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Wheel Alignment....."Recommendations"


rc_cola_j
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So some of you may have seen my post in the "What Did You Do to Your Pathfinder" topic......I had a lot of work done on my front end this past weekend which included the addition of some Fleury's spacers (1.5" Front and 1" Rear). This is in addition to an OME Spring + Shock/Strut lift I had previously done.

 

So I dropped her off for a wheel alignment this morning. When I picked it up this afternoon, the following "recommendation" was on the bill:

 

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I talked to the guy for a bit. He thinks the angles on the CV joints are too extreme and also mentioned that if he were me, he would get custom or aftermarket lower control arms that would better suit the lift. What have you experienced with these issues?

 

Are there aftermarket control arms or different CVs available for R50 pathfinders?

 

My next upgrade plan was going to be a set of 'offset' rims(and maybe...maybe bigger tires). If I get some rims that will offset the wheels and make my stance wider, will that help with the angles on the CVs?

 

It's a lot of of questions.....I'm just worried I'm going to do more damage.

 

 

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Larger tires and offsets create additional stress on the balljoints, steering components, and the cv axleshafts. You should be ok though. Take it easy on the skinny pedal and wheel smart. It would be a good time to practice your cv shaft replacement skills just in case lol

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Your at the same height as me... (The max without SFD)

The main thing is to run Manual Hubs to save the CV joints on highway driving.

 

Next I recommend jacking up your frame and getting a feel for the extent of your CV binding at full droop. Mine binds at full droop but will still rotate by hand... So at full droop I don't want to flog on the throttle and snap a CV. And if you break a CV unlock the hubs and go drive home.

 

My truck aligned perfectly with a 1.75 degree camber bolt mounted in the top hole. No control arm swap necessary, that's a huge thing on Suzukis (SX4's) and it seems like CRVs from what I've seen so the mechanic may just have not been overly familiar with the Nissans.

Edited by LittleFR
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Your at the same height as me... (The max without SFD)

The main thing is to run Manual Hubs to save the CV joints on highway driving.

 

Next I recommend jacking up your frame and getting a feel for the extent of your CV binding at full droop. Mine binds at full droop but will still rotate by hand... So at full droop I don't want to flog on the throttle and snap a CV. And if you break a CV unlock the hubs and go drive home.

 

My truck aligned perfectly with a 1.75 degree camber bolt mounted in the top hole. No control arm swap necessary, that's a huge thing on Suzukis (SX4's) and it seems like CRVs from what I've seen so the mechanic may just have not been overly familiar with the Nissans.

I have manual hubs. He got everything aligned, also with 1.75 degree bolts.....don't know which hole he put them in though.

 

You say no need for different control arms, but does anyone make them?

 

I'll check it at full droop this weekend and see how bad it is.

 

 

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Your at the same height as me... (The max without SFD)

The main thing is to run Manual Hubs to save the CV joints on highway driving.

 

Next I recommend jacking up your frame and getting a feel for the extent of your CV binding at full droop. Mine binds at full droop but will still rotate by hand... So at full droop I don't want to flog on the throttle and snap a CV. And if you break a CV unlock the hubs and go drive home.

 

My truck aligned perfectly with a 1.75 degree camber bolt mounted in the top hole. No control arm swap necessary, that's a huge thing on Suzukis (SX4's) and it seems like CRVs from what I've seen so the mechanic may just have not been overly familiar with the Nissans.

How much lift is "Max", in this case with your two set ups?

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With his OME's I'm not sure which duty in the front plus his 1.5" spacers (I'm not sure if he meant the spacer is a 1" block for 1.5" or 1.5" for 2" of actual lift) either way he's between 2.25 and 2.75 overall lift in the front.

 

I have Moog front springs (which took out the stock sag + maybe 1/4") and 2" front spacers for 2.5" +

So right around 2.5-2.75

 

The rear doesn't matter you can go high enough to match a SFD and AC coils if you want.

 

The front is all that matters. 2.5" is really the highest you can go without SFD and not break a CV if you get it in a bind. 2.75 is Total Max and you gotta be careful at full droop wheeling and 3" is just going to break CVs all day and is actually dangerous and difficult to even get under the truck. People have done it but all I've seen backed down to just coil lift or smaller spacers.

 

AC coils and spring packers can cause their own issues with top out...

 

It's just my personal opinion but I would never recommend anybody go over 2.75" (2.5" really if they wheel hard) and I wouldn't suggest anybody consider a lift without lockout hubs.

 

EDIT: Chilkoot is running 3" lift on R50 without SFD. Maybe he will chime in. My CVs bind as it is maybe he's luckier or knows a trick to wheeling with it.

Edited by LittleFR
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Your at the same height as me... (The max without SFD)

The main thing is to run Manual Hubs to save the CV joints on highway driving.

 

Next I recommend jacking up your frame and getting a feel for the extent of your CV binding at full droop. Mine binds at full droop but will still rotate by hand... So at full droop I don't want to flog on the throttle and snap a CV. And if you break a CV unlock the hubs and go drive home.

 

My truck aligned perfectly with a 1.75 degree camber bolt mounted in the top hole. No control arm swap necessary, that's a huge thing on Suzukis (SX4's) and it seems like CRVs from what I've seen so the mechanic may just have not been overly familiar with the Nissans.

I got the front end off the ground today.....the CV's do bind at full droop. I'll just be very careful not to get to a full droop scenario if going off road. Sigh.

 

 

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