90-95 Pathfinder Body Lift

[statikuz]

alrighty, found this from way back when i did my body lift, its kinda disorganized but with as many people asking about it i suppose i can post it here and work on it so its a little more presentable, but for now its good for dredging at least some information out of... 88 et. al... if you could read this and give some input that would be super... its been a long time since i did this and i never really finished this writeup properly so i undoubtedly missed important things =D

Edited July 21, 2005 by statikuz

[statikuz]

This guide is definitely a work in progress, I wrote it back when I had just barely finished my lift, and still didn't really know what I was talking about (not that that's changed any ) Some things might sound kind of stupid but hopefully they'll get edited out and fixed with better advice.

 

Time Frame: Depending on your skill, how diligently you work on it, and how many hangups you encounter, a body lift can take anywhere from 4 hours to a few days. If at ALL possible, secure a garage that your Pathfinder can stay in for a couple of days, with enough space to stack parts and tools and whatnot around. This will make it MUCH easier than doing it in your driveway and having to pack everything up at the end of every day.

 

Tools:

 

You'll need to get your hands on quite a few tools in order to complete this. You won't need anything too specialized, just some typical hand tools, including the following:

 

-a GOOD socket set. You will need 8mm, 10mm, 12mm, 14mm, 17mm, 19mm, and a whole lot of other sockets, for loosening everything from body mounting bolts to hose clamps. Make sure you have these in different sizes, usually a 3/8" drive wrench will work for most uses, however, a 1/4" ratchet will help for tight spots, and a 1/2" wrench/bar will make breaking those body mount bolts loose a WHOLE lot easier. Of course this goes without saying, if you can get your hands on a high-torque impact or air wrench, the process will be easier. However, this is entirely unnecessary. No power tools are needed.

 

-a floor jack. Or two. Or three. You will be, pardon the expression, doing a lot of jacking. You'll need a jack that raises pretty high in order to jack your body up enough to slide your lift blocks in [more on this later]. You'll also need assorted blocks of wood, both to place on top of your jack to protect the body, and if you have big pieces, to place under the jack [as long as it doesn't have wheels], which will get you a little more height.

 

The Kit:

 

Pathfinder body lifts are produced by Performance Accessories. PA has a specific application for the 90-92 Pathfinders, however, a kit for the 93-95 Pathfinders is available as well, but only from Automotive Customizers, aka "AC", at www.4x4parts.com. AC purchases, en masse, 90-92 kits from PA, opens them all up, and adds the proper body bolts, as the bolt types changed over the years. Everything else in the kits is identical, including the instructions. The kit will include, or at least mine included:

 

-10 black reinforced nylon lift blocks

-6 Grade 5 silver body mount bolts [three lines on the bolt head]

-4 silver metric body mount bolts [you will only need TWO of these]

-2 black metric body mount bolts

-a fuel filler line extension, a short, fat, thin-walled silver pipe

-a new fuel vent line, about 2' of Goodyear 1/2" black rubber hose

-four gold front bumper relocation brackets

-a whole lot of washers/Nylock nuts

 

Bumper Removal:

 

You'll need to remove the front bumper before you lift the body. The bumper bolts to mounting brackets, which pass through holes in the body and bolt to the frame. If you jack the body up with the bumper still attached, the bumper will prevent the front of the truck from raising up.

 

First, you'll need to remove the turn signals. Two screws for each signal. You'll also need to remove the foglights, if you have them, and the light trim pieces. Disconnect all the wiring.

 

There are two bolts per side that hold the brackets to the frame. These are accessible through holes inside the front wheel wells, as shown in the picture. Get a socket in there and remove the bolts, after you remove all four, the bumper/bracket assembly will slide out of the front of the vehicle.

 

bumper removed from vehicle

 

Safety Hoop Removal:

 

Make sure you remove the safety hoop from under the driveshaft. This will cause problems if you don't move it and lift up the body. =) Here's a picture of it all gone:

 

safety hoop removed from mounting locations

 

Unbolting Things That Might Break:

 

Before you go lifting things, you need to make a thorough inspection of everything that's attached to both the frame and the body. Disconnect these things from the frame, so when you lift the body up they won't cause problems. I don't have a definitive list of these locations, but that might show up in a future revision. Here's an example of something that would need to be disconnected.

