Nissan Patrol modification ideas

[Salarios]

Thank you @Michael sammy  and @Frederic !

By the way I changed the shoes on "The Beast" down to 18" (from 20"s) and put on some Cooper AT3's for better sand traction. Now countring down the minutes to our next drive... 😃

[Chaitanya D]

On 3/9/2020 at 8:38 PM, Salarios said:

Thank you @Michael sammy  and @Frederic !

By the way I changed the shoes on "The Beast" down to 18" (from 20"s) and put on some Cooper AT3's for better sand traction. Now countring down the minutes to our next drive... 😃

Congratulations @Salarios . How much did it cost for this change and any suggestions where to get it done? Does it interfere with the Hydraulic suspensions on the patrol ? Let know how do you feel the change with these new set of tyres on road and in desert. They look great . 

[Salarios]

Sorry for the delay @Chaitanya D I wanted to go on a drive first before commenting on the new tires, and had some fun with them for the first time today. The tire/rim combo cost just over 7k, and I had it done in Sharjah (across Day to Day in Al Nahda). It was a good decision to go from 20’s to 18’s I think, as there is now a higher tire wall and hence more surface area in the sands. The AT3’s are just amazing though. No noticeable increase in highway noise, very good traction, and they look good too (which was also a factor in my decision!). They didn’t interfere with the suspension at all, but initially they rubbed against the plastic panel in the front passenger side, which was easily fixed by screwing the panel inwards more tightly. Overall I’m very happy with this decision. 

By the way as I broke my front bumper again today on a fewbie drive and dislocated the diffuser in the back, I was thinking about your comment as I was driving back: that I’m glad I didn’t spend 10k on the Japanese bumpers! 😂 

I’ll be calling your guy tomorrow for a new bumper. 🙃  

Cheers, Salar 

[Chaitanya D]

8 hours ago, Salarios said:

Sorry for the delay @Chaitanya D I wanted to go on a drive first before commenting on the new tires, and had some fun with them for the first time today. The tire/rim combo cost just over 7k, and I had it done in Sharjah (across Day to Day in Al Nahda). It was a good decision to go from 20’s to 18’s I think, as there is now a higher tire wall and hence more surface area in the sands. The AT3’s are just amazing though. No noticeable increase in highway noise, very good traction, and they look good too (which was also a factor in my decision!). They didn’t interfere with the suspension at all, but initially they rubbed against the plastic panel in the front passenger side, which was easily fixed by screwing the panel inwards more tightly. Overall I’m very happy with this decision. 

By the way as I broke my front bumper again today on a fewbie drive and dislocated the diffuser in the back, I was thinking about your comment as I was driving back: that I’m glad I didn’t spend 10k on the Japanese bumpers! 😂 

I’ll be calling your guy tomorrow for a new bumper. 🙃  

Cheers, Salar 

Thanks @Salarios for your detailed reply. Sorry to know you have a broke  bumper even with the uplifted one.:-(

I was wondering how does changing rim size increase foot print in desert ? 

Because if you have down sized to 18 , you would have gone for increased side wall (65 or 70 ) and hence the tyre circumference remains almost same. So upon deflating to 15 psi in desert the contact area on sand probably remains the same as the tyre circumference has not changed .I am not sure if I am getting my math wrong here ?please correct me if I am wrong.

Cheers and See you soon

 

[Srikumar]

10 minutes ago, Chaitanya D said:

Thanks @Salarios for your detailed reply. Sorry to know you have a broke  bumper even with the uplifted one.:-(

I was wondering how does changing rim size increase foot print in desert ? 

Because if you have down sized to 18 , you would have gone for increased side wall (65 or 70 ) and hence the tyre circumference remains almost same. So upon deflating to 15 psi in desert the contact area on sand probably remains the same as the tyre circumference has not changed .I am not sure if I am getting my math wrong here ?please correct me if I am wrong.

