hawairish

1. I've never needed spring compressors for the rear, and that includes fitting lift springs and spacers. Remove tires, disconnect the shocks, support one end of axle with a jackstand (highest setting), use a jack on the other end to lower the other side of the axle. The spring will almost fall out. Be mindful of the breather hose and center brake line. Like so: My sway bar end links were disconnected at the time because I was doing other work, but disconnecting them is not necessary. 2. Yes, re-use the plastic piece. There's a top rubber isolator that also gets re-used. 3. Nope, both ends are the same.

I'm doing it because the parts were given to me, the amount of work required to document the process is trivial to me, and because others have been asking me for info about them. Why should you care what anyone else does, and who the fskc do you think you are telling anyone else what to do or not do, or calling me a douchebag? You shared your opinion, I acknowledged it, so *&^! off instead of calling people names.

Ok.

For yours, all you need is the complete axle shaft assemblies (shaft, brakes, etc.) pulled directly from the donor, and the hard brake lines from the axle. You may also want the master cyclinder on that donor since it has a higher split point than the drum-brake version. It's a bolt-on swap from what I understand. For R50 owners, they'll need to break down the axle shafts, swap the disc brake backing plate to their axles, and modify the parking brake cable a little. I have this particular project lined up on mine, with all the parts ready to go. Still deciding on which axle shafts to use, though, since that'll dictate which locker setup I go with.

Stay tuned for my write-up. You can use any open diff from any Pathfinder, just need the 31-spline axle shafts from a 99-00 Frontier. You don't necessarily need the gears either, just the carrier.

Yes, nearly an inch, but similar process. Should yield a smooth quick cut, though. Quicker probably better to minimize heat buildup, which can damage the finish behind the cut.

Google "Titan wheel bore" and check some of the videos. Personally, I'd stick with a router, but yes you can probably grind them out too.

That's a good outcome...brakes are easy, and changing that seal is cheap. Best to do them together since, well, you gotta disconnect the brakes lines and cables to replace that seal. May as well do both, too. RA sells the seals for about a $1/ea.

Cool. And you've probably seen this already, but one of the pics gives you an idea of what you're looking for through the fill hole: http://nissannut.com/projects/lock_right_h233b/ vs.

Try a VIN search at nissanpartsdeals.com, then drill down to the Rear Final Drive section. The diagrams should show what was available. A non-VIN search for an 87 only shows it having the 4-pinion. I've been using this site frequently for parts cross-references...in fact, coincidentally, most recently for cross-referencing 2-pinion open carriers in H233Bs. It's been very reliable. To confirm, you can peek into the fill hole on the diff and see the carrier without having to drain anything. Rotate the driveshaft, and if you see a solid carrier instead of side or spider gears, you've got the 4-pinion.

Powder coated steel? Sure they're not aluminum? Magnet test? I don't seem to run into any problems having a 2004, to be honest. I mean, nothing's ever available locally if you that's what you mean, but I get everything from RA without issue (noting that RA mingles parts from the 2004 Pathfinder Armada). I've gotten to the point where I'm stockpiling replacement parts. But then again, my truck will eventually be a frankenstein from other Nissan parts, then it'll get interesting. Love that burgundy color, btw. Good luck on things!

What's the material? Amazingly, I think I've seen 2-3 new vendors selling spacers in the past couple months.

They look exactly like mine, just without the stickers (and I pulled the stickers off mine, lost 1 horsepower). Mine were on the truck when I got them, so I don't know if the studs were changed or reused.

Yes, most guys report getting 2" or more with just the AC springs. Using the spacers with them would not be recommended (it'd be fine in the rear of you wanted more lift.

OMEs are 140 lbs/in. Yes, that link is for the AC ones.

Oops, try this instead: http://www.ebay.com/itm/291636320373

Well, the "real" Rugged Ridge ones are way overpriced, but you just need to find the generic ones, which are usually under $90. The only difference between the two is a logo sticker. For example, these: http://www.ebay.com/itm291636320373.