 

something that would break and cause problems

 

Radiator Hoses:

 

After your body lift, your radiator will effectively be 3" above your engine, putting strain on both the upper and lower radiator hoses, unless of course, you use the radiator drop-down kit. Many people choose not to drop the radiator and have had no cooling problems. If you don't use this kit, you will need to modify the upper and lower hoses in order for them to fit correctly. The upper hose will be too short, and the lower hose will be too long.

 

Upper Hose: You can't extend the current one, obviously, so you'll need to get a new hose. You could get new flexible hose, with the correct interior diameter, and use that, or you can go to an auto parts store for a new molded hose. I managed to find one that fit pretty much perfectly at my local NAPA, but your mileage may vary.

 

picture of new upper radiator hose

 

Lower Hose: Your stock hose will be too long, and there will be a kink in the middle after the body lift. This is easily resolved, some people say they trim both ends of the old hose, but I was able to cut off about 3/8" or so from the radiator end and have it fit on nicely. I cut a little too much off my old hose, so I ended up going to NAPA and getting a stock lower hose to cut correctly.

 

upper radiator hose removed

 

While you're out shopping for new radiator hose pieces, it's generally a good idea to get some new hose clamps. You'll need four 1.5" or so hose clamps for the upper and lower radiator hoses.

 

Shifters [Manual and Transfer Case]:

 

Body lift kits can be installed on vehicles with both manual and automatic transmission. The automatic transmission is shifted via a cable, which is more than long enough to accomodate for the lift. The manual shift lever will also not present any problems after the lift is completed. However, on 4X4 vehicles, the transfer case shift lever will need to be modified / replaced in order to allow for the full range of shift positions: 2WD > 4HI > N > 4LO, most notably 4LO. After the body lift, the shifter bumps into part of the hard plastic shift boot, preventing reliable shifting into 4LO. There are several ways to deal with this.

 

A. Replace the shifter with a shifter from a Nissan Hardbody Pickup. All 4x4 pickups and Pathfinders use a TX10 transfer case, so the shift levers are identical, except for the overall length. Hardbodys sat a little higher on the frame than Pathfinders did, so their shifters are longer, by about 1.5-2". I went this route, 88 sourced me a shifter from a junkyard somewhere and it went in relatively painlessly... a couple bolts loose and you can swap them straight out. Here's a short thread about this shifter swap.

 

B. Extend the existing shifter. After removing the stock shifter, it is cut, an extension is added, and the whole lot is welded back together. This is easy if you have a welder and know how to use it. =)

 

C. The most popular option for resolving this problem is one of two methods. First, the shifter is bent forward, usually using a long and narrow pipe slid over the lever. This bend usually allows for successful shifting. However, if not, another method is to cut out part of the shift boot and possibly the floorpan, a small notch is usually sufficient to allow the shifter full travel.

 

Steering Shaft:

 

Don't worry, this isn't nearly as hard as it seems. You don't need to modify your stock shaft, just coax it out a little bit to accomodate for the lift. Around the middle of your steering shaft, you will see a short rubber boot. Slide this up and WD-40 the hell out of that joint... there's a little hole in the lower section that you can spray into, soak the joint good a couple of times and that should do the trick. While you're raising the body, have someone in there with a hammer to bang on the shaft to get it to loosen... as the body rises up, the top shaft will slide out of the lower shaft. Mine slid out about a grand total of 5/16" or so. You can see the amount that it slid out in this picture... it's the silver area directly above the upper shock mount.

 

picture of steering shaft lengthened

 

Fuel Filler and Vent Lines:

 

The kit includes a handful of parts to deal with these two lines. First, remove the plastic shield inside the passenger-side rear wheel well, which will reveal the two fuel tank lines. Loosen the four hose clamps, two on the filler line and two on the vent line, and remove both. It's a good idea to stuff a clean rag in the filler neck for the gas tank to avoid getting dust and whatnot in there. I trashed the plastic shield once I was done with this part since it won't really go back on correctly.

 

Here's a picture of the fuel tank area with all the hoses removed: fuel tank

 

The kit includes a length of 1/2" black rubber hose for the fuel vent line. For the life of me, I could not get it to fit over either neck, so I went to Checker and purchased 2' of 5/8" rubber heater hose and used that. 2' was a little long, so you'll need to trim it a bit. The kit includes two new hose clamps for this line as well. It's a good idea to install this line before the filler line, so you have a little more room to work.

