[Fast71SS]

Hi y'all!

I just bought a '07 Titan from the local used car dealership. I just sold my lifted and very beat-up Xterra, so I am glad to be in another Nissan. The Titan came with a 3" body lift already installed along with some chrome stuff.

It appears to have aftermarket A-arms, but no actual lift components on the suspension. I am considering adding a 3" strut spacer/leveling kit, but need to know how much actual lift to expect from it so I can plan what to do with the rear suspension.

Any advice?

Thanks in advance!
-Aaron

 

[AZPRO4X]

Take a picture of the A-arms so we can see what they are. Your looking at a net of 2-2.5" max from a spacer lift.

 

[Fast71SS]

I have some photos but have no idea how to upload them.

The A-arms look like the Rough Country ones, but I don't have a factory set to compare to so I am not really sure.

Thanks!

 

[stryker125]

Sounds like you made out good if you got aftermarket UCAs and a body lift to start with! Incase you are interested I am selling 2.5" spacers for $45 shipped to your door!

 

[Fast71SS]

Yes, I do think I did alright on the deal. I got the Titan and a 18-foot enclosed cargo trailer for blue book price on the Titan alone. In addition to the lift, it has projector headlights, LED tail lights & 3rd brake light, chrome grill and bumper grill, Magnaflow dual exhaust, AEM brute force intake, prewired for sound system, and a really cool diamond-plate gap spacer between the tail gate and rear bumper. Its a fully loaded LE model too.

I am not sure about the UCAs though. They are tubular units that look identical to the Rough Country ones, is it possible to get them confused with stock ones or no?

 

[stryker125]

If they are tubular they are not stock!

 

[halfoftwo]

If you are a 2wd, then 2.5" spacer is ok. However, 4wd can only do 2". That might not be true with yours since you already have aftermarket UCAs. Someone else might chime in and correct me.

 

[Fast71SS]

That's what I thought about tubular not being stock.

I stuck my fingers up in the coil-over perch and it feels like there is a spacer in there. I am not sure how much lift it provides. It seems to be about 1/2" thick.

This brings me back to my original question. Does anyone know the lift to thickness ratio of the coil-over/strut spacers?

I have looked at a lot of them on eBay, and most of the listings say that it is not a 1:1 ratio of spacer thickness to actual lift. The listings are not clear as to if a 3" spacer is actually three inches thick, or if it is of lesser thickness but provides 3" of lift. Can anyone clarify this for me?

Thanks!

 

[stryker125]

well I know that the 2.5" spacers are actually about 1.5" thick. so I would guess that 1/2" wouldnt be any more than 1.5". If you measure your front end from the ground to the top of the fender well, we can prob get a better idea as to what size the spacer is. Are you 2wd or 4wd?

 

[Fast71SS]

The highest point of the fender wells is at 42-1/4" on both the front and rear of the truck.

It is a 4x4 with 285/70R17 BFG Rugged Terrains

 

[stryker125]

Sounds like you already have a 2.5" spacer (1.5" spacer size)

 

[Fast71SS]

Yea, that seems about right. I don't imagine the previous owner would have gone through the trouble and expense of adding aftermarket UCAs if they didn't install a reasonably large spacer.

I guess I will look into other means of lifting the front suspension. I am probably going to go with the Bilstein 5100 series shocks with the adjustable ride height in the front. Do the rear 5100's also provide lift?

I also checked out these lift springs from Automotive Customizers:

https://www.4x4parts.com/nissan/2212-front-lift-coils-for-titan-p-3976.html

Can the 2" to 2-1/2" lift springs be combined with the 5100's for a total lift of 4" to 5" up front, and if so can I still leave my spacers in?

If I can do this, I will probably match the rear with some blocks and add-a-leafs.

I just installed the wheel spacers off my old Xterra which give me about a 3" wider stance. I also ordered some Cragar wheels with a bit deeper offset. They have not come in yet.

 

[Panman06]

Yea, that seems about right. I don't imagine the previous owner would have gone through the trouble and expense of adding aftermarket UCAs if they didn't install a reasonably large spacer.

I guess I will look into other means of lifting the front suspension. I am probably going to go with the Bilstein 5100 series shocks with the adjustable ride height in the front. Do the rear 5100's also provide lift?

I also checked out these lift springs from Automotive Customizers:

https://www.4x4parts.com/nissan/2212-front-lift-coils-for-titan-p-3976.html

Can the 2" to 2-1/2" lift springs be combined with the 5100's for a total lift of 4" to 5" up front, and if so can I still leave my spacers in?

If I can do this, I will probably match the rear with some blocks and add-a-leafs.

I just installed the wheel spacers off my old Xterra which give me about a 3" wider stance. I also ordered some Cragar wheels with a bit deeper offset. They have not come in yet.

I would avoid the AC coils. Those of us with OEM Pro-4x coils already have issues with the struts topping out. (infamous clunk) Not sure about the AC coils on 5100s since I don't recall anyone running that setup.

I had the AC coils on my old Frontier and they were a pain to install. If you search on the Frontier forums, you'll see a few people have had issues with the AC coils breaking.

 

[Fast71SS]

What is the deal with the PRO 4X coils? I am not familiar with this. Do they provide extra lift over the regular 4x4 springs?

What do you mean by the struts topping out? Does this mean they reach their full travel?

If I flex my suspension as far as it goes, the UCAs will hit the frame pocket where the strut mounts. It looks like I can clearance grind the frame a little bit. The struts don't max out though, it has a set of Ranchos on it. Maybe they are extended travel. I am not a Rancho fan though, the set I had on my Xterra blew out almost as soon as I got them.

 

[Panman06]

The Pro-4x Ts sit higher in stock form. 08+ coils are about an inch longer than previous coils. Thus, topping out the struts for the infamous "clunk." The struts reach their max extension. Nissan has a TSB to "fix" this and their solution are coils that are an inch shorter.

My guess is, the AC coils (being longer and thicker diameter) will be even worse than the Pro-4x coils with stock or equivalent struts.