I usually plan to do at least one major maintenance project on my Titan every year. This is usually due to the cost of the project. Last year, the major project was to replace the exhaust from the cat back. In the fall of last year, I decided that suspension would be this year's project. Knowing that this has been driven for at least 6 years by me through Ohio winters and all that entails (salt, brine, etc), and a few before that, I knew I had my work cut out for me. Little did I know how much.

After doing some research, I opted for the following replacement parts.

• Front Suspension
  • Bilstein 5100 Struts (middle setting).
  • Moog upper and lower control arms
  • Moog sway bar end links
• Rear Suspension
  • Bilstein 5100 Shocks

I did the rear shocks a couple months ago. What should have been a simple few hour project compounded into a day and a half project due to rusty bolts.

I decided that the front suspension needed to be done before the weather started to change to the point where I wouldnt be able to work on it outside, as all of my garage space is occupied by other projects. I started last Monday and finally finished everything but the alignment last night at 6:30PM. It goes in for an alignment on Thursday. Here are my takeaways.

• It took me 8 hours of cutting to get the lower control arms off of the truck, due to the alignment bolts being seized to the metal bushing. I used 9 carbide tip sawzall blades. This could have easily been avoided by using even a little antiseize. Put antiseize on the shank of the bolt before reinstalling.
• Im still trying to understand the logic of the drivers side upper control arm. Or better said, the steering column and the brake lines being in the way of that. In order to get the rear bolt out, it took a lot of finesse to get a ratchet onto the nut. The best way to probably do this, now that I've done it, is to get yourself a tool that will allow you to apply additional torque to an open ended wrench. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VWFK5CQ?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details I believe this will save a lot of hassle trying to get a ratchet in there. Getting the bolt out seemed to require slightly bending the brake lines enough to get the bolt out. Be very careful here.
• Knowing the LCA's might be a problem, I ordered replacement cam bolts. However, the bolts I cut out seemed like regular hardened bolts. I cant say for sure when they were installed, but I've had regular alignments done on the truck since I've owned it and its never come up in conversation. What is installed by the factory?
• It seems like every regular bolt I touch on this truck breaks. For instance, I've broken at least 4 bolts on the splash guards on the underside of the truck and one that is holding a brake distribution block to a mount. Ive used gallons of penetrating oil and even took my time on these bolts and they just seem like the most brittle bolts Ive ever come across. Anyone else encounter such issues?
• Like most projects, getting it all back together was fairly simple. I strongly recommend cleaning up any bolts. The UCA and strut bolts are both M14, what appears to be fine thread (I dont recall the exact pitch off the top of my head). The ones I took out were a little crusty on the outside, but the shank and threads were all in pretty good shape. The lower bolts (LCA's, bottom end link nut, and lower ball joint bolts) were all replaced.
• Have access to a dremel with an ez change metal cutting wheel and a sawzall or a death wheel with at least a 6" wheel. The 4 or 4 1/2 wheels dont really fit.

Overall, minus the amount of time I spent cutting off the lower control arms, im happy with the initial end result. I'll also be keeping a closer eye on the condition of the cam bolts on the lower control arms.

Sounds like you put some work in!!! How do you like the ride compared to factory? Curios about your cam bolts and your sway bar links. A lot of people seem to like the dirt king uca’s. And does Moog make a good set of links for the titan? I’m changing out my suspension also! Thanks.

 

I just ordered adjustable cam bolts from rough country. They state they are for Xterra/Frontier but everything I cross referenced showed the same part for Titans as well. I’ll let you know how they work out. I should have them tomorrow. $32 shipped.

 

I still need an alignment, so Ive been trying not to drive too much. Since I work from home, my driving needs are pretty small right now. I did run to the grocery store in it last night and the difference is light night and day compared to what was there. It feels much stiffer than it did before (thats what she said). Im definitely happy with it so far.

I used the Moog adjustable cam bolts (K80276). They were $21 before shipping from RockAuto. I opted for the Moog end links (K750146) because they have grease fittings on them and were otherwise mostlyjust a comparable replacement to stock. Most of my driving is either in town or on the highway, so I didnt feel like investing in parts too far beyond stock replacements would be worthwhile. I got 100k out of the stock suspension, although I'd say for the last 25-35k, the struts were completely worn out. If I hadnt had to cut the bottom nut off of the stock end link, the end links would have still been usable. Because 99% of the driving I do is either highway or in town, I felt like the reasonable method for me was to buy a more servicable set of parts without going too far beyond stock. Im not lifted at all and have no desire to lift my truck. Ive had decent luck with Moog in the past and if I have to replace a ball joint in the future, I wont have to change out the entire control arm to do it. Ive seen a lot of people say the Dirt King UCA's are pretty decent, but to be fair, I havent spent any time really digging into why.

There's also something to be said when doing a job like this when you know for sure whats what. The cam bolts seizing to the LCA is still bugging me and probably will for awhile. I did put a lot of effort into getting them out. I'll be making a point before each alignment from now on to make sure they move so I know Im actually getting an alignment and not just being swindled by a shop.

@SeanDavy - I dont know for sure, but I think Nissan used a lot of the same suspension parts for the Xterra, Frontier, Armada and Titan platforms. I saw a lot of references to those while I was digging for parts and information. The Rough Country cam bolts look pretty similar to the Moog's I put in the other day. The only difference i see here is that there's a smaller washer to go on the back side of the bolt with the nut vs the Moog has a cam washer for both the front and back. There's a locator for the cam washer both in the front and back of the bolt hole where the LCA mounts. Since they would both turn together, I would think you'd only need 1 cam washer in order to properly adjust. Just make sure you put anti-seize on the shank of the bolt before you install it.

