[Korsar]

Intro Comments: This is a daily driver turned overlander. I’ll start adding past progress and mod install pictures over time. Since I still use it for work and have a large dog, the back needs to be empty or easily cleared at a moment's notice. Permanent fridge, drawer, sleep, or kitchen setups are pretty much out of the question. Clean mounting solutions for my gear continues to be a top priority.

Make: Nissan
Year: 2015
Model: Xterra
Trim: X
Color: Night Armor

MODS

Suspension + Lift:

• Front
  • Bilstein 5100 (set at 0)
  • ADO D40-F-M coils (about 2" of lift)
  • ADO 1/2" spacer
  • ADO High Clearance UCAs
• Rear
  • Bilstein 5125 (3-4")
  • ADO Parabolic Leaf Pack (about 2" of lift)
  • 2.5° axle shim
  • ADO Recessed ubolt plate
  • Timbren Active Off-Road Bumpstops + 1" extension
  • Z1 adjustable lift shackles (1.5" of lift)
• Mikellis 2” body lift
• Rear sway bar deleted
• Rear brake line extension bracket

ADO 2" Bilstein 5100 Lift Kit + AAL

Wheels + Tires:

• Pro Comp 89 Series Kore 17x8”
• BFG KO2 285/75/17
• Pro Comp 285/70/R17 AT Sport
• Gorilla Automotive lug nuts
• Melt mod + fender trim

Engine + Drivetrain:

• XTP Intake Manifold Spacer
• AEM Dryflow air filter
• Airflow Snorkel + Sy-Clone 9001 Precleaner
• ARB C200K rear air locker
• Rear diff breather relocator 7’ hose

Armor:

• Ballistic Fab C200K rear diff cover
• Pro-4X Skids

Exterior:

• roXterra Slim Roof Rack
• 2x Pelican Vault V770 cases
• 2x Pelican Air 1535 cases
• Trail'd gas container (mounted in factory spare location)
• Midnight Forest 2 gal Rain Basin water tank + hose kit
• Southco locking wet box handle
• OVS awning w/ muffler clamp mount
• OVS shower curtain w/ quick release mount (stowed in roof box when not in use)
• Front bumper chopped
• Habitat Off Road front recovery points
• Balmer Fab rear bumper
• AVS window vent visors
• Gobi ladder
• Nissan Murano rear wiper blade swap
• Mudflaps deleted

Interior:

• Cover King front seat covers
• Console Vault
• Raingler barrier net behind front seats
• Fire extinguishers mounted
• Orange Boxx Fab Rear MOLLE Panels
  • 4x Pelican Vault V100
• OEM ceiling cargo hooks added
• Shovel mounted inside hatch w/ Quik Fists
• Pelican iM2050 Storm Case to replace OEM first aid kit
• Husky liners
• OEM cargo tie downs added
• Gorilla Offroad gas hood struts
• McMaster-Carr gas hatch struts 18.19” extended length 150lbs
• Rear seat bottoms deleted

Lighting + Electronics + Comms:

• Optima Yellowtop D34 battery
• 20” Nilight LED lightbar
• 2x Rear Amazon LED light pods
• LED marker lights (front, rear)
• Diode Dynamics LED interior lights
• Pioneer head unit
• Garmin Overlander
• Garmin BC 35 cam (front and rear)
• Amazon backup cam (redundant)
• Garmin Mini Dash Cam
• Garmin inReach Mini
• weBoost OTR cell signal booster
• Cobra 19 Mini CB radio

Recovery Gear + Tools + Other:

• ARB CKMA12 OBA
• ARB tire fill-up hose kit
• Indeflate Twin Hose Unit
• Toyota OEM Land Cruiser jack w/ SafeJack cradle
• Unijack
• Tire puncture kit
• Tool bag
• 12v repair kit
• Jumper cables + jump starter
• Spare nuts, bolts, washers, fasteners
• Maxtrax Mini + Jack Base combo (stored in wet box)
• Short spade
• Yankum 7/8” Kinetic Rope 20’
• Yankum 3/8” soft shackle
• ARB long soft shackle
• Tow strap
• Factor 55 Hitchlink 2.0
• Tarp
• Weathertech double sided reflective window screen full set
• Skeeter Beater bug nets
• Dometic 20L cooler

Future Mods + Wishlist:

• Shrockworks sliders w/ full step on order
• Hefty aluminum bumper on order
• White Knuckle sliders?
• GMRS radio to replace outdated CB
• Regear?
  T-swap?
• Rear quarter window gull wings?

