My 2001 Pathfinder (R50 ) mild/budget build

[stioc]

Hey Matto, good to see you here mate. I was typing the previous reply when you posted. Alright I'll mount my tire in the spare location and take some pics for you guys.

 

[Weekender41]

parts geek.com has em for 63 and change a piece... and coil number 1 is different and more money to my understanding so doing all 6 would be very close to 400 buckaroos.... I think ill just fix my problematic number 5 and call it a day. hahaha oh yolo doesn't work with my cash flow since im still a full time student. Ill just bring hiking boots more often, thanks!
Ahh yes thexbrit...I have seen him over there.. is that his DD? if I had LSD I could just repack and call it a day but sadly my sticker is white not orange.. oh well. Thanks for the imput!

 

[stioc]

Fitting the 32" tire in the stock location:

Size difference (29 vs 32):

Metal brackets and rubber pads removed:

The result- a tight fit but it fits nonetheless (this was taken with the truck on level ground, under compression there is a chance the track bar might touch the tire but I haven't tested it):

 

[stioc]

Since I don't have a winch yet (and even if I did) I've been wanting to buy the MaxTrax (easy to use and great for snow, light mud or sand) but as a matter of principle I'm not willing to spend $300 on two plastic boards. I was pretty sure I was going to get the TJM TREDs instead, they had better reviews than the similarly priced Smittybilt Element ramps. However, thanks to Allof75 for offering me a good deal on his unused Smitty Elements that I decided to get them anyway. So this afternoon I built the mounts for them. The key for me was to mount them low enough so the truck still fits through the garage door yet high enough that the ramps don't get in the way of the rear passenger door. It was very close, I'm a few centimeters away from hitting the garage door opening. Spent about 4hrs (much more than I expected) from start to finish but I think they came out ok, what do you guys think?

 

[mortonm]

Looks like a pretty good spot! How much do they weigh?

 

[Allof75]

Thanks for sharing the spare tire mount- definitely going to utilize that And excellent work on the ramps, hopefully you get more use out of them than I did! hahaha Seeing your truck in the flesh, it is extremely well put together, and looking more and more "expo" every day. :smiley_drive: Simple and functional mods abound.

How much do they weigh?

I never weighed them, but I'm guessing 15 pounds or so.

 

[Matto]

That's a good spot for the trax. All the cool kids mount them there:

Out of the way normally, but easy and quick to get to when you need them. Plus you don't need to put muddy/sandy trax back inside the car. Nice work on the mounts too.

Thanks for the photos of the spare tyre too. Do you have a towbar fitted? I thought you did. If you don't, then that explains why you can fit yours under there but I can't fit mine.

Cheers,
Matto

 

[Fergie]

Have you considered anything as far as an ARB front bumper and winch goes?

 

[stioc]

Looks like a pretty good spot! How much do they weigh?

I drove the truck to work about 50 miles doing 70mph on the highway and the ramps/mounts held perfectly in place. I didn't weigh them but they're about 13-15lbs.

Thanks for sharing the spare tire mount- definitely going to utilize that And excellent work on the ramps, hopefully you get more use out of them than I did! hahaha Seeing your truck in the flesh, it is extremely well put together, and looking more and more "expo" every day. :smiley_drive: Simple and functional mods abound.

I never weighed them, but I'm guessing 15 pounds or so.

Thanks man, your truck looks great too and just as clean in person as it does in the pictures

That's a good spot for the trax. All the cool kids mount them there:

Out of the way normally, but easy and quick to get to when you need them. Plus you don't need to put muddy/sandy trax back inside the car. Nice work on the mounts too.

Thanks for the photos of the spare tyre too. Do you have a towbar fitted? I thought you did. If you don't, then that explains why you can fit yours under there but I can't fit mine.

Cheers,
Matto

Nice work on the MaxTrax mounts. I completely agree on keeping them outside especially after use in mud/snow. Speaking of which have you had to use them yet?

