HELP! Did I buy the wrong truck? GVWR Concerns (02 Frontier CC LB V6)

[Taylor Swift]

Hi all,

My name is Taylor. Been lurking here for a couple of years. I own a 2002 Frontier -- Crew cab, long bed, V-6, 4x4 with 120k miles. I have been losing sleep recently due to some mid-build concerns. I greatly appreciate and want to thank in advance anyone who reads and chooses to give me their time. Here we go...

SUMMARY

- I have put a lot of time and money into the truck, including a full suite of component replacements, timing belt, and full brake rebuild. I'm now concerned that I have the wrong truck for my intended use.

- PURPOSE: Dedicated home / surf adventure vehicle, based in SF/Bay area, for a 3 year period

TWO MAIN CONCERNS -- Payload, and 3" suspension lift being a bad idea

- My final design, which is as simplified as I am willing to go, is pushing the limits of GVWR.

*NOTE: Design has removed backseat and assumes 300 lbs for passenger*

• Truck payload: 1050 lbs
• Riding solo: 75 lbs under (93%)
• With passenger (300 lbs, backseat removed): 225 lbs over (121%)

- The truck came with an ARB front bumper, and I have the original bumper. I could get rid of the ARB and recover ~150 lbs, conservatively. (I decided to not have a winch because of weight concerns. I will keep a 48" Hi-Lift Extreme, recovery ropes, Maxtrax, shovel, and hatchet onboard.)

Removing the bumper would change my stats in the following way:

• Truck payload: 1050 lbs
• Riding solo: 225 lbs under (79%)
• With passenger (300 lbs): 75 lbs over (107%)

- The truck came with a 3" Automotive Customizers heavy duty suspension lift. It's trashed. I ordered and took delivery of a replacement kit last Wednesday. I'm now concerned that lifting the truck is a bad idea, and am considering taking whatever penalties necessary and just beefing up the suspension, without lifting it. Appreciate experienced/knowledgeable opinions on this.

*For the record* Lift kit includes heavy duty rear springs, heavy duty torsion bars (30% increased spring rate), Bilstein 5100 shocks, and a Bilstein steering stabilizer.

I have seen it said that the kit increases payload capacity by 500 lbs, but I know better now than to take that claim at face value.

The truck also currently has 265/70/r16 mud tires -- 31.7" -- I plan to swap over to AT's at some point. I like the tire size and I am pretty sure I could keep it without the lift.

SO...

Do I have the wrong truck? Seems that when I lay it out, the obvious thing to do would be to forego the lift, beef up the suspension, proceed with the build, and then remove the ARB bumper when it's all done, if it seems like it needs it.

HOWEVER, I will keep the weight low, and I *like* the lift. I will be driving the truck on the beach and could use the clearance. And regarding center of gravity, the water tank is undercarriage-mounted and the battery is on the rear floor. All heavy gear in truck bed is under a wheel-well mounted wood platform (my bed). The one high load will be a permanent 150 lbs on the roof (surfboards and solar panels). This is unavoidable.

THANK YOU for reading and commenting. My mechanic is set to install the suspension on Wednesday, so your timely responses are VERY appreciated.

-Taylor

 

[Taylor Swift]

Oh, and a couple pics:

 

[roving1]

Swapping a winch for a hi lift jack seems silly given the 40 lb difference and the fact you already have the ARB bumper. Plenty will argue different but I gave my hi lift away after not using it for my own vehicle once in 15 years. I use the winch every other trip I take even if it is to just move trees or try something I would be afraid to do w/o a winch and being alone as I normally travel.

I say keep the vehicle shoot for the best you can do and see how it performs.

Lifting a vehicle may not be necessary in some ways but most vehicles have garbage spring and shock solutions in stock height. Dollar for dollar you usually get much improved spring rates and shocks going with a lift. I didn't really want to lift my own truck at one point but custom rear leaves alone cost 80% what a quality old man emu lift with shocks that are way way better than anything I could run at stock height cost.

I also tried to avoid replacing my stock bumpers but having done it to get decent durability and good recovery points it was worth it and with the suspension upgrade the vehicle still handles better overall than stock.

 

[Taylor Swift]

Roving,

thanks for your reply, that makes a lot of sense. I guess I was thinking I would have a high lift no matter what. But I’m a noob, so I don’t have practical experience to draw on.

