hawairish

Yes, it could make that much difference. When the upper perch is aligned with the lower perch, the axis of the spring is parallel (or near parallel) to the strut shaft, and load is distributed evenly to the spring along the strut shaft. If rotated, the spring tilts relative to the shaft, and load is no longer distributed evenly to the spring, and is also being applied at an angle. We should also not eliminate the rear from the discussion, though. Have you jumped on the rear of the truck or driven it around to relax the rear springs? It's not abnormal for them to recoup some height when they're removed, but they settle soon after. Did everything else seem to seat properly when re-installing things there? One more thing, going back to another point you mentioned...running the AC coils and the strut spacer will not be good. I wouldn't go much beyond 2" of total lift up front without an SFD. That slight ticking that you noticed that didn't feel too restrictive...well, that is likely still binding. Did you try it with the wheel turned by chance? The tick might be more pronounced.

Well, let's take a few steps back then... First, the maximum possible delta in height between the front and rear before and after spacer installation is .5"...and that assumes that the 1.5" strut spacers doesn't really net 2" of lift. It's only 1.5" tall because of the angle of the strut; similar to a right triangle where the hypotenuse is the strut, you wouldn't need 2" spacer to lift the front 2". Second, if you were standing several feet from the side of the vehicle and comparing the rake visually, but now with less reference between the tire and fender lip, do you think you could honestly tell that it's .5" more off? It would be difficult, unless you're a Masonic eagle. I've run several levels of spacers and SFDs, so I'm very familiar of the breakdown and installation of the components. That said, let's talk about the installation, and a very common mistake made when re-assembling the struts. The upper spring perch has a notch on the perimeter of it, and possibly a "W" stamped on the opposite side of the notch. "W" is for wheel, and that should face outward of the vehicle, towards the wheel. The notched side faces inward towards the engine. If those have been rotated, the spring will not sit at the correct angle, effectively lowering the front of the truck. Can you confirm this isn't the case? Pictures of the front and rear setup would also be useful in case we're missing something else.

That's sounds about normal, but where are you measuring from? The FSM has the specs and where to measure from, so you should be able to gauge the stock take from those numbers. But, of course, you're looking for things to sit level.

Wow, the original post makes me dislike our search function even more. Never seen this thread, and that's basically sums up everything I researched about the LSD the other month. Nonetheless, that's a really good original post! I re-geared to 4.636 when I did my LSD swap. I was pleasantly surprised at the difference it made. It just had a lot more pep because of the efficiency improvement. My tires are about a 5% driveline change, and the gearing change is about -6%, so it cancels out almost perfectly. As for MPG, I haven't calc'd it (yet, measuring on this tank), but it seems to be about the same....and I somewhat expect that. While it's now a little easier to turn the tires, the engine has to make more revolutions to go the same distance as before. It should all net out. I think the gearing change is worth it in general. I paid $140 per diff, and that basically included a free LSD. Again, pleasantly surprised with the restoration of power and torque...I remember thinking, "wow, is this what it was like stock?!".

Probably not issues, per se, but probably a noticeable gap between the theoretical pivot point height on the axle (bottom of the drivers side spring perch) and the real pivot point on the panhard bar mount. If that gap is greater than 2", then I'd suspect he has lift springs.

It's all about getting the clamp hooks far enough apart. It's also wise to make sure the threads are properly greased. On addition to the normal safety precautions, I also wrap the coil with a wet bath towel...it helps stabilize it in my garage floor, and acts as a dampener should something go wrong. I just have difficulty believing that rental spring compressors can't handle the springs, to be honest, and for a number of reasons. I say give it another try.

Hope you're not suggesting that I think anything Stioc did was bad or wrong. Quite the opposite considering I proposed doing it, too. Nothing wrong with being mindful of other systems at play, and voicing it so others can draw their own conclusions and do things correctly. I'm the nay-sayer when I need to, but I'm also the guy thinking about how to do things better and safer. ...unlike that 12" SFD guy whining about cracking a pair of Fleurys spacers and calling them crappy and cheap on the NPORA Facebook page. Looks to me like he's using low-grade carriage bolts meant for lumber, judging by the square seat under a dome-shaped bolt head. He's the kind of backyard mechanic we should avoid being like. There's no excuse for making a death trap.

Well, I've seen it for a few reasons, bigger engines being one of them. But yes, it would have to have some cooling benefits of it lifts the rear of the hood off the weatherstripping underneath it. It's just another way for air to escape the engine bay. My only real caution is that the hood and hinges are designed to 'catch' the firewall during a frontal collision to avoid entering the cabin as a giant blade. Probably not wise to defeat that function.

