more heavy duty exist that is also longer than stock? If I could get a firmer spring that also replaces my current spacers, that would be great. If something Pathfinder-specific doesn't exist, are there other options? I was thinking that maybe WJ lift springs could be used. My thought process is this: a 4" SFD requires 3" lift springs in the rear, so maybe my 2" lift would work well with 1" WJ lift springs?

Those are some nice pictures! I really like how it's clearly night time but you've managed to illuminate everything so well. Good work!

It looks good! Isn't it funny how you say you won't modify it, then this site ruins that?

I really like what you did with the headliner! Just for future reference, what did you use for material?

I had the same situation as mickmutante. Is your alignment ok, because that could cause this.

Make sure to post your MPG improvement!

Now that I've had 2 alignments done, it finally drives straight. Now, without further adieu, before and after pictures! Before: After: I'm pretty happy with the results myself! It sits almost exactly 2" higher all around, which is nice. I probably won't be doing many/any major mods to it for a while, but hopefully I'll have a few more things done by summer's end.

Cool, can't wait! Will the front bumper be winch-compatible?

This is very cool! I have a question: You list some products to come in the future (front/back bumpers, sliders), any idea when these will be released and how much they might cost?

Wow, lots of work getting done! I can't wait to see the upcoming changes.

I don't know how to solve your problem, but fore pictures there is a little symbol that you click when making a post. You will need the picture's URL, so it is helpful to upload the picture to a site like Photobucket. Good luck!

That's super cool! He's probably been eyeing the truck since day 1!

I decided to separate the spacers because I've heard it mentioned before that stacking spacers directly on top of one another could result in the spacer failing. I'm sure its fine enough either way, I just decided to do this. The spare is really nice, I wish all my tires matched it! The tires I have on right now do not have a very aggressive tread unfortunately...

That would make sense, except it was doing it at very slow speeds on perfectly flat ground; the suspension wasn't moving at all. I'm just going to have to take a close look later. And yes, I will clean it! It's 90°F right now though, so later.

Dang, that really sucks! At least you got it fixed. Now I'm going to have to double check my lug nuts!

Well, I got some work done today! First I went to Advance Auto Parts and picked up some parts for fixing my CV boot. I got grease and a couple of clamps. After picking that stuff up (which I will be installing tomorrow) I started digging into the rear end so I could finish my lift. After disconnecting the shock and sway bar link from the driver's side, I discovered that I still couldn't get the axle to move down far enough; I could get the coil out, but there was no way it was going back in with another 2" added to it! I decided to head down to Auto Zone and see what they had in the way of a spring compressor. Neither I nor my dad wanted to use one as we understood there was a reason they had earned the nickname of "widow-maker". It turned out Auto Zone has an awesome system where you can borrow tools! This was great, because it didn't cost me a dime to use a tool I will probably never need again. This allowed us to finally get spacers in the rear! The lift was nearing completion; needless to say, I was getting excited! After driving around with gangsta lean for a week, I was anxious for it to be level again. You'd think that after doing the driver's side, where we figured out what we were doing and any parts/tools that needed to be gotten had been gotten, the passenger side should go quickly. We ran into one issue though; the sway link wouldn't come off! The darn bolt just spun. And yes, I was holding it on the other side with a wrench. Ended up just hacksawing it off. When the coil compressors were returned to Auto Zone, a Duralast link was purchased. Don't know when that will be installed; maybe tomorrow? Of course, there was one last surprise in store. Nothing much, but it still counts as something. I lowered the axle too far and the differential breather tube popped off. Thankfully, my dad was watching and noticed; I may not have. Somehow we both forgot to watch hoses. At least it wasn't a brake line! I will try to get pictures up of the full lift tomorrow. So far all of the pictures I've put on here have been cell phone pictures. The before/after shots were/are being done with a proper camera. I will also put my before/after numbers for height at wheel wells on this thread. One last thing. Something in the back end is making a dinging sound, like a bicycle bell. Anyone know what it could be? It sounds too crisp and clear to be coming from inside the axle or something. My current hypothesis is that it is a part of the heat shielding (which was already falling off) that is touching the driveshaft or something. I haven't had the chance to look too closely yet and don't intend to until I wash it-everything has a nice flaky layer of clay on it. I wonder how that got there! Also, I am finally on summer vacation, so hopefully I can spend some more time taking care of little details here and there. I'll probably end up getting really bored and detailing it a few times over the coming months.

Thanks! That will be helpful. Hopefully I don't have to replace the whole boot, but there's lots of good information in that video.

Also, I hope you all can forgive me for putting a picture of a Toyota on a Nissan forum! In my honest opinion (although biased) I think our generation of Pathfinder is a better suited for offroad than his generation of 4Runner. Not that the '06 4Runner is any kind of a slouch, but its major negative to me is a rather low handing crossmember. Although 4Runners do have that awesome rear window... My friend's has a center locker and a V8, which is nice.

Well, this update isn't all happy and cheery-there is some bad news. However, there is also some fun stuff, so I'm going to cover that first. I have one day left of school, so I got together with a couple of friends to ride bikes. One thing led to another, and before we knew it we were offroad. (Yes, we did actually ride bikes; about 45 minutes. Lots of fun there!) Here are some pics. The other truck is my friend's new-to-him 2006 4Runner. So that's all of the happy fun stuff. On the way home, I heard a scraping noise. Turned out it was this clip that had come disconnected...meaning it was no longer clamping the outside passenger CV boot on! Of course, this was the mess it had left by the time I made it home! I guess this is another thing to have to fix this weekend. It should be repairable with just some new grease and a new clip; less than $15, so I guess that's good. My theory as to why this happened is this: over the past few months, I had noticed some strange substance splattered onto the passenger side of the QX4. I just assumed it was some kind of nasty road stuff, but it continually returned. I hadn't thought anything of it until now. I think that the boot was already leaking, and when I was moving everything around during the installation of the lift, it just got make worse, and when I put the truck in 4wd and pushed power through the driveshaft, it popped off. That's just my theory though. Whatever happened, the fact is that it needs fixing.

From what I have heard (and seen in a couple of threads) 31s fit no problem, 32s it depends on the particular tire and your wheels, 33s (which I've only seen fit once before, don't remember where any more) will fit if you're willing to hack up or altogether remove your wheel wells and do some fender trimming. Personally, I'm planning on getting 32s once I can afford them.

hawairish, your points are very valid and I think I am certainly leaning more towards leaving it on. On road handling is very important for something that spends 90%+ of its life on pavement. And as you mentioned, articulation from the rear axle seems plenty adequate even with the sway bar in place.

Just to keep y'all updated, here's what's going on: I am planning to install the back half of the lift this Saturday, the 11th. That's a good thing, since I just cut my head on the trunk. 6 foot 3 problems I guess. The Cali-lean is kind of annoying, as is the awful alignment. I can't wait to have those both fixed up!

Hmm, I hadn't considered the issue of 'emergency scenarios'. I had just been thinking about how the truck would handle under normal driving conditions. I think just because of the occasional emergency, it would be nice to have the swaybar in place.