Nissan Frontier Forum banner
261 - 280 of 582 Posts
Discussion starter · #262 · (Edited)
The Ironman leaf packs and front spacers are in.

Wheel Tire Land vehicle Car Vehicle

still has the factory rake for now

The upper control arm bushings are completely shot so they are being replaced so I don’t run into any issues on the drive down.

Flights have been rebooked for June!
 

Attachments

  • Like
Reactions: sirnixalot
Discussion starter · #265 ·
Let us know how you like those. I have been looking for leaf packs to replace my worn out factory ones. Did you go with the medium or heavy load and how much lift did they actually give?
I went with the medium 0-660lb springs. They seem to have lifted it more than 2" but they need to settle and I am pretty sure my stock leaf packs were dead considering the 230k mileage and the rest of the suspension being worn. Unfortunately I won't have any personal driving feedback until June and even then with it being on dead shocks I'll probably reserve judgement until I get the Bilsteins and titan swap done.
 
Discussion starter · #267 ·
Moog uppers are in so it's cleared for take off next month.

In semi related news, my brother bought a 1999 Ford Ranger and managed to score a 2000 Ford Explorer with the 5.0 (141k miles original owner) for an excellent price. He tore the truck down to a bare frame to sandblast and Por15 it, came out pretty good. As of yesterday we completed the complete drivetrain swap!

He did a Maxtrac 4/2 spindle/shackle lift and replaced all the suspension and brake components with new ones since everything was pretty rusty. I had to flip the perches on the Explorer's 8.8 so it mounted properly in the Ranger as well as relocate the shock mounts, I'll figure something out to make the rear sway bar work next week.

Engine wise I ported the heads and intake manifolds, made a custom 3" intake TFS intake manifold spacer, OBX headers and a custom 2.5" dual exhaust with a Magnaflow X flow muffler, Comp roller rockers, push rods, guide plates & dog bones with a TFS spring & retainer kit, Summit E303+ cam and their double row timing chain set.

Automotive tire Motor vehicle Engineering Rim Machine


Vehicle Motor vehicle Hood Automotive design Automotive fuel system



Gotta say it wasn't as easy as people make it seem but it also wasn't TOO bad, neither the 5.0 nor 3.0 engine mount plates worked, we think it's cause the Explorer was torsion bar so the subframe was different. Last thing we need is the SCT tuner from 5startuning before we install the 24lb injectors and then it should be good to go.
 

Attachments

Discussion starter · #269 ·
New stereo has been ordered. I originally wanted to try and just update it to a newer OEM head unit with a reverse camera but the wiring on that wasn't worth the hassle so I ended up with an Atoto A6, Sosche install kit and some CT sounds Meso 6x9's. I'll be good with that for the drive down, can see the map on the screen and bluetooth so people can call and keep me company 🤣.

In related news the Auxbeam 6 gang panel arrived along with their 32 inch "5D" light bar.

Finger Recipe Red Font Gadget

Pretty impressed with the switch panel, its aluminum not plastic feels solid.

Finger Audio equipment Electrical wiring Input device Office equipment

Would have been nice for it to use the newer smaller fuses so I can keep one style of spares in the truck but that's a small complaint.
 
Discussion starter · #270 ·
Well I finally got to Michigan and got to see the truck in person. Finishing up a few odds and ends but it doesn’t look like I’ll be able to drive it down.

The interior needs to be torn out completely to clean under the carpet, while I was running the wires for the rear view camera I found a bunch of dirt and cleaned what I could reach.

All in all I’m pretty damned happy. (Going to pick up an new passenger headlight tomorrow)
Wheel Tire Automotive parking light Car Land vehicle

Wheel Car Automotive parking light Tire Land vehicle

Wheel Automotive parking light Car Vehicle Land vehicle


Maybe I’ll get a burn out video on Saturday or Sunday.
 
Did you find water damage or mold under the carpet? How much dirt are we talking?
 
Discussion starter · #272 ·
Did you find water damage or mold under the carpet? How much dirt are we talking?
No thank goodness. It was some regular work truck dirt under the kick plate along with a ton of dead bugs of some sort. Picking up some bug spray today to unload under there to make sure there’s no live ones.

I need to find a good spot to route the dash cam wire out of the cab, will Google that later. Also the body shop didn’t reconnect the passenger side latch assembly on the tailgate so that won’t open so I can run the camera to the oem location
 
Discussion starter · #273 ·

First start up and drive after a little idle tuning. We still have to do quite a bit more laptop work and I have to wire up the rpm window switch for the short runners.

It feels pretty damned quick already for a truck so I can’t wait for the tune to get squared away this week.
 
Discussion starter · #274 ·
Man this truck is so much fun. Absolutely blows the one tire away on command. Not sure if I need to get a short axle and truetrac instead of the locker.

This has been almost 2 years in the making and it’s been worth all the setbacks and hassle. Huge shoutout to Husam @ BTWTuning for making this a reality for me.
 
Discussion starter · #276 · (Edited)
Trutrac is the way to go 100% on the vk
Yeah I am beginning to see the light there, I knew it was going to be traction challenged but I did not know it was going to be THAT bad, especially with the 3.13 gears it has currently. I will give that a little higher priority and try to find the right axle first.

Automotive parking light Car Window Vehicle Automotive lighting

Windows got some ceramic tint yesterday, 20% on the sides/back and 50% on the windshield. The sun is brutal here, when I had the cube's windshield done in 70% and the difference was very noticeable without sacrificing visibility, the AC took less time to cool everything down and it wasn't an oven by the time I hopped in around lunch time. The tint along with the boxes of Noico sound deadening and closed foam insulation I have set aside will insulate it nicely.
 
Discussion starter · #279 ·
So much for 24hr turn around time from safety restore. Anywho, the stuff shipped out yesterday, fingers crossed that solves my airbag lights since the code was related to the drivers belt retractor and the module needing resetting. State inspection on thursday if all goes well.
 
Man those videos are awesome!
 
  • Like
Reactions: sirnixalot
261 - 280 of 582 Posts
Top