05 OR....rear end bottoming is now GONE! ******updated 1/4/06 with flex pics

Finally found something that works well for me. I bought a kit from Timbren . Its just a big rubber spring that goes between the axle and the frame (in place of the factory bumpstop). It works awesome! It rides like normal most of the time, but on the occasional big bump or when carrying a heavy load, the rubber spring supports the weight. No more bottoming!

Here's the complication. They don't yet make a kit that really fits. The one they list for the 05/06 Xterra is the TORTUN4. I have no idea why they list it, because this kit is for spring over axle, and we have spring under. IT WILL NOT WORK! So what I did was make my own mounting bracket and used the TORTUN4 rubber spring. The rubber spring mounts to the bracket, then the bracket bolts in place of the factory bumpstop. It leaves about 3/4" space between the axle and the rubber spring, which is what Timbren specifies.

FYI, before this I tried bolt-on help springs and they were WAY too stiff. These things are awesome!

Awesome! How much does that kit run? I could use that, because when people are in the back and it bottoms out I feel like a moron. You would figure a 4 door suv wouldn't bottom out with 4 people over bumps!

The kits vay between $150 and $200. I don't know if you can buy just the rubber spring and figure out the bracket yourself. I got mine from Michigan Truck Spring in Saginaw, MI. Good place to deal with. WAY better prices than the local autoparts stores.

Good work. The more I think about this, the more I wish Nissan would step up to the plate on this monster design flaw. I want to take the Xterra to Baja at Christmass, but going 5mph when my Titan could go 65mph and my Montero 110mph, is just plain silly. I was going to a spring shop. I will check around on this new lead though. Hopefully it holds up? But designed for heavy duty trucks it should. Good work.

These things have been around for years. Their major use is in IFS truck with snowplow. My brother in law owns a Carquest store in Northern Michigan and he said 90% of the guys with snowplows on IFS truck buy them. He's never seen any problems with any of them. The rubber is 1"+ thick. I think they'll hold up fine.

Thing is tho, are these things going to limit the ability to flex so much. If it limits the upward travel on one side, doesn't that limit the downward movement on the other side?

I think I'm going to hold out for an upgraded springpack from SLR or somethin.

Why would it limit flex? Its going to let the axle travel further upward than with the factory bumpstop. It has no effect on downward travel.

Travel was my next thought as well. Thats cool if you are correct

From looking at the GIF on their site it looks like the rubber replaces the exact space that the rubber bump stop does. That said, you are not going to limit the little travel you already had, but in fact increase it during the rubber compression.

knaffie... if you have a moment... flex out your X to where the tire is stuffed all the way, the rubber should be fully compressed. There is probably some rubbage happening in the rear wheel well. Also, what size tires are you running?

There has to be a reason that the factory designed that size of bump stop. With my 33s I know that under full flex I am rubbing in the wheel well... using this rubber spring may increase that rubbage and possible cause more damage than its worth.

Glad somebody realized that these things INCREASE flex, not limit it! But in my case, it doesn't just replcase the bump stop, but increases the whole area of what was the bumpstop and the mounting bracket.

I'll be at Fabtech until Tuesday night, so maybe Wednesday I'll flex it out and get some pics.

knaffie,

Did you look at any of the other kits to see if they would work. Such as the pre '05 Xterra or the 'O5 Frontier?

I talked directly with their technical support guy. He sent me a kit that I think was for the older Xterra and the rubber spring was so long, it wouldn't even fit betwen the axle and the frame. He did his best to find one for me that would bolt right in, but it would appear that none do at this point.

knaffie, can you post some picture of your bracket and how it's mounted?
Thanks

We should encourage them to develop something, since they are selling, what 15,000 trucks a month with a bad rear suspension? They could sell some! Heck the salesman could just hand out a card when they leave the dealer in there new X. Guess I will see if this can make Baja doable.

I'll try to get out today and get some pics, but its raining again.

I just emailed the salesman at Timbren and he said they are completing the 06 catalog and the error will be fixed soon.

