Year: 2005
Make: Nissan
Model: Xterra
Trim: S 4x4
Color: Night Armor



Suspension:
2.0 Radflo Coilovers
2" Deaver AAL
Bilstein 5125 Shocks

Wheels/Tires:
p265/75/16 Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armors
"Night Armored" Wheels (Duplicolor Graphite Wheel Paint)

Engine Shizzle:
Volant CAI

Electrical Shizzle:
Diehard Platinum Group 35(no terminal modding) Battery

Armor:
OR Engine and Transmission Skids

Misc:
Removed Step Rails
Removed Rear Mud Flaps
Removed Rear Sway Bar
Mag Light Mounted on Driver Side Door
Xterra Rubber Floor mats
Added Bug/Rock deflector
Added stickers for additional horsepower gain
Added 2009 4x4 badge
Added IPass (Illinois tollway Pass)
Added Working Parking Deck Pass
Added Bradley University Alumni License Plate Frame in Rear
Baseball Bat in the back seat

Comments:
Looking forward to some future mods including:

More/Better Skids
Tow Hitch/Rear Recovery Shackle
Sliders
Factory fogs
Xoskel Bumper Mouth Bar With Fogs
Xoskel Lo Profile Roof light Rack
Xoskel Rear Light bar
Lights to go with Xoskel products
Either roof or trailer hitch bike rack
Either Dep Hep Rack and/or Raingler Roof Net
iPod ready stereo
CB Radio
Doug Thorely Exhaust
Garmin Nuvi 765 GPS
Garmin Dash Docking Station

Too many mods I want to do, and not enough money to do them. So far most of my mods have been on a needed basis. Shocks went out so I decided to upgrade the suspension and lift. When the OEM tires were bald, I replaced them with better. Battery went, I replaced it with a better one. The wheel painting and volant were the not so necessary ones. I justified the volant by the fact that it will eventually pay for itself with the increase in mpg. Actually been getting more miles per tanks consistently even with a lift than I was without the volant and lift. I think I decided I am going to keep this thing forever and mod it though. When its not my daily driver anymore, I will focus on making it more of an off road monster to play with. Right now with the mods I am doings I have to try and keep balance between daily driving, especially highway performance, and off road capabilities.

Photos:

After the new tires when I first joined in December 2008:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/X-Web.jpg


Mag Lite Mounted:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/IMG_4785.jpg

Volant Installed:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/Volant-Installed.jpg

After my 2" PRG lift and wheel painting:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/liftadjustments.jpg


I am possibly the tallest Xterra Driver known to man:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/meandtheX.jpg


Most up to date pics, July 11 2009:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/Front_side_X.jpg

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/Left-side_X.jpg

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/right-side_X.jpg

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/Front_X.jpg

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/Rear_X.jpg


And like what every guy hopes for after getting a massage, here is a happy ending:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/sunsetX.jpg

Nice X! Definitely like what you've done so far!

looking good

Very nice!!!

looks great...

Nice! (and great pics)

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/meandtheX.jpg





Umm yeah, Now i can't tell that you have any lift....

Yeah, that is why I thought the lift would be good for me, more height appropriate. After, I actually had to climb into the X a tad, that was a weird feeling. I still can't fully stand under the hatch, but its much better loading the rear than it was before. Ideally I could use another inch and it would still fit in the garage, that would require and extra $500-$700 in parts though, maybe more.

How tall are you!? lol

6' 8"

6' 8"

Good gravey!!!

Yeah, the X is one of the few vehicles I fit comfortably in.

Yeah, the X is one of the few vehicles I fit comfortably in.

really? maybe the 2nd gen is different but im almost 6 foot and i pulled the seat back as far as it can go for it to feel right

Your not alone ;)

http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll162/holzermack/IMG_4527.jpg

I have never been in a 1st gen X, but everything I have read leads me to believe they are bigger inside.

I always thought the 2nd gens were bigger inside? Idk...the 1st gen is pretty good inside because it doesnt have much for that center console crap that locks ur legs in a little tiny tin can. I might look into mounting my seat back farther...wait and see.