I don't think it'd be too tough to grind out. When guys have been doing the Titan wheel swap (or similar), where they have to bore out the hole, they use a router with guide roller on the bit. A Dremel probably wouldn't be terrible. Just be mindful of heat in both scenarios, as it may damage the finish on outside of the center cap hole. For the center cap, you could probably just put a thick o-ring around the recessed part and just wedge it in. I know you got a good deal on the hubs, but couldn't you also return them (or resell them) and go with the other hub style and save all the trouble?

Yeah, an aftermarket radio—even an inexpensive basic one—offers more features than OE these days. It might be the only place where I struggle to keep things OE. But, that said, I still have my OE Bose unit sitting around if you're interested.

Sorry Mojo, I meant that for tdurb1327 to get numbers for the AC springs. But, are you running stock springs? 100 lbs/in sounds about right for stock springs if they're worn a little...though if he just sat at the rear of the truck and not directly over the axle, that number would be a little lower than actual.

Bummer about fitment on those. That was my concern, just that little lip. Does the back of the hub not recess further into the wheel because it hits that lip? I tend to like the OE look, so not sure I could grind that lip if it meant not using the center caps. It seems like such a trivial detail, but I'm also the guy who bought an extra cap just to put it on spare tire. As for your other questions... The rear wheel bearings are well-protected, and that's not even factoring in the drum. I wouldn't worry about debris getting in. Most 6x5.5 wheel spacers you'll find are universal in that they'll have a large (108mm) wheel bore to fit anything with that wheel pattern. If you find some that are specifically for Toyota, then it just means they have 12mmx1.5 wheel studs, and possibly use mag-style lug nuts. If you can find some labelled for Nissan, they'll have 12mmx1.25 wheel studs. Anything for GM may have some standard thread. The ones you linked have Toyota threads, and depending on your preference you'd need to replace at least one set of lug nuts to use them...so I'd pass on those. Also, though because we have 100mm wheel bores, you may want some hub-centric rings to center them up. With the thicker spacers (say, >1") you shouldn't need new wheel studs. You may notice a little more resistance at the steering wheel. And because the wheels push out that much more, there's a little more work involved to move things, so more stress on ball joints and TREs. But, it wouldn't feel any different than if you just change the wheels to an offset with the same amount. However, a wheel spacer does introduce more points of failure.

Just curious, how are the rear springs when unloaded? Not too bad? I always hear about the front springs, but not the rears. You know, one way you could ballpark the spring rate for us is to maybe have 1-2 people sit in the cargo area between the wheel wells, then measure how much the rear lowers. Presuming the springs are constant rate, then it's simply lbs per in. So if two 200-lb guys make it 1" lower, then that's 400 lbs/in, or 200 lbs/in per spring. I wouldn't mind knowing if you have the means.

Nah, don't worry about the half oil change. Keeping the oil clean is the filter's job, and replacing it during your scheduled oil change is just fine. No tools should be needed for the filter. When it's replaced, you should only tighten it by hand anyway, so removing it shouldn't require much more than that. However, if it does feel too tight, let the truck run for a minute or so just to warm things up a little, then it should loosen up a little. Not sure if yours has the little "oil channel", but mine has a metal bracket that catches excess oil coming out from the filter port and channels it over the steering rack. I don't think the older trucks have this, but it's brilliant since it's the only part that gets oil on it (and it wipes clean easily). They do have wrenches and special oil filter sockets of course, but I've never needed them. Except one time. Some dipsh## changed the oil on my buddy's truck and deliberately over-tightened it. I had to destroy the filter (basically punched a large screwdriver through the filter) to remove it. How do I know it was deliberate? They wrote f#ckface on the filter for whatever reason. It wasn't even my truck and I was ready to burn their shop down.

Well, nothing prevents you from removing the oil filter without draining it. But no, you normally would not do this. You will drain some of it when you remove the filter, and there would be an unknown amount of oil remaining in the pan...you'd have to guess how much oil to replace. Why do you ask?

Was that for the front spring though? Front OE is 150 and OME is 200, so AC at 220 seems reasonable there. You'll like them. They've done well for me. Though, right now they appear to sag but it's because my truck doesn't rake unloaded. Working on that...