Also asked him if anything will be available soon. I'll post the reply when I get it!

Here's what I got out of them. Apparently this Jeep kit fits. Part number JRC01. Their website will be updated shortly to reflect these changes. Here is a screendump of the info for this kit.

The bracket I made is very similar to what is shown here, except I welded the round plate with the washer welded to it right to a piece of 1/2" thick flat stock.

Anyone else tried this yet? I also noticed this problem and am curious about this solution. I also noticed the link to the specific part # is not working. Is the JRCO1 still the correct part number, or has there been a change?
Kurt

JCR01 came directly from the rep at Timbren a few weeks ago.

I still love mine. I had a 300# welder in the back and pulling a trailer with about 200# tongue weight and it was smooth as could be.

Is says that this kit is for the 4X4. Will this work for a 4X2 also? knaffie, what do you think about getting it for the front also? I know that the front may seem a little unnecessary, but if this works like you say it does for the rear, I'm thinking why not spend a $ to upgrade the whole ride (both front and back).

Knaffie, do the kits for the rear come with both sides? So all you need is $150.00, install it and you're done?

I have no problem at all with the front. Why waste the money unless you want to snowplow.

Yes, $150 does both sides. 10 minute install max! Worth every penny!

Ordering mine tomorrow. Need them to survive Baja at Christmas. Somehow 1000 miles of slam, bang at 20mph aint going to cut it

If we go this route and then Nissan desides to do a recall, I assume we will not be reimbursed the $150 we spent to fix the problem? Further, if they do decide to fix the problem, will we have to do it in order to keep our warranty? I'm guessing it is not likely Nissan will do something about this but wondering what everyone else thinks.

I highly doubt there will be a recall. And just about positive you would not be reimburssed the $150 you spent. Look at it along the lines that if they would come out with a recall and fix this "problem" I doubt it will be as good of a solution.

I think I got tired of waiting for Nissan to fix it, do I fixed it myself. Its only $150, big deal if you do lose it.

Any updates or flex pictures? I'm thinking about ordering some for my '05 OR with 33's

What do you want an update on? Kinda hard to get anywhere to flex right now with all the snow here.

I have ordered mine and it should be here next week. Once it is on I will test it and put up some PICs. The truth is I think this will make it worse for those who want 33s on their X’s. It will allow the vehicle to sink lower. You are replacing the hard stop with a more soft / progressive stop. Currently, once you hit he body stop you stop. With this you will hit it a little sooner. It will give you resistance sooner and progressively add resistance until it reaches it’s limit. It will let you go farther before becoming a hard stop. My going further with a bigger tire I think you will rub more. It will ride nicer.

You could always use a small stack of washers and space the mount away from the frame a little bit if you're too concerned with too much travel.

Knaffie. YOU ROCK. 5 trucks for you and your solution. I have only had it on for 2 hours but it has made a world of difference. I just can’t believe that such a simple solution has mad such a big difference. I will post more once I get it off road.

Newbie here... Just have a few questions regarding the bottoming out. I too like to travel to Baja California with a full load of people and fishing gear and sure in heck don't want to be dragging my rear in and out of every pothole. This rubber spring system seems to be a cheap and easy fix, but I am wondering about air lift systems such as these at "Performance Center.com" Link> http://www.performancecenter.com/products/searchtype_d/sortorder_DAA/productcategory_Air+Suspension+Systems/category_Suspension+~~+Chassis/sf1_NISSAN/sf2_2005/sf3_XTERRA/sf4_Univer sal+Fit/partnumber_BEL5097/

Anyone have anything on the way to go on this?

If I do change to my X, will it void any of my warranty?

AZN8iveX - Where did you get yours and how much $$$.

I've found the JRC01 kit for $154.95 and am thinking of investing. My folks arrive from the UK in 3 weeks and we'll be doing some lengthy roadtrips, not much fun with the X bottoming out ever stone we drive over.