I always thought the 2nd gens were bigger inside?

That's what he means.. The 2nd Gen.'s are bigger just from looking at pictures of how much smaller the 1st gen is.. :wink:

wow thats tall...I'm like 5'6" :*( FML sweet x though bro

sweet ride dude...another 2gen...im not alone...yay...haha...i was the same way with mine, about getting another inch of lift after i did my 2" SL...if you just want an inch i would suggest putting 33" tires on it, even tho you're goin up 2" from stock tires, you only get one inch of axle travel...or for like 300 you could get a 2" BL...thats what i did...im sitting on a grand total (SL, BL, and tires) of 5" of lift...and its just right

I always thought the 2nd gens were bigger inside? Idk...the 1st gen is pretty good inside because it doesnt have much for that center console crap that locks ur legs in a little tiny tin can. I might look into mounting my seat back farther...wait and see.

From what I read it seems like the interior is at least a couple inches wider.

I started shopping for vehicles by looking for a small pickup to replace my 93' Dodge Dakota. Looked at the Toyota Tacoma and the center console as you mention really interferes with where I need to put my knee. On Top of that, the windshield was really chopped, and I had to practically lay the seat down to see out. Same thing with the new style dakotas. There wasn't so much the center console problem, but they really chopped the windshield.

Well, I then went to check out the frontier and was really impressed. Windshield wasn't so chopped and I didn't have to cock the seat back gangsta style to drive the thing. Then I found out the X's were around the same price, and my eyes lit up. I always loved them, so the choice was easy since its essentially the same inside.

While I wish the seat could go back a hair more, I don't because then I would feel like I couldn't see as well. I just wish there was more leg room under the steering wheel like the original Dodge Durangos. Those were awesome for us with long legs. What I would like to maybe do is shim the front of the seat. No matter how much I crank the knobs, I only goes so high in the front. I can use a little more seat under my legs. No real complaints though, the X is a very comfortable vehicle to drive for me.

sweet ride dude...another 2gen...im not alone...yay...haha...i was the same way with mine, about getting another inch of lift after i did my 2" SL...if you just want an inch i would suggest putting 33" tires on it, even tho you're goin up 2" from stock tires, you only get one inch of axle travel...or for like 300 you could get a 2" BL...thats what i did...im sitting on a grand total (SL, BL, and tires) of 5" of lift...and its just right

I have the stock off road size tires, not stock S model size. So right now, they are 31.6" in diameter, which is 1" larger than the stock, which is a .5" more lift. 33's are like 32.8" in diameter. If I put those on I would gain .6" in lift, but my gas mileage would tank. Also, I have heard people with 33's experience power loss. I am trying to balance highway and offroad abilities as of right now.

The additional lift I was talking about that would be like $500-$700, maybe more, would be a body lift. I can't just lift the body because if I add spacers in the front, I will have coil bucket contact like crazy. So if I lift any higher, I would new upper control arms, which is where the bulk of the cost would be. So I could add 1"-2" spacers on my coilovers, and new shackles for the back, but I would also need new UCA's. I might consider that down the line, but I purchased my lift for a total of $870, it would have been around $1500 to get that 1 extra inch of so.

What did you paint your rims with? How do you like the silent armours? My dad swears by 'em.

I painted them with the graphite duplicolor wheel paint. A lot of guys who paint or "stealth" their wheels use bedliner. I personally didn't want them black and the wheel paint is actually made for this, unlike the the bed liner.

If you decide to attempt this, let me warn you that the nozzle on the duplicolor wheel paint cans sucks. That is suprising, because their primer spray nozzle is awesome.

I took this pic when I cracked a security bolt...
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/crackedbolt.jpg

I don't know fi you can tell, but the inner parts are lighter than the outer surface, just because it was harder to cover evenly with the nozzle. Looks like there are also a few drips on this tire. One I really messed up and tried to redo a bit. Its weird because it was hard to spray the wheels. The plastic inners came out smooth, but the metal came out textured. I like the textures, so I am not complaining. Like I said though, there is a couple spots where its not perfect. If you want these to look smooth, you have to actually overspray and give it a really wet coat, which is hard to do evenly. I tried doing that as the can said, and just ended up with smooth spot or two. Those are the tires I had to try and recoat to re do the texture evenly.