 

You are provided with a short piece of pipe and two large-diameter hose clamps in order for you to extend your fuel filler line. Cut the filler line somewhere in the middle, then slide the pipe into the newly-cut ends to extend it. It's not necessary, but you can use a dab of Vaseline [or the like] to help the pipe slide into the hose, as I had a little trouble wrenching it in there. Slide on the two hose clamps [included in the kit], and tighten them down.

 

Here's what it looks like all put together: picture of filler assembly

 

And installed: filler and vent lines installed

 

Power Steering Reservoir:

 

BEFORE LIFT: The kit directs you to remove the power steering reservoir, move it down the passenger-side fenderwell, drill new holes, and remount it lower. However, this seemed like a waste of time and effort to me, so I simply extended the two hoses from the reservoir.

 

First you'll need to drain the power steering reservoir... there's probably lots easier ways to do this, but not knowing any better, I did it with a turkey baster sort of thing. Inside the power steering reservior neck is a tan filter, this slides out and allows you to suck out as much power steering fluid as possible. Drain the reservoir as best you can, then disconnect the hoses on the reservoir. It's a VERY good idea to put a towel or something under the area you're working in to absorb spilled fluid. That stuff cleans like no other.

 

Here's a picture of the power steering pump with no hoses connected... as you can see I managed to get fluid all over.

 

power steering pump disconnected

 

Once you get the hoses disconnected from the reservoir, go ahead and remove it from the truck. This isn't necessary, but I like having as much room as possible to tool around. It's held on by 4 10mm bolts.

 

picture of power steering reservoir removed

 

You'll then need to remove the hoses from the power steering pump, which is located towards the front of the frame on the passenger side. Another towel is useful here, because you'll probably spill out all the fluid that was left in the hoses. Now that you have the hoses disconnected, you can lift the body without any trouble there, and reconnect them with new hoses afterwards.

 

AFTER LIFT: You're now ready to remount the power steering reservoir and reconnect it to the power steering pump. I went down to Checker and bought 2' each of 3/8" and 5/8" rubber hose... again, it's a good idea to snag some new hose clamps while you're at the store. The 5/8" hose is for the bigger outlet/inlet, and the 3/8" for the smaller. I mounted the hoses to the pump first, then pulled them up to gauge how much I needed to cut off. Once I clamped them to the reservoir end, I was ready to bleed and refill the system.

 

Bleeding and Refilling Power Steering System [from Chilton manual]:

 

The Pathfinder uses standard Dexron III automatic transmission fluid in its power steering system; this can be found just about anywhere.

 

1. Refill the reservoir to full with new fluid. Make sure you recap it.

2. Jack up the front of the truck, so the tires clear the ground, and support it with some jackstands.

3. Turn the steering wheel from lock to lock several times, then back to center.

4. Open the reservoir, and fill it up; the fluid level will have dropped.

5. Repeat #3 and #4 a few times until the fluid level stops dropping after turning the wheels.

 

Lifting The Body / Inserting Lift Blocks:

 

This is the main part of the whole thing, but also arguably the easiest, if you've done everything right up to this point. =) The first thing you'll need to do is loosen up all of the bolts. There are ten, five per side, located as indicated in this picture.

 

body mounting bolt locations

 

The bolts are 14mm and can be removed with hand tools, although some of them may prove difficult, usually the two very rear bolts. I was able to remove all of the other bolts with a puny 3/8" ratchet, but had to snag a 1/2" breaker bar to loosen up the two rear ones. Your mileage may vary. Anyway, loosen up all ten bolts before you begin to jack up the body... this just makes it a whole lot easier in general, so when you jack up one side, the other side has a little play and is able to pivot a little.

 

Time for a quick review of the bolts you'll be putting in. You will use 6 Grade 5 bolts [silver, with three lines on the heads] for the [moving from front to back] first, second, and fourth body mount locations. You will use two silver metric bolts [they have numbers on the head] for the third mount point, and two black metric bolts for the rear mounts. So, if you add the figures up, you will use ten bolts, 16 washers [two per bolt except for the metric ones], and six Nylock nuts. Sounds good.

