Installation tips - Help

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Oly 22
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Installation tips - Help

Postby Oly 22 » Sat Jan 05, 2013 12:51 pm

I looked through the threads and apologize if this has been asked and addressed previously. I have order a lift kit and was looking for installation tips and advice. I have ordered the Rancho Quick Lift front Coil Overs, Bilstein HD rear shocks and the 4x4 parts 2" lift spring as well as the front camber bolts. I was thinking I could do the front struts and rear shocks myself but not sure about the springs. Any tips on how to install and how long it might take? A local shop has quoted me 3 hours installation at $100 per hour, plus the alignment. What tools are required? Also, if I bail on installing the springs myself, any issues driving with the front higher than the back until I get the springs installed and alignment done?

Thanks in advance.

Oly


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doctahjones
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Postby doctahjones » Sat Jan 05, 2013 9:38 pm

ok so i've been drinking since 4pm (it's 10pm now)....

but this is a joke right?

if not.....

1. get a friend or 2nd vehicle to help.

2. you can do 100% of the rear yourself. it's a bitch, but you can do it.

3. since i've been drinking i assume coilovers = strut + spring in one package, so you can totally do this yourself. it will take you a good 5-6 hours or more by yourself. my previous thread might help. not sure.

http://www.thenissanpath.com/viewtopic. ... 70&start=0

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doctahjones
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Postby doctahjones » Sat Jan 05, 2013 9:40 pm

oh and don't forget to get an alignment right after you do this.

i'd recommend something that was a 1yr deal (from ntb, ymmv), as i had to go back 3 times to get it straight. it's just easier if you have a 1yr deal since you won't have to 'convince' them to give you another alignment for 'free'. and i promise you'll need 2-3 before it's all settled....

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Oly 22
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Postby Oly 22 » Sat Jan 05, 2013 11:31 pm

Glad you prefaced you have been drinking. No doc, no joke. I have never replaced struts, shocks or springs before and want to better understand what I may run into and if there are any tips for a fast and easy install. And with a limited amount of tools, I wanted to know what are tools required. I may need to buy, rent or borrow some. Thanks for the thread and recommendation on the year long alignment guarantee.

Yes, coil overs are the strut and coil, in one complete assembly.

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doctahjones
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Postby doctahjones » Sun Jan 06, 2013 6:44 pm

sorry about the joke thing and sounding like an ass. i was way lit last night and paid for it this morning. esh.


yeah you can do all the work yourself. it will take you a solid hour for the first side of the front and 1-2 hours for the first side of the rear. then after you "get" what you have to do, then the other sides should only take 30min-1hr each.

really helps to have a friend there for moral support, and to turn the wrench when you get tired. air tools do help -tremendously- but aren't required.


you won't need any special tools other than maybe a breaker bar. the front should be very easy for you. the rear, like i already said it's a big b***h only because there's not alot of room to get a decent turn on the bolts.

the springs should be really easy for you. i thought i put it in a post somewhere but can't find it. i can't remember exactly but this should be how i did it. you'll need 2 jacks, or have the car on jackstands and use the jack to support the bottom the brake rotor. when you have the car jacked up and the wheel off, the spring is pretty much unloaded, so then you can take off the two bolts that attach the lower control arm to the wheel assembly/hub/whatever. i can't remember, but i may have had to undo the lower bolt for the shock as well. once you undo those bolts, then the jack is what keeps your wheel assembly from hitting the floor. you can then rotate the lower control arm down to the floor. i then used a crowbar and shoved it into the bottom of the 'cup' that the spring sits in, and angled/wedged the spring out of the cup. installation is reverse. you can also use the jack to raise/lower the wheel hub to line back up with the lower control arm.


that make sense?

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Oly 22
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Postby Oly 22 » Tue Jan 08, 2013 4:55 pm

Thanks, much more helpful.

mark439
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Postby mark439 » Wed Jan 09, 2013 1:21 pm

Hello Oly,

Just curious when you were going to do the lift or have it installed. I want to order a lift as well and am having a hard time making sense of it all. I was curious of what lead you to the combination you ordered.

I only have 3K on my '12 4x4 S and surprised by the ride quality. I keep hearing everybody tell me it's a truck....but I've drove trucks for over 20 years and this doesn't ride well! Imperfections in the road end up feeling almost like vibrations. I don't so much notice the bottoming and wallowing others speak of. I guess it could be overly soft and with that movement the shocks can't really damp it?

So I'd like to add a 2 " lift and new tires...and hopefully improve ride quality. I've decided I'm going to stick with P rated tires, or possibly C rated if I go with a LT so I don't end up with an overly stiff tire.

So then I think about front lift. I originally just thought lift spacers would be ok...the front's don't actually preload the spring so it would be no stiffer. You would limit downward movement but I don't offroad and I think that's softened if you use a bumpstop like offered by PRG. I then thought I may be better off with height adjustable Bilsteins, but I hear they can also offer a harsh ride when set at the max setting. I'm wondering why you chose the Ranchos with springs over this...maybe a better ride or just ease of installation?