Most of them look fine, but if you look close on the rear tire, it has some darker spots:
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j66/DarkKnight369/Left-side_X.jpg

For some reason grey powerdered dust would collect on the tires after a few coats. This tire is the only one where it wouldn't really come off. Not too noticeable though, overall I am happy with the result.


As far as the Silent Armors go, I love them. Its only my second set of tires on the vehicle and they replaced the stock BFG Radial Long Trails. Those tires were OK, but they were crap in the snow. At the time I bought these, they were rated #2 for winter performance on tire rack's site. Now they are #1.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=ORAT&VT=null&sortValue=16

They are great in snow as that shows. Pulled off a farm road to try and figure out where I was, ended up landing my X in a snow filled ditch. I had snow up to the rockers and could barely get my door open. Got out of the ditch in under 15 minutes. Had a similar situation with the long trails and a parking lot with 16 inch snow drifts. Took me 45 minutes to get out of that., which was burning my tires through the snow down to the pavement.

These things are quiet on the highway too, which is part of the reason I got them. You see some trucks go by with mud terrains or other A/T's and you can hear their tires a few blocks away. I think these are even quieter than the stock tires I had.

I honestly haven't tried them in serious offroad situations yet. I know a lot of guys swear by the BFG TA KO's, but I read a few reviews saying people thought these performed just as well or better off road. I have heard some say these are more highway tires, but I don't buy that. They are pretty aggressive looking all terrains. I hope to hit some trails within the next month and I will know for sure how well they hold up. I am guessing I won't be disappointed.

i have front spacers and rear AAL (2" PRG basic) with 2" BL from 4x4parts.com...the PRG kit comes with bump-stops to help with coil bucket and UCA contact...with the amt of on-road driving (from jersey the pot holes are the size of texas) i do, the CB/UCA contact i get is minimal...it takes an oversized speed bump at 30mph to get significant contact...and i havent put the bump-stops on yet to see if there is a difference...but i know eventually (when its time) ill do a full overhaul and do coilovers, UCAs, and rear struts but that'll run me almost 2g...so just doing the spacers and BL you shouldnt have to worry about UCA/CB conntact too much

ps check out my build

Gotcha, I thought the spacers and shackles were the body lift, since you aren't adding functionality to the suspension.

Gotcha, I thought the spacers and shackles were the body lift, since you aren't adding functionality to the suspension.

nono...haha...the spacers are for the CB and the shackle is for the rear but i would suggest the AAL...my logic behind goin this route was if i hit something hard enough on the trail or wacked a rock or something the shackle would fail/bend etc...so i went with the AAL...it may have been stupid logic but hey that me...lol

so all in all...PRG's basic SL i think was like 300 and the 4x4parts.com's 2" BL i think was like 200 (dont hold me to it) so you can do 4" for 500...thats the low end of your est.

btw where did you get your goodyear stickers?

I understand what the spacers and shackles did, I just for some reason thought it was a body lift since it doesn't necessarily improves performance, just height.

I chose the AAL over the shackles for the ride performance. I do not think I am interested in a true body lift, as it is just for looks. If I add anything else down the line it will be spacers, shackles, and new UCA's.

Not sure where I got the stickers, but here is a place where you can choose the size and color....

http://www.decalsplanet.com/item-824-size-5-good-year-logo.html

dude, looking good so far. i love the xterra knight armor color and your wheel color. i'm ready to go higher with mine, but i know what your talking about with the xtra dough. i'm lookin at the total chaos uca's with new front coilovers, and an add a leaf to the back. but you can't go too much higher without messin with longer brake lines in the rear. you or anyone know how far you can lift the front without replacing cv joints every year?

Very sweet X, hey man where can I find the Mag Lite clips to mount mine?

Very sweet X, hey man where can I find the Mag Lite clips to mount mine?

I got mine at Ace Hardware

That last pic is just, wow. Nice car, man. Something about them black xterra's.