 

Jacking up the body should be done very slowly and very carefully. NOTICE: It is not uncommon for the frame to rise up with the body at first, but if you get up pretty high and the frame is still going up, check around, because something's holding it up! But anyway, it's relatively simple. Get a decent jack and some chunks of wood [2x4"s worked nicely]. This can become trial and error. None of the jacks that I had were tall enough to raise the body by themselves, so I had to put the jack on top of some 2x6s, jack it up a bit, slide in some jackstands, add another 2x6, jack it up some more, etc. When you jack, put a 2x4 on top of the jack to protect the body in the location you choose to jack at. I did it right between the two doors, close to one of the body mount locations, both because it was easy to do, and due to the reinforcement at that point.

 

Putting a jack on blocks of wood to effectively make it lift higher isn't the most compliant with safety and common sense but it worked for me. Definitely don't try this if you have one of those wheely around jacks, I used big versions of the jack that comes with your Pathy, the kind with one big piston in the middle. But if you have a better one than I do you shouldn't have to mess with this.

 

Anyway, to make a long story short, jack up the body until you have enough room to slide in the lift block between the body mounting tabs and the rubber spacers. Slide the bolts in. I had a little trouble with the rear ones again , they didn't QUITE line up, but after a hefty shove to either side, the body lined itself up. Put the nuts and washers on the bolts and thread them in, but only loosely. DON'T TIGHTEN THEM UP YET! It's important that this side be able to pivot a little when you jack up the other side of the body.

 

Repeat for the other side. You're done. =D Clean up, and now you can do the random little things like finishing your power steering hoses, swapping in / modifying a new t-case shifter, etc.

 

It's also time to reinstall the bumper, which is a total and complete PITA. The kit includes some little brackets that are supposed to relocate the bolt holes up higher, but they don't work worth a damn. Yours might but mine didn't, and mine is now so ghetto-rigged on there I can't even explain how I did it. =) Now might be a good time to get a nice new ARB / TJM or custom bumper and just have it welded to the frame which would be a much sturdier and more reliable idea in the long run. As someone else said, after the body lift, your bumper goes from mostly decorative to totally decorative... it's not going to save you from ANYTHING.

 

Additional Costs:

 

New Lower Radiator Hose; I hacked too much off my stock one = $10.99 [NAPA]

New Upper Radiator Hose: Different shape to accomodate for lift = $9.49 [NAPA]

4 Radiator Hose Clamps: For new upper and lower hoses = $1.96 [NAPA]

4' 5/8" Heater Hose: For power steering and fuel vent lines = $5.28 [Checker]

2' 3/8" "Transmission Cooler Line" Hose: For power steering = $5.38 [NAPA]

Edited January 2, 2010 by statikuz

[nige]

stat does your truck have air con? mine does and i noticed that alot of the aluminum pipes going to and from the condenser go right throught the firewall in to the cabin. I wasn't sure if these would pose any difficulties during the installation?

[Mr. Pickles]

stat does your truck have air con? mine does and i noticed that alot of the aluminum pipes going to and from the condenser go right throught the firewall in to the cabin. I wasn't sure if these would pose any difficulties during the installation?

I've got AC, no problems on install.

[Law69]

Very informative. But is there any way that you might have some pics to go with that info? I also noticed that you got some parts from NAPA. Are they a good choice to go with as far as aftermarket/oem parts? I've tried NOPI and Strauss, and PepBoys with no luck

[zeppelindrummer]

I'm assuming.... well, i'm hoping this will work for an 87 body lift as well?

 

This write up is great, and i'm hoping it will work to follow for my 87?

 

Thanks!

[Simon]

Yes it will. The lift procedure is the same. Only difference between the 2 is that the 87 has different rearmost body mounts, and thus, takes different bolts. Your truck is what the kits were initially designed for, with AC (Automotive Customizers) taking that kit, and adding the different bolts for the 90-95 application.

[Paffphinder1989]

Thank you Thank you Thank you for posting this!

Now to get to work on the install!

[TopOfTheLine89]

how do i take the shifter boot off? manual SE 89

[Simon]

how do i take the shifter boot off? manual SE 89

It's screwed to the floor, under the carpet. Unscrew the shifter knobs from the shafts. Undo the screws holding the shifter boot to the floor. Pull.