PHOTOS

Looking for a spot for some long range shooting out on BLM land.

Mall crawling.

First multi-day trip with the X on the Mojave Road.

Installed the ARB compressor the night before.

Mojave/Death Valley trip.

Taken shortly after buying it.

This forum really helped me get to this point so I hope I can give back a little in documenting my progress and installs. Thanks for reading.

 

[N.Fl.X]

Such a clean looking rig! Love the amber running lights on the rack!

 

[shift]

Love those amber lights on the roofrack. how'd you do it?

 

[Argan]

Looking good!

 

[Korsar]

Thank you!

It was pretty straightforward to do after having to run wire for other mods down the same way. I used these 3/4" smoked amber lights. I drilled some holes in the air dam, added the lights with some RTV around the rubber grommet and daisy chained the wires together with quick connectors. Then I T-tapped the wires which ran down through a hole in the roof, behind the driver side A-pillar, through the footwell firewall, and into the fuse box under the hood via an add-a-circuit to F7 (taillights) so the lights would turn on when I flip the running lights on. Ground wire was run directly to negative battery terminal. My wiring skills are shit so I'm sure I could have done better with the daisy chain part. Big thanks to the write-up by @bostonaholic which has more detail.

I like the smoked version cus they are hardly noticeable when off, almost OEM.

 

[walter012]

Nice

 

[roXterra]

Looks great!
Great looking air dam amber lights.
Let’s see more of your roof closeups, how are your containers attached?

 

[Korsar]

Looks great!
Great looking air dam amber lights.
Let’s see more of your roof closeups, how are your containers attached?

Thanks! I was definitely inspired by your light set up.

I've said this before but I'm really glad you recommended getting the mesh floor for the rack. I drilled some holes in the cases and bolted (M8 hex) them down to the mesh with flat bar on both sides. I didn't bother doing a quick detach system since I'm fine with the cases living up there. The jerry can holders are mounted similarly. I'll keep 1-2 there max as needed.

The cases are super lightweight and feature the quiet push button latches found on Storm cases. I left the side handles on for something to grab when I'm pulling myself up to get to the rack. One case is for recovery gear and oil/fluids and the other for sleeping gear as needed. I also ditched the Rotopax in favor of higher capacity cans. I like being able to leave them up there and just using a ball siphon to refuel.

 

[roXterra]

Great looking plates and with slot holes, strong, that’s the way to do it, where did you find them?
How do you use your water? Pour it into smaller containers?

 

[Korsar]

Great looking plates and with slot holes, strong, that’s the way to do it, where did you find them?
How do you use your water? Pour it into smaller containers?

My local hardware store has a nice selection of brackets and plates for doors and shelving. I think Ganahl Lumber might only be in SoCal.

I've been trying a JAGMTE Scepter ball siphon to transfer into smaller containers. Flow stays constant and fast after you get it going once and there's a valve at the bottom of the hose. I'd like to try a DIY pressure valve for spraying down dirty gear or my dog but need to do more research.

 

[Korsar]

Recently got an ARB rear locker installed. Did the compressor myself behind the driver headlight bracket and purchased the actual locker and master bearing kit back in January. Was having trouble finding a trustworthy and reputable shop to do the locker install. ARB's official vendor list is complete garbage and half of the shops I reached out to on that list said they didn't do that kinda work. Calling around locally also didn't work out. Reached out to Steven over at Rugged Rocks and he referred me to Rose Auto. It was worth the 2 hr one way drive. Ed and Jeff are extremely knowledgeable and do great work. Jeff himself is a Nissan guy and I believe he also has done VK and Titan swaps. The install was super clean and thoughtfully done. Estimated hours was accurate and the price was very fair. I forgot to mention refitting the stock brake line bracket off the old diff cover and Jeff did it anyway. Big thanks to Steven for the solid referral and to the guys at Rose Auto Clinic.

