BCXterra, the “Jackal” build. ‘03, SE, SC, 5spd.

BCXterra

Bought an X
7730A028-30CD-4080-BD80-B237E7954710.jpeg Gen 1,
Atomic Orange,
SE,
Supercharged,
5speed.

Picked this Xterra up at the start of Oct ‘19, it had been babied and well taken care of by the previous 2 owners.
Included in my purchase was a stack of receipts and work orders for all maintenance since new.
There was zero indication that it has been off of pavement in its life, the undercarriage is as unblemished as freshly fallen snow.

This is about to change.

My family and I live in a small town nestled in the mountains of south west British Columbia. Logging roads and mountains all around us. We tend to get off into the bush 2-3 times a week for skiing/hiking/biking adventures, or just for an evenings exploring.

Our last adventure rig was a ‘99 LR Discovery, which was brilliant and still is a fun truck to drive. But the auto transmission is getting a bit temperamental, so after some research I decided on trying my luck with an Xterra (have always wanted one, so here we go!).

Only a few creature comfort additions so far (Thule ski box, neoprene seat covers, blind spot mirrors).

My plan for this build is to keep it mostly mild, with an emphasis on durability, capability, protection, & affordable.

With that in mind here is a list of intended mods:
  • 1” BL (2” ordered-Oct’19/rec’d Nov awaiting 160mm bolts)
  • 1.5” PML (shackles, HD torsion bars)
  • Air box mods & snorkel (ordered Navara model from eBay Oct’19/rec’d Nov 24)
  • Steering upgrades (HD Tie rod adjusters rec’d Nov 27, grassroots centre link, idler arm brace)
  • Drive line mods (diff drop bushings, warn hubs, front locker)
  • TrailGear 58” rock sliders
  • Front bumper upgrade (possible repurposing of disco winch bumper)
  • Home made rear bumper/tire carrier
  • Quest alternator upgrade
  • Skid plates.
  • 32” mud terrain tires (already purchased and sitting in garage!)

A note about the name “Jackal”.
We pretty much always name our vehicles (the disco was Andy Landy), so with this new purchase we had to come up with a new name. Being Orange and bought in October, obvious parallels were made with pumpkins and Halloween. Jack (short for Jack-O-Lantern) was suggested.

However I dislike pumpkins.

Jackal popped into my head instead, and kind of stuck. A quick wiki search of Jackal left me with these quotes and cemented the name for me:

“proficient scavengers
-love finding used parts/deals/cheap mods.

“chasing intruding rivals and marking landmarks around the territory with their urine and feces
- Uh-oh.....
 
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Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
I'm curious what the build date is on your truck. The only year for SE/SC 5-speed was 02 per Nissan. So if your is an 03 I wonder if the build date is late 02 and was sold as an 03 model.

Very clean truck and rare color! Looking forward to the build.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
I'm curious what the build date is on your truck. The only year for SE/SC 5-speed was 02 per Nissan. So if your is an 03 I wonder if the build date is late 02 and was sold as an 03 model.

Very clean truck and rare color! Looking forward to the build.

I will have a look at the tags tomorrow and figure it out. Was listed as an ‘03 on the CL posting, but that would explain the mechanic not finding an ‘03 manual listed in his book.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
I will have a look at the tags tomorrow and figure it out. Was listed as an ‘03 on the CL posting, but that would explain the mechanic not finding an ‘03 manual listed in his book.

A quick look at Wikipedia shows
“For 2003, options included side-curtain airbags and a tire pressure monitoring system. The 6-disc, 4-speaker AM/FM/CD audio system was replaced by a 6-speaker 300W Rockford Fosgate AM/FM/CD audio system with an 8-inch subwoofer that took up a small portion of the rear storage area.”

Which I have the side curtain airbags and Rockford Fosgate sound system. But not the tpms.
 

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
A quick look at Wikipedia shows
“For 2003, options included side-curtain airbags and a tire pressure monitoring system. The 6-disc, 4-speaker AM/FM/CD audio system was replaced by a 6-speaker 300W Rockford Fosgate AM/FM/CD audio system with an 8-inch subwoofer that took up a small portion of the rear storage area.”

Which I have the side curtain airbags and Rockford Fosgate sound system. But not the tpms.
Plot thickens. I'm genuinely curious now.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
The parts pile is growing...lift pucks arrived, new trailer wire, ordered a new set of procomp shocks, snorkel arrives next week, picked up the parts for raising the breather, have my steel for home made skid plates & bumper (we got a new plasma cutter at work...)
I have made arrangements for the family to go to grandmas in a couple of weeks, so will have plenty of uninterrupted wrenching time. Looking forwards to it!
 

reaver

Lockers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Caldwell, ID
Beautiful X! Thrle first time I saw that color was at a gas station coming back from Oregon. I thought it was a custom paint job. I've seen a ton of yellow ones, but yours is only the second orange one I've seen. Love the color!