I paid $154.99 no tax no shipping. I talked with local dealers of the product they have to order the product from the manufacture. Nobody I found had it in stock. By not buying it locally you do save sales tax. I got it from...
http://www.albanyspring.com
Albany Spring
408 North Pearl Street
Albany, NY 12207
United States
Phone: (518) 465-1123
Fax: (518) 465-5426
Toll-Free: 1(800) 352-8470

They were great. I had the product in 5 days. It only took me 30 minutes to do the install. If you need any help at all I have everything you will need. A 14 mm socket, A 14 mm wrench and A 3 ton floor jack. The replacement stop is so long that you need to lift the back a couple inches to fit it in. I would be willing to loan the tools if you need or if you come over to my place we can just do it. I think it a great idea. I am very happy with mine and plan to off road it this weekend as a test.

ordered... local truck spring place carries Timbren.

There is no distributor listed in San Diego Co., but PTO sales in Escondido has a parent company in L.A. a few phone calls yielded this info.

$160 with tax. will pick up as soon as i get back. I'll probably bottom out somewhere on my holiday trip and cuss myself for not ordering this a week ago.

So hey.... Is the package complete now with the right mounting hardware? Or do you still have to weld a piece to hold the thing onto the frame?

Timbren lists the Xterra 05-06 as needing the
JRC01 for the rear suspension.

Since the .pdf for it is 404, does it require making your own bracket or is that only for the TORTUN4?

I don't know, I will let you know if it is in today. I just got back in from a trip..I'll have to see if the distributor has it (and even if they are open today).

my impression is that it comes with the metal as shown in the earlier phote, but new holes may need to be drilled.

TORTUN4 is what they listed last year, and is wrong, and is what I had to make brackets for. The JRC is supposed to be bolt on, but I have not personally verified it.

Judging by the way folks are describing the install on the JRC, I'm assuming a 30 minute install does not require any Drilling or Fabrication. Sounds like just bolt on to me.

Would be buying this real soon, but now the new lift option is available, other than Daystar. I think the next mod might be the lift, which would should remove the need for this.

I'd like to comment on this.

I bought the JRC01 kit for my Xterra, based on recommendations from those who have done it so far. It seemed like a really good idea--but I don't think the JRC01 kit is the right one. I will be discussing it with Timbren when they open tomorrow.

First impressions:

Bottoming out IS gone, but only because the axle is resting fully on the Timbren SES unit. I unbolted the factory bumpstop, mounted the rubber spring to the Timbren bracket (supplied), and bolted assembly on. It is a very easy install but I believe for it to work as intended, the whole assembly should be 1" to 1 1/2" shorter.

Anyhow, because the axle is resting on the SES kit, the ride is now more bouncy and harsh. I must say I am dissapointed. For those of you who have not ordered yet, I would reccomend waiting for Timbren to release a kit specifically for the 05-06 Xterra--or at least come up with a better alternative than the JRC01.

Will

They told me when I was making my brackets, the bottom of the rubber spring needed to be 3/4" - 1" from the axle. I can imagine if its already sitting right on the axle, it would ride a little rough.

Its not that hard to design and fab up the mounts.....Timbren just needs to step up and do it instead of taking an old kit off the shelf!

willahlborn, you should probably send them a picture of your setup. Hopefully they will see a problem and make a real kit for the Xterra.

Why not also post a picture?

Altering your suspension will void your warranty (technically) for suspension components. But I really don't see how this modification could possibly cause any damage to the rest of your suspension--So, keep your stock bumpstops and switch them back if you ever need warranty service on your X.

Note: I would not recommend this if the part in question were, say, a turbocharger. Or any other part that would INCREASE wear on your X. I am not in favor of leaning on warrantys to get a free lunch.

You got it! Here's a picture:


This is the JRC01 mounted on my 05 Xterra Off Road. As you can see, the JRC01 kit is much taller than the solution Knaffie came up with. The kit meant for the Toyota has a shorter rubber spring, and the bracket he made himself also appears to be shorter than the one included in the JRC01 kit.

Knaffie, how about you sell Timbren your design and pocket some cash so the rest of us can order a solution that works?