On another note, my Ballistics Fab cover fit great though the skull isn't exactly my taste. I've read reviews from a few years ago where their covers had some quality issues but that appears to have been fixed. They said they would include 2 sets of bolts but I only received one set AND it was still the wrong thread pitch. That issue seems to be recurring. The cover is damn pricey (wait for holiday sales) but we don't have a lot of options for C200K.

 

[Korsar]

Revisited my first mod on the Xterra. I added some quickfists for a shovel and a larger first aid kit. Past couple months the plastic panel comes loose when closing the hatch and then rattles like crazy when driving. I've had to pop it back in place every time I open it. Guess all the extra weight has finally worn out the plastic hardware holding the panel up.

I drilled out 3 holes and added rivnuts that allowed me to bolt the panel in place. This lets me remove it if needed and still looks somewhat clean. The extra bolt without a washer was a mistake. Drilled in the wrong spot cus I had the panel upside down... I also replaced the plastic retainers for good measure.

 

[Korsar]

Got a full set of OEM skids for a deal from another member who recently bought a Pro-4x and was upgrading. I know it's not the greatest protection but for my usage and budget right now it's better then nothing. Just had to sand off some rust and repaint. Install was very straight forward. I believe I used M8x1.25 at 25mm bolts all around except 2 or so on the front skid needed M6x1.25. I'll edit this if I remember later.

Also changed out the latch for my tire carrier swing arm. While nothing was necessarily wrong with the one that was included, I wanted something a bit larger. Had to drill out larger holes on the latch and swap over some parts from the old one. Then I painted it black.

 

[Korsar]

Hitch related things this past week. I found that I can still access the OEM spare tire hoist with my aftermarket bumper. After going for full length storage cases on the roof rack I lost my spot for my jerry cans. I considered adding a jerry can holder to the rear swing arm but I want to avoid adding even more weight that far out. I'm now testing out the Trail'd tire shaped container which can hold 6 gallons while keeping the weight nice and low. It's also completely out of sight at only 1/3 the height of an actual tire. I had to use a wheel spacer to get the hoist end to fit securely. After doing practice runs mounting, raising, and lowering it full of water, I've gotten the process down to only a few minutes. I painted a part of the plastic cone that leads to the hoist red to make it easier to spot and line up. Once I take this out on some trips I'll likely make a thread about my impressions. So far I'm really into the concept.

After seeing one in person, I picked up a Factor 55 Hitchlink which is also soft shackle compatible.

 

[Happybox]

That’s awesome! This is the first time I’ve seen that.

 

[roXterra]

Looks great, right spot for it 👍

Don’t forget about venting the gas container depending on outside temp, otherwise you develop a permanent bulge in plastic, or something worse.

 

[Korsar]

I'm looking forward to put it to use. Luckily I only need to lower the chain partially just enough to tilt the container back to open and vent. Still a chore but hopefully won't bulge as much as my Rotopax did when on the roof in direct sun.

 

[Korsar]

Something that has been on my mind everytime I walk to the Xterra was how the spare tire sat on the swing arm. It's a perfect 90° angle but at certain view points it looked like it was slightly leaning away. Possibly exaggerated due to the distance from the hatch. Today I decided to cut it up (sorry Darin) and have my Uncle weld it at a closer and more aggressive angle that follows the contour of the hatch. Not the cleanest welds but it's not going anywhere. I'm very happy with the new look.

Before:

After:

 

[roXterra]

You have to go with what feels right. Straight doesn’t always feel so

 

[Korsar]

I finished installing a weBoost cell signal booster. Even when out on the trail I still need to be in touch and reachable with work. Seen good reviews so I'm going to give it a try. Initial unscientific tests did give me more bars in my driveway.

I added a Rhino folding aerial mount but realized I don't need it since I'm not running the longer antenna. I can still barely fit in the garage without it. The outside antenna cable was run through the factory hole at the top of the hatch, through the headliner, and down the window trim. That recessed corner by the back 12v outlet was the perfect spot for the PSU/booster and there's an on/off switch on the weBoost plug. The interior antenna cable was routed under the floor trim, under the passenger seat, and velcroed to the side of the center console area.