On to the rear....4x4 parts kit offers lift coils instead of spacers. I'm a bit confused on the different amount of lift people are receiving from these coils. I called 4x4 parts and they said no 2 vehicles are alike but it should be 2 inches and not settle much...didn't really give me the warm fuzzy feeling. Doctahjones only got 1.5" out of his. It sounds like others have got more than 2" and ended up using spacers instead to prevent excessive front rake and get the alignment back in to spec. I'm not doing the install myself so I would hate to have to pay to take it back to have the fronts adjusted to a different height, realigned, etc. I am looking for basically level, and should also note I always have a hitch mounted bike rack on that weighs 50lbs without bikes. I was also wondering if the replacement rear shocks are actually longer to accomodate the lift, if it's spacers or coils. If not, I can't help but think you may end up with the same results with spacers and airbags. Speaking of airbags, I'm not sure if they actually give any lift or just prevent it from sagging at whatever height it is.

I'm not opposed to paying a bit more get the right parts...I'm just struggling to understand what I'm paying for!

Sorry for the novel, or potential thread jack. Maybe this is better asked in a seperate thread? Thanks in advance for any feedback from all of you gurus!

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Oly 22
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Postby Oly 22 » Wed Jan 09, 2013 6:15 pm

Hey Mark,

First, I should let you know that I am not a "guru" but I have learned a fair bit from the folks on this site. There are a number of very smart and helpful people here.

Sorry, to hear your ride feels rough. I know these are not sedans but I don't really have any issues, with the way mine rides. That being said, I do have an LE and am not sure if the suspension is different than the S. Maybe the LE has a smoother ride, being the "Luxury" version. Not sure if you can call a Pathfinder a luxury vehicle though. :)

I am currently not much of an off roader but do go to some remote lakes, to fish and drive logging and mining roads in Northern BC and the Rockies. I was looking for something more suitable and wanted to lift the Pathy at the same time. Not being a serious off roader, I did not want anything to elaborate or costly either. I also do a lot of highway driving to get to these areas. That being said, the highways, in BC, are not like the Interstates you have in the USA, there are a lot of winding roads. The air bags made a big difference for towing, keeping the back from sagging and help reduce body roll.

For the front, I went with the Rancho's for three reasons. One, they are adjustable for ride quality with 9 settings. I can dial them for highway driving and then adjust for the logging and mining roads as well as some off roading. The Bilstein front struts are adjustable for ride height, from 0 to 2" but are not adjustable for ride quality as far as I can tell. I think that is why doctahjones is at 1.5" lift in the front. He may still be able to adjust to 2", you would have to ask him. Two, the Rancho coil overs should be a direct bolt on replacement making the installation easier and faster than just the strut. Bilstein did not have a coil over design. Three, the Rancho Quick lift will provide a 2" lift with no additional parts.

For the rear, I went with the Bilstein HD shocks and the 4x4 parts rear spring. The spring provides the 2" lift. I chose the Bilstein, over the Rancho's for a couple of reasons, partly by the recommendation from 4x4 parts and what I have read on these threads. Seems like a number of owners have had good things to say about the Bilstein's. 4x4 parts said they have had better responses with the Bilsteins's than the Rancho's, for the rear. The Bilstien's say they can be independently tuned for ride comfort and performance. So I should be able to adjust the front and back and find a comfortable ride no matter what I am driving on. Time will tell.

mark439
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Postby mark439 » Thu Jan 10, 2013 5:59 am

Thanks for the reply! The ride isn't the end of the world for me either....if I can improve it with beter components great. If it is what it is, I'll just save money and use a cheaper kit.

While I would probably find the the right setting and leave it, I could see the value in the adjustability of the Rancho stuff. Decision, decisons...

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ShipFixer
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Postby ShipFixer » Thu Jan 10, 2013 11:18 am

mark439 wrote:Thanks for the reply! The ride isn't the end of the world for me either....if I can improve it with beter components great. If it is what it is, I'll just save money and use a cheaper kit.

While I would probably find the the right setting and leave it, I could see the value in the adjustability of the Rancho stuff. Decision, decisons...
I'm a mechanical engineer and usually geek out over damping options. However the non-adjustable Bilsteins have been perfect. The only time they're far from critically damped is when I have a really heavily loaded bike rack plus gear and a lot of air in the bags (25psi)...and I hit a big bump or G-out where the progressive nature of air bags comes out.

My truck isn't lifted and rides worlds better this way FWIW...

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Touchdown
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Postby Touchdown » Thu Jan 10, 2013 12:22 pm

I'm curious to know if you have tackled the lift project yet?!

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Oly 22
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Postby Oly 22 » Thu Jan 10, 2013 8:56 pm

I should have my order, complete, by Tuesday and will try and tackle the following weekend.

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Touchdown
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Postby Touchdown » Sat Jan 12, 2013 10:29 pm

Awesome Oly!
Let us know if it turns out as expected...
(level stance, what setting you end up with in front, how it drives, etc.!

mark439
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Postby mark439 » Thu Jan 17, 2013 5:59 am

Well I'm ready to pull the trigger on the Deluxe kit, Bilstein front/rear. Seems to be a good value and most are happy with it. I'm curious to see how much lift Oly gets from his rear coils/Bilstein HD's and I'll decide to set my fronts at 1.5 or 2. My only question is in regards to the camber bolt kit for alignment - I have cams in the back but not the front....do I need the kit for the front?

Thanks again to everyone for their help...can't wait to get installed!

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Touchdown
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Postby Touchdown » Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:33 am

Yes you'll need the cam bolts for the front.


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