Cheers and See you soon

 

What needs to be understood is that the rubber can flex and not the alloy/steel rims. So a 20 inch rims has very less rubber and when you deflate the tyre still takes the shape of the rims. But if you have a 18 inch rims, then you have more rubber whose shape would change when you reduce the pressure.

Hope it's clear now.

[Jefy]

@Salarios Congratulations with your upgrade. Your car looks awesome in my opinion, nice black stealth look with aggressive wheels.

Bumpers
@Salarios and @Chaitanya D, because you are both changing bumpers/ body, try to think a few steps ahead. Do I want to continue with this hobby and do I maybe need other things in the future? As an example, LED lights or a winch maybe? You don't have to do everything at once, but when you are modifying your bumper, I would also think about where you can mount a LED bar/ spots. When the time comes that you want to mount LED lights, you'll have a gap/ space/ bar for that.

I've learned in this region that you have to think by yourself and give them a plan/ design what you like. The work they deliver is often good, as long you give them a detailed concept.

As a technique, you can visit different workshops, ask them an opinion what they can do for you. Sometimes they come with ideas you've never thought about. Go home, think a few days about it, put the best of all ideas together and go the one that was offering you the best price. Try to get a bit more off that price if possible.

One thing I have experienced, the more you bargain, the least in priority your work will be done.

Tires
I am not into the Nissan Y62's, regarding choosing a new tire, I recommend that you both go through the Y62 fora, to see what is possible regarding different offsets and tire sizes. 
https://www.patrol4x4.com/threads/biggest-tyre-stock-car.285785/

 

 

 

2 minutes ago, Xaf said:

 

Tires
I am not into the Nissan Y62's, regarding choosing a new tire, I recommend that you both go through the Y62 fora, to see what is possible regarding different offsets and tire sizes. 
https://www.patrol4x4.com/threads/biggest-tyre-stock-car.285785/

 

 

 

@Salarios

I know you already have new wheels and tires, but still I recommend to go through the discussion on the forum, it might help you with other modifications like another UCA or suspension lift.

[Chaitanya D]

1 hour ago, Xaf said:

@Salarios Congratulations with your upgrade. Your car looks awesome in my opinion, nice black stealth look with aggressive wheels.

Bumpers
@Salarios and @Chaitanya D, because you are both changing bumpers/ body, try to think a few steps ahead. Do I want to continue with this hobby and do I maybe need other things in the future? As an example, LED lights or a winch maybe? You don't have to do everything at once, but when you are modifying your bumper, I would also think about where you can mount a LED bar/ spots. When the time comes that you want to mount LED lights, you'll have a gap/ space/ bar for that.

I've learned in this region that you have to think by yourself and give them a plan/ design what you like. The work they deliver is often good, as long you give them a detailed concept.

As a technique, you can visit different workshops, ask them an opinion what they can do for you. Sometimes they come with ideas you've never thought about. Go home, think a few days about it, put the best of all ideas together and go the one that was offering you the best price. Try to get a bit more off that price if possible.

One thing I have experienced, the more you bargain, the least in priority your work will be done.

Tires
I am not into the Nissan Y62's, regarding choosing a new tire, I recommend that you both go through the Y62 fora, to see what is possible regarding different offsets and tire sizes. 
https://www.patrol4x4.com/threads/biggest-tyre-stock-car.285785/

 

 

 

@Salarios

I know you already have new wheels and tires, but still I recommend to go through the discussion on the forum, it might help you with other modifications like another UCA or suspension lift.

@Xaf Thanks and I concur with all your suggestions. I will try to get some more ideas as to how to sort the bumper/suspension/tyre changes for Y62 patrols- most being made in Australia where they do many kind of upgrades/changes which I suppose are not allowed in UAE due to the process of re-registration every year.And there is no clear cut directive as to what can be done not to have any issue while registering the car every year.

