Category Archives: Projects and Tech

Frontier Tinkering – Utilitrack Creativity

Posted by on August 15, 2009 No comments

You may remember my Frontier Hi Lift mounting dilemma a while back.  The main concerns being secure mounting, ease of access, and preservation of precious bed space.

My original solution was to put the Hi Lift on the factory bed divider, where it would be handy, but not take up any space that wasn’t already restricted by the divider itself.

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This routine worked pretty well, but as it turns out, that extra 6″ of bed space comes in pretty handy, and the Hi Lift just isn’t needed unless I’m going off-road.  So now I am on to Hi Lift mount version 2.0 (or maybe 1.5)

The bed divider has been retired and the Hi Lift will be a part-time passenger for the time being.

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I modified the 4xRac brackets with a slot in the center of each end and secured them with some of the factory utilitrack hardware.  Mount is even more secure and the jack can now be carried in any of the 5 tracks.  Not sure where it will spend the most time, but it is definitely solid.

Road Trip Report – Moab

Posted by on June 23, 2009 2 comments

For reasons too numerous to mention, Moab is still very close to the top of my list of favorite places on earth.

I recently had the opportunity to pass through on a business trip (really, I was working) and enjoy some warm weather wheelin’.  I even had the benefit of having Spinny along for entertainment and slave labor.

We enjoyed a blurry night out among the locals, followed by a near-epic day of ‘wheelin that included Klondike Bluffs, Gemini Bridges, and a section of Gold Bar Rim.

The Nismo performed admirably and I finally got to feel the benefit of all the upgrade$.  Proof that I didn’t do it for looks.

Non 4×4 highlights included dino tracks, desert/mountain goats, blooming prickly pears, and the usual canyon country scenery.  Photographic evidence follows.

Camping Report – March 09

Posted by on March 24, 2009 No comments

Camping report, March 2009. An early season outing on the actual Sevenmile road.

Amazingly, Sevenmile was open top to bottom and there was very little snow to be found until reaching the higher “optional” sections of the trail.

Weather was perfect except for some overnight wind, with mild temps and no rain/snow.  This was a pleasant surprise, as the original forecast called for nasty Freezeout style conditions.

Movie night, a tradition established one year ago on the 08 Freezout, came off without a hitch.  This year’s selection: Caddyshack.  Ah…the classics.

All three vehicles present performed admirably.  This included a family truckster Suburban, which proved that a stock rig can go crazy places if piloted properly.  The Nismo also had a successful shakedown run on new tires and suspension, dealing with questionable snow depths and muddy climbs better that expected, and the Rubicon naturally mashed trough the snow with no effort and provided the peace of mind of having a recovery vehicle if needed.

Overall an outstanding outing and another example of why this road, group, and area has an entire website devoted to it.

Happy ‘wheelin.

-Webmonger

Frontier Upgrades, a.k.a: Late Night Wrench Therapy

Posted by on November 18, 2008 5 comments

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After several weeks (months?) of parts acquisition, and trying to fit in wrench time between travel and family time, the Frontier has received some overdue tlc.  Still not an ideal trail rig, but one step closer in my quest for the ultimate “one vehicle solution”.

Even though the stock NISMO parts were very good, off road capability should now be significantly improved, as well as my confidence level in getting off-road without unintentional damage.

As an added bonus, the shiny white luxury wheeler is now slightly taller, looks better, and suffered no change in road manners.

Here’s the laundry list of improvements from my recent buying spree and sessions of late night wrench therapy.

Custom Adjustable Coilover Shocks and Upper Control Arms from PRG.  Improves down-travel, adds 1″ of lift (for total of 3″ over stock), and improves handling.  Replaces 2″ spacer lift.

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2″ Block and Custom Bilstein 5125 Shocks in Rear, also from PRG. Replaces stock Bilstein shock and 1.5″ block.

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Hi Lift mounted to Bed Divider (just for fun and easy access).

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Custom Rock Sliders from Black Widow Off Road.  I can finally stop worrying about rocker damage…mostly.

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All the parts installed as designed and I got great service from PRG, BWOR, and even Big O of Broomfield (alignment).

So my list of “pressing” projects is now mostly finished and I can move on to tires…speakers… seat covers..

Winch R&R – Warn M8000

Posted by on October 1, 2007 No comments

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I know some (or most) of you guys have torn winches apart to some degree, so this may be worthless to you. Pretty interesting to me, as I have never personally gutted a winch. I knew they were simple, but I didn’t realize just how simple.

The FourWheeler guys also make it sound like this M8000 has seen some pretty heavy use. I would have guessed this model to be a bit small for that kind of abuse. Maybe I’ll add this to my watch list for used stuff.

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