[dagwoodzz]

My carpet was stuck like MOFO. I cut some of mine to get to the screws. as long as you don't get wider than the boot you won't see it.

[snowal]

Great post. I just finished my 3" body lift but now I have a bad vibration and rattle in floor board once I get above 20 mph any Ideas

[MY1PATH]

I thought I would add some aditional info for future lookers; I put in an HB shifter today and did some comparrison shots.

 

The first pic shows how much taller the HB Shifter is which compensates for the lift. The upper portions are actually the same its just the piece between the upper section and the pivot that is differant. this part does not come with out dissasebling the 4H to N plunger (which cannot be done on the vehicle) so no short cuts there sorry.

 

The Middle pic shows that the HB Shifter kicks foward some improving floor pan clearance in 4 low. it will also make your shifter sit closer to your radio if your not BL yet.

 

The last pic shows the 3 bolt locations for easiest removal/installation. The bottom bolt attaches it to the actuator lever on the T-case and will be covered by a rubber boot that keeps the busing greased and the 2 upper ones bolt it directly to the tranny.

 

I think it's most easily done whith the shifter in 4H. Other than that just shove the new one up there and have somone wiggle the shifter boot untill they find the end thru the hole (may take a few tries if you snag the boot liner) the rest aligns itself if you bolt the 2 upper pivot bolts first.

Edited October 19, 2008 by MY1PATH

[Precise1]

Here is some info on the captive bolts (rear most two) for a 95 (Should apply to 90-95 4 door. M12x1.25 BTW. 150mm should work for the 2" lift, but 180mm will work for for both)

I managed to uncaptive the passenger side captive nut and had to cut through the floor to get to it. Hopefully this won't happen to you. You can see where the spot welds were and the side tabs that aligned the nut, for the spot welding, I believe. This is what it looks like down in there...

 

 

When I mapped it out, I was dead on one way and horribly off on the other. I'm still not sure what I did wrong other than I did it alone. Another set of eyes should help immensely. Regardless, here is an outline (black marker) of the ID of the body mount nut housing. The rulers are so you can extrapolate the bolt center for those of you that like to measure before cutting.

 

 

Yes, it is a square nut, so bring your channel locks, vice grips and get creative!!

The bright side of this is that I don't have to chase down the odd metric bolts; I can use standard bolts from the hardware store. The darker side is that I have to patch 2 holes in the floor. Oh well...

 

I haven't opened up the other side, but I'm pretty sure the lay out will be the same. I post pictures of that side when I do it.

 

B

 

Hopefully this helps

 

Ok, pictures of the other side...

 

 

I had to grind the nut loose with a dremel and cut off blades. That was really annoying...

 

 

Most of the way through the welds, I determined that a 13/16" socket can be hammered on quite successfully then torqued to break loose the remaining welds...

 

 

I found a 1/2x13x7" grade 8 bolt was a perfect replacement fit. It might be short with a 3" lift, but I'll double check.

 

B

[BoneZ]

Is there a easyer way to do this part of install?

 

Power Steering Reservoir:

 

BEFORE LIFT: The kit directs you to remove the power steering reservoir, move it down the passenger-side fenderwell, drill new holes, and remount it lower. However, this seemed like a waste of time and effort to me, so I simply extended the two hoses from the reservoir.

 

First you'll need to drain the power steering reservoir... there's probably lots easier ways to do this, but not knowing any better, I did it with a turkey baster sort of thing. Inside the power steering reservior neck is a tan filter, this slides out and allows you to suck out as much power steering fluid as possible. Drain the reservoir as best you can, then disconnect the hoses on the reservoir. It's a VERY good idea to put a towel or something under the area you're working in to absorb spilled fluid. That stuff cleans like no other. wink.gif

 

I would rather not have to refill the system as it is all new fluids and relocating it dose not sound to fun. Just wanted to ask If anyone knows a short cut around this section that works well?

[88pathoffroad]

Drill new holes and bolt it up lower on the fenderwell.

[Precise1]

I disagree. Install new hoses. The large one going to the pump is 15mm (19/32) and the smaller is (to be filled in later). I bought 2' of both for $6 and trimmed almost in 1/2; 3' would leave you with usable length spares.

 

Most of this is pertaining to 2" body lifts, which I highly recommend due to the easier install.