Another option which strikes to my mind always is instead of making all these expensive changes to a stock nicely equipped car, I go for a cheaper used car and drive it carefree in the desert. I need some suggestions regarding this - Modifications to a Y62 vs buying a used car which can be driven as you like in the desert without worrying much. @Rahimdad, @Gaurav, @Srikumar and @Frederic your inputs will be much appreciated . Thanks in advance

[Srikumar]

As we mention in our briefing offroading puts a lot of strain on your vehicle. On higher level drives like Intermediate, despite our best efforts certain amount of premature body or mechanical damage is expected. 

The decision of going for a second car is a personal choice. But since you have asked my opinion, I would say that if you intend to make this a regular hobby its good to have a second car purely for offroading purpose. You can modify it or do minimum fixes as per your convenience without worrying too much about offroading damages. 

Having said that, we have @Emmanuel who has been using his Xterra both for ofroading as well as a daily driver for the past 2 years and has managed it extremely well. Same is the case for @Frederic who uses his 99 Pajero for both purposes. But then their stock vehicles are proper offroader with good ground clearance and minimal electronics. Can't exactly say the same about a Patrol Y62 with its low hanging bumpers.

[Wrangeld]

2 hours ago, Srikumar said:

As we mention in our briefing offroading puts a lot of strain on your vehicle. On higher level drives like Intermediate, despite our best efforts certain amount of premature body or mechanical damage is expected. 

The decision of going for a second car is a personal choice. But since you have asked my opinion, I would say that if you intend to make this a regular hobby its good to have a second car purely for offroading purpose. You can modify it or do minimum fixes as per your convenience without worrying too much about offroading damages. 

Having said that, we have @Emmanuel who has been using his Xterra both for ofroading as well as a daily driver for the past 2 years and has managed it extremely well. Same is the case for @Frederic who uses his 99 Pajero for both purposes. But then their stock vehicles are proper offroader with good ground clearance and minimal electronics. Can't exactly say the same about a Patrol Y62 with its low hanging bumpers.

Which all goes to confirm that the Jeep TJ is the perfect 2nd car for off roading (hehehehe!) - it can work stock, has masses of mods avaialble and, if the tuning is good enough, a perfect weight power ratio. 

[Salarios]

@Xaf thank you for taking the time to write such thoughtful and valid comments. These are serious words of wisdom that every driver should adhere to. 

The Y62 does indeed have considerably higher running costs, but the thrill of a V8 400hp engine packaged in luxury justifies it in my humble opinion. @Gaurav can attest to the joy of riding it as he drove up the Maleha mountain with it on Friday. I have a [fake] defender back home (more on that later), and have no worries on damaging it while offroading since running costs are much lower, but sometimes I feel like I'm driving a farm tractor. I'll let people with more experience comment on striking that perfect balance between comfort/power versus running costs. 

Anyway, a few points to mention: 

- I had the bumper changed yesterday (thanks @Chaitanya D for the contact details of Mohammad), and also installed the bash plate painted matte black to match the car, and a new LED light: 

The bash plate is connected to the chasis, and should theoretically absorb the forces better. 

Before doing this, I visited these guys, and considered metal front and rear bumpers along with Smittybilt winch:  

They were asking 3,600 for the front, and 2,200 for the back, plus 2,800 for the 12k winch. But because of three reasons I decided against it : a) The bumpers are made of aluminum and recovery points can not be attached to the bumpers; b) RTA approval is questionable for the bumpers and c) the winch is attached not to the chasis but to a cross bar which is held to the chasis with three bolts on each side. And that front cross bar is not strong enough to with-hold the strong forces of a winch. I spoke to multiple shops that confirmed the Y62 by design is not suited for a winch like a cruiser. 

Just to comment on @Srikumar's valid statement about additional wear and tear, and of course this is true, but my experience is that some cars are built tougher than others. Cruisers and patrols are built like tanks and can withstand that offroad abuse much better than entry level 4x4's. But of course the approach/break-over/departure angles need to be improved. 

 

 

Edited March 16, 2020 by Salarios