Yes I do have the factory towbar. Actually you can see it in the third pic right up against the tire. As I said it's a tight fit, you have to remove the rubber pads (seen in the first pic, on the floor in front of the 32" tire), you have to push any wires out of the way and position the tire more towards the driver's (best to have another person hoist the wheel up slowly while you position it) side but it fits - as you can see Give it a try, now I'm curious.

Have you considered anything as far as an ARB front bumper and winch goes?

Absolutely, I want a winch and it's definitely in the plans. Unfortunately though a winch requires a heavy duty bumper. The only bumper available for the front is the ARB Sahara bumper which alone is about $1500. Furthermore a winch alone isn't enough in the desert with nothing to winch to so now you need a Pull Pal, may be a second battery too. As you can see it starts to add up and while I do believe the next large purchase will be a winch/bumper etc this is exactly why I chose to get the traction ramps for now. I also carry a shovel and a hilift with their Offroad Kit (plus chain and synthetic winch line extension) so I can use it as a winch in an emergency So far I've been lucky enough to not need a winch but I know it's probably just a matter of time as I explore more beyond my current comfort level.

 

[XPLORx4]

For winching, you don't need a second battery. You just need a powerful one. I think you have the Diehard Platinum, right? If so, that should be plenty enough.

You also don't need a pull-pal either; you just need a second vehicle. It's always better to travel in a group while off-road anyway.

 

[stioc]

There ya go again removing roadblocks and making it harder for me to put it off, thanks a lot

Have you used your winch a lot? I've seen you using it in the Moab video where you had no traction on either axle even with both lockers on!

 

[XPLORx4]

Which Moab video are you referring to? I only had a rear locker the last time I was in Moab.

I haven't used my winch "a lot". It's primarily a sort of insurance policy for the "just in case I get stuck" moments. I usually try to take the easiest possible line when driving. The last time I actually used my winch was to drag a 4'-diameter landscaping boulder off a driveway and back into its curbside planter after someone had crashed their car into it.

I have used my winch more often to pull other vehicles out of sticky situations, and myself and only one other vehicle in our "crew" are winch-equipped. The last winch-assisted self-recovery was a couple years ago when we went off-roading in snow and I got high-centered going over a big snow drift. I could have gotten pulled out from behind with a strap, but since I was breaking trail, I winched myself through so that others behind me had an easier path.

 

[ginzer82]

Can you please tell me where to get the front 1.25" spacers?
private message me
thanks!

 

[stioc]

Which Moab video are you referring to? I only had a rear locker the last time I was in Moab.

I haven't used my winch "a lot". It's primarily a sort of insurance policy for the "just in case I get stuck" moments. I usually try to take the easiest possible line when driving. The last time I actually used my winch was to drag a 4'-diameter landscaping boulder off a driveway and back into its curbside planter after someone had crashed their car into it.

I have used my winch more often to pull other vehicles out of sticky situations, and myself and only one other vehicle in our "crew" are winch-equipped. The last winch-assisted self-recovery was a couple years ago when we went off-roading in snow and I got high-centered going over a big snow drift. I could have gotten pulled out from behind with a strap, but since I was breaking trail, I winched myself through so that others behind me had an easier path.

Sorry, I can't remember exactly which video it was but it was definitely one where you guys were on your way to Utah. It may have just been the rear locker at that point but I for some reason thought you had both lockers on and eventually had to winch it out.

Can you please tell me where to get the front 1.25" spacers?
private message me
thanks!

They're no names that I bought on ebay. They're made for the 4Runners and therefore not hub centric and yes I do get the steering wheel shimmy because of them.

 

[stioc]

A couple of pics from our trip that came to be after I said "for once let's get some dirt on your Subaru" to my friend. So we ended up in Big Bear and ran a pretty easy Gold Fever Trail that you could probably do in a Honda Civic. It was at least quiet and scenic so we enjoyed looking at the relics along the way and had a nice picnic lunch on the trail.

Start of the mountain road

Buddy doesn't mind the sub-40F water at the lake

Can't remember what this white moss on the ground is called, we only see it a few days of the year...oh the northerners call it snow

Along the trail

Belleville cabin

Towards the end of the trail

Sunset on the way down the mountain