So you are saying you don't like how it works? looks like one could shorten the mounting pad pretty easily on that one. I get mine this week.
It's gonna get shortened unless you tell me it works ok as is.

I installed mine 2 weeks ago. Yes it touches, but my goal was to out a 2.5 inch lift on real soon. So that will fix the issues for me. Even with the current install touching it still improves my ride. I will be off road this weekend for a serious drive and will report back..

Yeah Mike... pretty much saying I don't like it. For it to work as Timbren specifies, it needs to be shorter. However, I don't think this can be accomplished by shortening the mount alone. I think a shorter rubber spring is required also. This is why I plan to ask Timbren for an exchange (based on the fact that they sold me a kit that doesn't fit).

Good news, here's the response I got from Timbren:

One of the biggest problems with mfg of parts for different vehicles. You need the vehicle to try it on. It almost sounds like they were going by either what someone told them and or the specs in the service manual. It sounds like they have good customer service and that is a rare thing these days. I bet they end up using that bracket and some other spring and come out with a new part number for the 05+ X. So if you are planning on buying, I would either wait, or call them.

willahlborn, good thing the picture helped

Are they going to fix the kit for the Xterra (for future buyers of the kit, like myself...)?

When I mount the new spring i'll take another picture and send it to them. If they like the way it looks maybe they'll do what Muzikman says and put those parts in a kit for the 05+ Xterra.

good news. I had not heard about my order and my credit card has not been hit with the charge yet, but it looks like a rubber swap with timbren is possible if I can't stop the order in time.

My JRC01 kit came in so I put it on for laughs knowing it would be overkill. I talked to Murray at Timbren and he is going to send out the shorter rubber SES spring to me as well. He wanted another opinion so I obliged him with the install.

It's a bit too much for an SUV. Now if I had a 3500-4000 lb boat with a lot of tongue weight, this long kit might be real useable, but I'm gonna want the inch or so of unnassisted cush space for ride quality and axle flex. This could be just the thing with an add a leaf or shackle lift.

I'm not sure if we can easily shorten the JRC01's brkt, but I'd like to see how the short spring fits. I guess I can find some scrap and just make the same exact pad bracket that knaffie did if I am not satisfied with the clearance.

I did sort of like the assisted feel though, this is a good way to beef up the load capacity of these girly springs nissan gave us. I just hope we can still stuff the tire when fully flexed.

For those who were asking, I got some flex pics. I think I could get it to flex out more than this in a better spot, but given it was raining and this snowbank was handy to get to, I just did this real quick.

EDIT: Just looked at that Timbren pic again. I'm thinking the factory bumpstop would have hit before this. IMO, flex advantage = Timbren.

WARNING: Minor Post Hijack

knaffie -

What size tires did you end up getting from the Tire Rack?

END OF HIGHJACK

regards,

Stock. 285s were tempting, but this is a daily driver that rarely will ever go offroad. I need power, mileage, and handling more than bigger tires right now. I've got my gigantic ZR2 for offroading.

I have a concern... and I have asked this before, just hoping to get an answer. Under full compression did you get any rubbing inside the rear fender well (drivers side, toward the back)?

Tire size is very important with this question due to the difference in how the truck will compress with larger tires.

Thanks.

I didn't hear it rubbing. I don't think the tire was far enough up in there to rub yet.

That compression doesn't look natural on the Timbren spring--it looks like it's folding, not compressing. I'm sure they weren't designed to hold up to that kind of abuse. For anybody who's doing any decent amount of offroading, this doesn't look like a good solution...? What do you guys think?

Will

I think it's fine. solid axles articulate at angles, they don't always go up and down. the leafs don't care, the thick azzed timbren can take that no problem IMO.

If you look at Timbrens site, they show an illustration of a seriously squashed SES helper bumpstop that is bulging more than the one pictured here.

also, I don't think that tire is stuffed all that much. you can see most of it still. As always, your combo may vary. I say weld your bumpstop bracket to the exact height you need for your intended tire size.