I don't need/want the 3" lift and all the extra issues but if you work on your vehicle, a lift gives you tremendous clearance at many components.

 

Ok, 2 inch lift...

 

For the middle bolts (M10x1.25) with the captive nuts, you have to have the M10x1.25x150mm bolts, NOT the 180MM bolts or you will have a rear floor like mine...

(the rear most bolts are in a 3"+ deep well, the middle ones have no more than 1" room!!)

 

 

Yep, I punched right through. It wasn't hard and I didn't realize unit I heard some metal creaking on the second one. I think the door being open let me hear it.

So what I did was cut the bolt down 1" and put on a few more washers which let it pass through the nut, but probably not let it shank out after the threads. (I'll probably replace these with shorter bolts soon for peace of mind).

 

 

 

For a 2" lift, you'll need 2 M10x1.25x150mm bolts for the middle chassis fasteners.

 

B

[Simon]

Good to see some progress B. I question, though, what's easier on a WD21 with the 2" as compared to the 3"? I didn't think there was much difference in the amount of work.

 

I know that on a WD22 Xterra, there's a big difference in the amount of work between the two.

[unccpathfinder]

the 3" is supposed to be a lot more work from what I've read...after putting my 3" lift on it doesnt seem to be awful. I did 95% of it in a matter of a few hours. My issue right now is the steering shaft which I will finish pressing out to its limit then probably tack it or pin it so it can't come out since the splines will be near the limits. Other than that I need to replace my PS lines b/c they're cracking anyways and I don't want to relocate the resevoir

 

I don't have my slave cylinder installed yet so I dont know if there will be a line length problem there but I doubt it b/c there was a nice "drip loop" for that line

[Precise1]

Good to see some progress B. I question, though, what's easier on a WD21 with the 2" as compared to the 3"? I didn't think there was much difference in the amount of work.

 

I know that on a WD22 Xterra, there's a big difference in the amount of work between the two.

 

There is not a huge amount of difference with the WD21, but there is enough. From that I can tell is...

 

1) You don't have to extend the fuel filler and vent hose. (I will loosen and slide them down a bit for good luck.)

2) The floor doesn't have to be notched or a hardbody 4x4 shifter to be found and installed.

3) You don't have to relocate the radiator. (I know you can leave them be, but with my 2" lift and removing the bottom shroud, the fan blades are about 1/2 lower than the radiator shroud. A 3" lift would make the cooling much more inefficient. For those with a E-fan mod, this obviously would have no bearing.)

4) I don't believe you can use the stock radiator hoses easily. (correct me...) I used the stock hoses, just twisting the top one and cutting 2" from the block side of the bottom one. Next time I will take 1" from either end.

5) Brake lines (not to mention a few others) don't have to be extended as far.

 

I'm sure I'll remember other things...

I'm not crapping on the 3" body lift. If max lift and/or biggest tire is your goal then that is what you want to do. It is only 1 more inch after all, just 1" more work...

Like I have said, the 2" is what I wanted and all that I need (mainly for clearance, mechanical and rocks) as I will have 31" tires. With the suspension lift and a few other goodies it will be as off road as I want my DD to be.

 

B

[Precise1]

the 3" is supposed to be a lot more work from what I've read...after putting my 3" lift on it doesnt seem to be awful. I did 95% of it in a matter of a few hours. My issue right now is the steering shaft which I will finish pressing out to its limit then probably tack it or pin it so it can't come out since the splines will be near the limits. Other than that I need to replace my PS lines b/c they're cracking anyways and I don't want to relocate the resevoir

 

No it isn't that bad, but I dare say you are more handy at this than most others (myself included, I'm just a DFM). What was it you did for a living again??

I'm glad yours went smoother than mine...

 

B

[unccpathfinder]

2) The floor doesn't have to be notched or a hardbody 4x4 shifter to be found and installed.

no notching of my floor in the 87 for either shifter...I am going to take the extra set I have and chop them off tap the bottom and extend my shifters by 3" each

 

4) I don't believe you can use the stock radiator hoses easily. (correct me...) I used the stock hoses, just twisting the top one and cutting 2" from the block side of the bottom one. Next time I will take 1" from either end.

