Scotty's desert warrior XTerra
 

Because I bought a 2002 Xterra. Gonna be the family desert expedition vehicle, although I am still planning on fitting the Montero out this year as well.

Bob just put some new tires on there so we are ready for snow. I'll take some pics tomorrow.

Plan is for mild mods - 2" lift, Bilstein shocks, small air tank and compressor, remove side rails and mud flaps, amateur radio install, extra driving lights. Will add rear bumper/tie carrier, rack upgrade, rear hatch ladder, side sliders, and possibly front bumper and winch as fab time and $$ allow.

Please leave the mud flaps or replace them with bigger floppier ones if you are concerned they will get torn off

I hate trucks, SUVs, etc. that think it is OK to blind everyone for 100 yards behind them in a cone up to 3 lanes wide in the wet. It is worst during the quicky thunder storms when they are throwing mud...

Nice Xterra Scotty! One of the few SUVs I would actually consider driving.

If you need any audio stuff, you know who to call! I really need to clean house (garage) and get rid of some of my stash.

Very Cool, can't wait to see it in full desert trim!

Man Scotty. You know you could have lifted the svx and made it into some mad max thunderdomemobile!

I actually got an offer on the svx today that I'm considering. I need to talk it over w/ Lisa though, since it's a bit under what we were asking. But I'm hoping to be able to work something out, so you won't have to feel bad buying a silly desert truck over a future classic that combines Italian styling with Japanese engineering. :p

I would have left the SVX as-is. But YOU should re-wire it for an STi harness, drop a 6-speed in an track it! Ha!

No doubt I will always wish I could have taken both projects on at the same time. If I had the Legacy SS together in a working package, I probably would have made a serious effort to sell it and get the SVX, but alas I still need to get the motor back in.

I hope it goes to a good home if you make a deal on it though!



I'll consider big floppies just for you, Dean.

qft

Nice, Xterras are pretty tough. I wanna see it after the lift.

I hate the way mud flaps look. I never had them on my truck and it looked like a wall of water behind me when it rained. It had basically no rear bumper and a lift so it just made it so much worse. Keeps assholes from tailgating me as a nice bonus.

Well, the new 235/85r16 Goodyear Duratrac load range E tires work great, especially when aired properly for pavement or dirt.

I installed a small onboard air system and replaced the *huge* OEM muffler with a smaller Flowmaster so I could put the 2gal air tank under the car with a lot of clearance. I can take the tires from ~25 PSI to 38psi in about 5 minutes from hose plug-in to un-plug.

Did a full tune-up, clearly the #6 plug was original. Parts are on the way for the suspension mods, not going too crazy, just a 1"-2" lift, steering stabilizer, Bilstein shocks, and uprated tie rod adjusters.

This really is a great car for kids to adventure in, with the high rear seats.

I was considering the same type of 12vair setup for the wagon - which compressor model did you go with? Are there any overpressure concerns with no tank (I know you're running a 2gallon, but not sure where I could toss one in the wagon)? Is that a class C compressor, or a higher end one with more surge/backpressure protection?

It's a Viair 325C, I think it's rated for 150psi. I'm using a 110psi=on, 140psi=off pressure switch, in addition to a ground-activated relay. If you are worried about overpressure, maybe just use a pressure switch that is 20psi or so under your max? They make some pretty small air tanks, but I don't know where you'd put one in a Subaru. Alternative would be to fabricate a long, thin one perhaps that would fit under a seat or something.

There is a very similar model that is a 100% duty cycle unit, just a little slower, I think it's the 340C or something like that.

That's a sweet idea putting the compressor in the engine compartment like that.

Nobody likes to change the #6 plug on those Nissan 3.3's. I've seen SO many of them with 5 new plugs in them...

Yeah, I had to cut up the cruise unit bracket to organize things better, but both items are now securely mounted with rubber isolation. The use of space in the engine bay is pretty inefficient from the engineering perspective.

Now I've got some Blue Sea fuse blocks to play with, and I'm still on the fence as to where to jam them.

Haha, the Xterra forums are awash with stories that shops charge the full labor price, but never actually change the #6 unless there is a misfire code. Personally, I found that it took two patient mechanics (me and a buddy), a "custom" dirt scraping tool (rifle cleaning rod with a nail), custom shop-vac extension, a mirror, the right combination of 3/8 extensions and knuckles, some duct tape, and about 45 min for that one plug. It was a straight-forward process with no swearing, but it did take some time. Judging from the corrosion on the plug and the fact that the electrode arm was almost completely gone, I figure mine was factory.

I hate that crap. I get paid to change all 6 plugs, and I change all 6 plugs. I do have a fancy, double-universal spark plug socket that makes that job a breeze, but before I found that I NEVER considered *not* changing a spark plug in somebody's car because it wasn't easy.

Those Goodyears are looking pretty sweet. I swore off goodyear tires for off roading a few years ago after some bad luck on the Rubicon, but those look awesome. They seem to have really good reviews as well, very nice.

I skipped that job on the Ranger I had and the Aerostar... but I wasn't getting paid to do them. I'd be livid if a pro skipped it, but for amateurs I understand.

I've never had problems changing plugs. Even the impossible rear plugs on the svx. I just do em the next time the motors on the stand. :lol: :(

Oh, and here's the new muffler and air tank before I routed the hose.

Finally got the alignment adjusted (thanks Bob@KSpeed) after putting new Bilsteins on all corners, raising the truck about 1"/1.5" f/r with shackles and heavy-duty torsion bars (in anticipation of that bumper and winch at some point).

Also installed a steering stabilizer and idler arm brace. Removed the side rails and RSB as well.

Have only got it into one situation where I had to back off - a steep washed out sand trail on Peavine where after crawling up about 50 yds I just could not get the angle to exit (shoveling would have been cheating). An LSD definitely does not equal a full lock, especially at low speeds.....my wife was looking straight out the passenger window at the side of the rut we were in - I was more worried about the mirror and paint getting trashed than anything else.

The kids love loading up and heading to the hills for an afternoon, and being able to drop the tire pressure to the low 20's for the bumpy roads makes it enjoyable.

Oh, great balance on the tires Bob, it runs down the highway smoothly now!

Did you decide what to do with the new fuse block?

Well, I want to be able to fuse items and switches off inside the engine bay as well as the interior. I have not started any additional electrical work since the compressor yet, just no time.

But......one spot I have picked out is on the firewall driver's side. For the interior one, I'm not sure yet. The ham radio gear will be going underneath the passenger seat, since radio faces are remote mounted. Probably centralized, maybe even under the rear seat near where I brought in the air tank mount.

Photo update! Had to test the new camera.

Beautiful!