97Pathfinderman: see if there are any tags or labels on the rear springs. Also, count the number of wraps/coils and report back. A few of us can compare numbers to see if they're aftermarket. You can also measure the thickness of the coil. Fastpakr: the thing about the basic coil spring compressors is that you have to get the hooks as far apart as possible on the spring. I've not had any problem using them on OME MDs (a few times) or HDs. The HDs were a little tricky because I had to disassemble the compressors (basically just unscrew one of the hooks) slide it in near the coil ends, use a mallet to tap them over a little, and then thread the bolts. I was able to get them opposite of eachother, too, basically getting every coil except the ends, of course. Took more effort than MDs, but was doable.

Hey dude, sorry about the delayed response here. Couldn't remember which thread it was... So I bought these Centric brake line p/ns from Rock Auto: 15042115: 2008-2013 Nissan Rogue, front right 15042116: 2008-2013 Nissan Rogue, front left 15042354: 1998-2004 Nissan Frontier, 2000-2004 Nissan Xterra, rear w/ VDC There are cheaper options. I bought these particular ones because at the time, RA posted the dimensional specs which I compared to R50 lines to confirm a match. The front lines required a little bit of filing to the strut bracket where the hose clips. I remember one hose having a better shape on the hose to work with, but couldn't tell which side was which. They were good for about 2" extra length, but more if you fab up a bracket. The rear line was good for nearly 6" extra. And yes, I think I will sell the PHB drop if you're interested...but only selling for what I paid. I put some gray epoxy paint on it already.

Guess I could've explained the magic, but there it is. Yeah, I've got no major concerns about water on the engine either...for short periods of time. I wash my engines down at the spray-n-wash all the time. Rain's not an issue where I live for the most part (but when it does rain, it pours here...monsoons + El Nino). But I'm talking about driving vs. parking. If I'm driving, no worries: it'll steam or drip off from motion. I wouldn't want for it to be parked with water dripping into the engine bay for prolonged periods of time, especially atop the engine where water can pool in some places.

So, you've not seen Andy's setup yet?? Just kidding... This guy (Silverhorn) over at NICO has a cool setup: Though judging by some engine pics, there's really no good placement if dripping water is a concern. However, I'd think it only be a decent concerned while parked, no? I know I've seen hoods propped up a little at the hinges for venting. It'd probably look awkward at the fender lines, but I'd think lifting it off the rear weatherstrip a little would help. Or maybe even removing the weatherstrip altogether? I think the cowl is already shaped to drain water to the sides below where the weatherstrip is installed (too lazy to go outside to check).

How much did it end up being? When I bought mine a while ago, it was all included in the price. But still, sounds like it's a $100, 25% discount. Not bad. Also, the HD shaft only comes with the R50 version, otherwise the cross shaft gets re-used.

Yes, it's supposed to on yours. Came with the two I received the other month.

Good stuff, Kyle. In fact, that's kind of why I was asking...I had been looking at some OE Mustang, Grand Prix, or GTO hood vents that have drip trays. But they also looked to be rather restrictive. Of course, every bit helps, and what hot air isn't blown under the truck while driving will surely escape where it can. Even at slow speeds, hot air rising of course.

What's the plan to get them back in?

Seen a particular set of louvers that you liked? I've been thinking about them too.

I'm just surprised the flange nut came loose in the first place. The torque on that is relatively high, I believe...I want to say near 50 ft-lbs. But yeah, glad it was at low speed, that could've been really bad. Just imagine: at one point, the truck was fully supported by the ball joint and a twisted spring...and that's about it!

Were there any extra costs for S&H/customs?

Gotcha, just one of those flange nuts. Still a little surprising, but glad it wasn't any worse. May even want to check out the ball joint and spring once it's all apart.

That's really surprising/odd for a few reasons. I wonder if the nut was on too tight, though, enough to damage the threads on the strut. That's all it takes to that failure. It wasn't a nylock nut?

PM replied. Yep, it's exactly as MY1PATH described. Just detach the brakes, pull the axles out (a little for the carrier, completely for the seals), undo the driveshaft, undo the 11 nuts on the diff housing, and that's about it. Changing the seal is also a good idea, and of course you'll need a new gasket (or sealant) for the diff, and a razor blade to scrape off any old gasket material on the axle housing. In your case, you just need to unbolt the pinion flange from the driveshaft. Here's a pic taken from the internet of two H233B diffs (the lower one being from a newer model that has the ABS tone ring and sensor on the snout). As you can see, it's an all-in-one unit. You could replace the internals, but far easy to just replace the whole unit.

Strut popped out?! Like the top nut shot off, or the strut shaft failed? Bet that was good for a WTF moment!

Possibly, but wouldn't this be apparent from a deformity on the hose? I'm also curious to know what about the piston needed re-honing, or what method was used. I've taken fine emery paper to a sticky piston before, but I wouldn't call it re-honing. Any sort of return issues I've had were related to dry main pins.

Did you get any grease or fluid on the rotors maybe? What do you mean by the "caliper hanging up"...it doesn't return to it's 'floating' position? Did you grease the pins?