 

looks like the stock hoses will work but some trimming is going to be required...i just pulled the radiator back out though b/c I want to fab up a relocation bracket until I can do the Efan mod b/c after seeing Mark's it cleans up the engine bay a ton

 

5) Brake lines (not to mention a few others) don't have to be extended as far.

by extending do you mean stretching out the coils?

No it isn't that bad, but I dare say you are more handy at this than most others (myself included, I'm just a DFM). What was it you did for a living again?? biggrin.gif

I'm glad yours went smoother than mine... beer.gif

 

B

 

heh well thanks and nah your the machinist, you have endless resources for making things you need with the correct tools, I just have to improvise a lot...I've been fixing things since I was a kid which always made momma mad when she threw something away and it showed up working later on or in 1000 pieces b/c i wanted to see how it worked...see description below avatar for day job (thats the label I got when I was working as a Design Engineer I at freightliner b/c i'd come out on the floor and show the guy how to install it if "it can't be installed")...

 

I was waiting for me to bust some weldnuts loose and was very thankful that didn't happen...I wouldnt say it was smoother...that fuel filler neck extension was a PITA that took longer than putting the body blocks in...I still have the steering shaft and PS pump to deal with but I don't forsee those being a HUGE deal but ya never know sometimes the easiest stuff takes the longest

Edited April 8, 2009 by unccpathfinder

[Precise1]

I did 95% of it in a matter of a few hours.

Doesn't sound like it...

 

So you are fabing new shifters, not getting HB ones...

You are fabing up a radiator relocation mount...

Yeah, pulling the coils is the easy way...

 

Like I said, there is more involved with a 3" lift VS 2".

Should I link what you said about the filler tube extensions??

 

B

[unccpathfinder]

Doesn't sound like it... wink.gif

 

heh well if you count each block, nut, bolt, washer etc as a single part then yea I got close to that done...yea but I don't HAVE to do the relocation...thats just me being me and knowing that somehow the fan will grab the shroud and i'll be up poop creek...the shifters work as they are but they're going to be a lil short (mainly the 4wd ones) so its a want not a desire

 

Yea i pulled mine as well...

 

yea I highly recommend warming them up...i figured i fooled with those things for an hour or more and finally i think my hand heat got the rubber soft enough to stretch out over the extension but it still needed a lil persuasion with a flat tip

 

Another want is not using those cheesy bumper relocation brackets...I will need to do something better than that...b/c I think if something hits the bumper that will be game over

[Simon]

There is not a huge amount of difference with the WD21, but there is enough. From that I can tell is...

 

1) You don't have to extend the fuel filler and vent hose. (I will loosen and slide them down a bit for good luck.)

2) The floor doesn't have to be notched or a hardbody 4x4 shifter to be found and installed.

3) You don't have to relocate the radiator. (I know you can leave them be, but with my 2" lift and removing the bottom shroud, the fan blades are about 1/2 lower than the radiator shroud. A 3" lift would make the cooling much more inefficient. For those with a E-fan mod, this obviously would have no bearing.)

4) I don't believe you can use the stock radiator hoses easily. (correct me...) I used the stock hoses, just twisting the top one and cutting 2" from the block side of the bottom one. Next time I will take 1" from either end.

5) Brake lines (not to mention a few others) don't have to be extended as far.

 

I'm sure I'll remember other things...

I'm not crapping on the 3" body lift. If max lift and/or biggest tire is your goal then that is what you want to do. It is only 1 more inch after all, just 1" more work...

Like I have said, the 2" is what I wanted and all that I need (mainly for clearance, mechanical and rocks) as I will have 31" tires. With the suspension lift and a few other goodies it will be as off road as I want my DD to be.

 

B

1) Good option, though, it only takes 10 minutes, even on a rustbucket like most are up here

2)Definitely a pain. I wasn't happy about notching my floor, and still haven't fixed the console.

3-4)The rad drops down pretty easily. It was about a 10-15 minute job. The hoses work when you drop the rad.

5) I didn't have to extend ANY lines other than the Fuel filler / return lines, and move the PS reservoir down the fenderwell. The brake line "coils" are still flexible, and have no sign of kinking. Total time, 20-25 minutes

 

I wasn't crapping on the 2" either, just hadn't heard of any significant install variances as compared to the 3", hence my question.

Edited April 8, 2009 by Simon