The 1st gen Frontier came with very low stock height. As you can see from the photos, it doesn’t look dangerously high by any means.

another stability upgrade would be offset wheels. The cheap option is the Pro-Comp steel. Adds about 80 lbs total, but widens the stance by 1.5” per side.

Also concerned about overloading engine, transmission, driveshaft, differential...

on the flip side, I don’t want to keep screwing around with vehicles, wrenching, and not exploring. I wanna get out there!

seems like full steam ahead is a decent strategy. Might be able to cut weight in some places as well...

cheers.
T

 

[(none)]

Just drive the damned thing and don't worry so much. Engine, trans, diff, axles are all reliable and are much more loaded in many other people's applications without issue. Monitor temps for engine and trans (if it's an auto) and go on. Frame strength isn't really an issue as long as you are not planning to pretend it's a baja race truck. Have you actually gotten it weighed with you in it to see where you're at?

 

[NatersXJ6]

Do your math as % of GVWR, not % of payload, you’ll feel much better.

 

[NatersXJ6]

Every time I took my F250 into the Bay Area I hated myself (actually they hated me, but who’s counting)... I would be more concerned about parking, maneuverability, and height than weight. Especially that close to the rating.

 

[Taylor Swift]

Just drive the damned thing and don't worry so much. Engine, trans, diff, axles are all reliable and are much more loaded in many other people's applications without issue. Monitor temps for engine and trans (if it's an auto) and go on. Frame strength isn't really an issue as long as you are not planning to pretend it's a baja race truck. Have you actually gotten it weighed with you in it to see where you're at?

10-4

Haven’t weighed it. That’s the first stop after she’s driving.

 

[Taylor Swift]

Sounds like I’m good then. ExPo front page has two articles that specifically talk about not exceeding GVWR, so that spurred the thought process. Hard to know what you don’t know...

thanks all. Will post pics of the build when it gets underway properly.

 

[NatersXJ6]

Those articles aren’t “wrong” by any means, but you need to think about your intended uses. Are you driving round the world or up and down the PCH? Huge difference in reliability needs.

 

[Taylor Swift]

Every time I took my F250 into the Bay Area I hated myself (actually they hated me, but who’s counting)... I would be more concerned about parking, maneuverability, and height than weight. Especially that close to the rating.

LOL I feel you on the city dwellers of SF hating you/me!

Those articles aren’t “wrong” by any means, but you need to think about your intended uses. Are you driving round the world or up and down the PCH? Huge difference in reliability needs.

Somewhere in between. I live in FL now, so to start I'll be going to Outer Banks for surf, then I want to hit Maine and Nova Scotia this Fall. I generally love the mountains and love to hike and hunt... weight and space considerations are just narrowing my focus. But drives to Baja, Alaska, BC, or anywhere in the Rockies, from my central SF hub, are not out of the question. I will get on some trails. But I will NOT be trying to go "wheeling" or "crawling". It's probably unavoidable in some cases, which is where a winch would be awesome. But a lot of times, I'm just trying to get TO a trailhead.

 

[Taylor Swift]

Oh, and I don't have a crystal ball, but if I didn't have the SF thing already planned, I would absolutely consider driving around the world. So who knows what gives in 4 years time. I wouldn't put it past me.

 

[NatersXJ6]

After 4 years, you will buy/build a totally different truck. Stuff you are absolutely sure will work out during internet planning has a way of being very different in the real world. I’ve changed my Jeep setup at least 12 times, and even considered changing the Jeep itself.

If you know how to drive slowly on rough roads, you will survive. There is a reason they call one of your pedals the “stupid pedal”.

 

[luthj]

If you are only 10% over the GVWR, then don't worry about it. Just drive conservatively. If you find yourself doing hard 4x4 driving, then you might have some trouble, but just beach driving? Not likely to cause trouble.

 

[GA Native]

You could trade the ARB bumper for a hidden or semi hidden winch setup and save some weight. I drive a 3rd gen Tacoma and try to stay as close to stock drive line geometry as possible to prevent potential issues that sometimes come with a lift. Dobinsons has lots of coil options and Mike at Exit Offroad helped me a lot when I upgraded my suspension. My goal was to support weight with minimal lift. Good luck and enjoy the truck.