 

MAP or propane is your friend. It has made all the difference for me when dealing with stubborn hardware.

ACF-50 is excellent for metal surfaces such as hardware and alloy materials to prevent corrosion. It even seems help knock out corrosion. The stuff is fairly light though so I just use it around my engine bay. It’s even fine on plastics I’ve noticed.

Heavier still is Fluid Film. I spray it in my doors and body cavities.

Heaviest yet is Woolwax. I use that on my chassis and undercarriage. Needs re-application seasonally, possibly more depending on what kind of corrosive environment you’re in.

There’s also cosmoline but that’s just crazy talk. Woolwax makes the undercarriage a bit filthy to work on but it washes off my hands/arms readily enough. Cosmoline is a petroleum Vaseline chassis grease like mess. I think it’s what they coat some rotors with before shipping to prevent surface rust. Woolwax is also made from lanolin so not so nasty to be around. Doesn’t smell as bad as fluid film either.

 

some of our helicopter parts come to us in cosmoline. depending on how thick they put it on, man is it a pain to get off sometimes.

 

@Ride - I tried MAP gas before I decided to cut the LCA's off. I had that on there for quite awhile and it made no difference. Once I got the LCA's off, I saw that there was a ton of corrosion between the bolt and the bushing.

Part of the impetus for getting the suspension done now was so that I could get the undercarriage sprayed before winter. I still have some digging to do there, but I really do want to further delay any additional rot. Thanks for that info, though. Thats very helpful and interesting.

 

Thanks so much. Appreciate the detail you go into to explain your process. I’m torn with a few decisions. Like you, I’m not really wanting a lift! Level if anything but then that throws a kink in my options with shocks. I know the bilsteins would be the reasonable route and without too many issues.

 

@TroutSlayerCO - during all of my research, I learned that some opt to put in a leveling kit in addition to the bilsteins in the front. The front sits lower than the rear, so to level it I believe would only be to raise the front up. I can tell by just installing the bilstein struts on the middle notch that the truck looks more level. I opted for bilsteins because they were an upgrade from stock and the reviews were positive. Seems like the go to recommendation for shocks. I will tell you that when I installed mine, I had to cut bolts - only because I didnt have access to a heavy impact at the time. If you dont have one already, get yourself a decent impact. I have the Kobalt set already, so I picked up a Kobalt XTR 1/2 drive impact - https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-XTR...R-24-Volt-Max-1-2-in-Drive-Cordless-Impact-Wrench-1-Battery-Included/1002274076. Except for the lower control arm bolts, this thing had no problem with the rest.

Another thing I'll point out is the getting the lower ball joints separated from the steering knuckle took quite a bit of effort. I tried separating the joint with a chisel, since there's an open notch, but that didnt seem to do much good, due to the corrosion. So I ended up using my air hammer to get the old one out. Installing the new one was a bit easier. Hold the knuckle with a jack, line up the ball joint with the knuckle, then take a 2x4 thats about a foot long or so, and place it on top of the ball joint. Then use a heavy hammer to pound the ball joint into the knuckle until its lined up with the notch thats cut out so the bolt can slide through.

 

On my 18 p4x, I only installed bilstein 5100’s on the front and set at middle perch. If you look at the truck, it looks level but if you measure it still has a small rake forward which is fine by me. I didn’t want to go up any higher on the 5100’s because of all the research I did on coil bucket contact. The 5100’s give the front end a little more stiffness which I prefer because the stock shocks when I would brake just seemed to dip too much in the front. I love my 5100’s and will replace the rear soon. Adding a level kit to my truck seemed pointless if I could get the look with the new shocks anyway.

 

@Altimate Titan - First off, clever username. What specifics did you find on coil bucket contact? The Bilsteins definitely stiffen the suspension, which I wanted for the same reason. Mine's always just felt a little too loose and it seems to feel a lot better now.

 

From what I’ve read on these forums, anything over 1.5 inches lift in the front without replacing the UCA’s will cause coil bucket contact. That’s why on mine I specifically set the 5100’s on the middle perch and have not had any issues with mine.

 

The middle perch gives it 1.2 inches of lift and 4th perch gives it 1.7, I took the safe route and chose middle which again looks level but if you measure there is still a small rake forward which is ok with me. I also have a tool box in the back with my air compressor and floor jack so that might give the rear just enough squat for me not to notice too much either

 

I found the same info doing my research. I’m torn on king 2.0 remotes or the bilstein setup. Trade off is no lift for the front of course but a good system. I’ve had many bilstein setups in the past and have never been dissatisfied. Bilstein has its limitations with digressive design and kings are beasts but of course you pay out the -ss for them. The biggest pro I think is being rebuildable. And I do think kings with the right setup is hard to beat as far as ride,etc. So I guess I need to decide if I can live with the rake. Mine is 1 1/2.

 

It definitely comes down to personal preference and what you want your truck to look like. I debated back and forth with myself for a couple months before I did anything. I personally chose the bilstein adjustable fronts because 1) I wanted a little stiffer front and it essentially leveled my truck. 2) I like the tire to fill the wheel well and if I did a 3-6 inch lift, to me you have to put 35’s on at that point which will require some cutting on the inner fenders and removal of the front mudflaps. I like the look of the front mud flaps and I know others don’t. 3) I also stuck with stock tire size to try to keep MPG’s close to the same since i don’t off road as much as others on here. It’s all just trade off on what you want, what you can self justify in your head, and what you can afford. I like seeing pics of others with 6 inch lifts and 35’s but I personally can’t justify that for my setup