Your build plans sound pretty similar to mine. Definitely going to be following this build.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Idler arm brace & extended shackles arrived this evening. Picked up my ProComp 9000’s this weekend.
Ordered HD tie rod adjusters.
Still waiting for the Navara snorkel to arrive.
 

reaver

Lockers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Caldwell, ID
Which shackles did you get? I don't feel that for my intended uses, I need to do anything more than a pml, and I'm leaning towards the ac adjustable shackles myself.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Ordered Trail Gear 58” sliders today. They were 10% off at 4wdparts this weekend. I have had other TG stuff on my previous Toyota’s and have been pleased with it. Have seen a few write ups of these being installed on other X’s and looks good. Price was good too.
 

xEndlessfight503x

Bought an X
Very nice! This has to be one of the less common Xterras out there, manual, S/C and a cool color. I too am going to be running trail gear sliders, excited to see how the 58" turn out.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Ordered Trail Gear 58” sliders today. They were 10% off at 4wdparts this weekend. I have had other TG stuff on my previous Toyota’s and have been pleased with it. Have seen a few write ups of these being installed on other X’s and looks good. Price was good too.
Got a call that these have already arrived...looks like a trip to the city to pick up this week.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Two more boxes arrived yesterday, my flexible air inlet piping for the snorkel install, and my traction mats.

I watched a video on YouTube
where he reviewed the cheap knock offs of Max Trax, and the $66 version did really really well compared to the $300 originals, so I ordered a pair. They fit nicely in the trunk against the seat backs.

I have also been hunting around for the elusive M10/1.25x160 bolts for my DIY lift. Finally tried fastenal, and while they didn’t have them in stock, he did locate 4 in Atlanta GA, so I ordered them all in. Should be here mid next week. Also, if anyone in BC is looking for a pair, I may be able to hook you up.
 
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BCXterra

Bought an X
HD tie rod ends came in the post today.
Also crawled underneath and gave all of the bolts a blast with liquid wrench in preparation for my weekends endeavours. Planning on doing shock absorbers, and possibly PML.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Took an hour after work and installed my new ProComp ES9000 shock absorbers, what a difference in the front end. I don’t think they had ever been changed.
I had to shave about 2mm off of the top rubber bushing in order to get the threads started, other than that they fit just perfectly.47115A8E-4C48-4D65-AFBC-58462CA1E758.jpeg 5F94F260-61A8-4367-A641-29628F6A002D.jpeg
Also picked up my Trail Gear 58” sliders today.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Just installed an idler arm brace. Took less than 20 minutes.
Off to pick up my M10-1.25 x 160mm bolts so I can do the body lift this weekend.
Might do my snorkel later too.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Resonator delete done, was easy thanks to the write up in the How-To section.
Snorkel is 75% on....having trouble with last 2 studs, will have to remove wheel and fender liner tomorrow to get better access to apply more direct pressure. FA3E1FF8-E86A-4026-AF03-043ABA5F226E.jpeg

Afyer picking up my 160mm bolts, I am a little concerned if I got the correct ones or not. Will find out tomorrow...
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
2” Body Lift is in. Just have to mount the bumpers back up & it’s all done.
It’s too late, dark & cold to wrap it up tonight, so will fly at it in the morning.
All said, fairly easy. Started it at 1:30pm, and finished up at 8:30pm.
Will get some pics up tomorrow.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
0A54EDE3-2D29-458E-B34E-E0AC7546BB86.jpeg And the body lift is complete.
Not a bad weekends work;
Idler arm brace, Snorkel, Body Lift.

I will tackle the PML another day, time to go out and enjoy the sunshine.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Not if you piece it together as a diy kit.

I just bought the parts listed in the How-To section for a DIY 2” Body Lift.

But no big issue, I was planning on doing a fluid flush before winter is on full swing, and I sourced a rad for $220 cdn.
 

Cptpackrat

Bumpers Installed
Location
Gillette WY
Not if you piece it together as a diy kit.

I just bought the parts listed in the How-To section for a DIY 2” Body Lift.

But no big issue, I was planning on doing a fluid flush before winter is on full swing, and I sourced a rad for $220 cdn.

$220 sounds like ALOT for a radiator. Is it at least an all aluminum one?
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
Radiator removed. Probably took longer to get my tools out, than to actually work on the rad.
On the plus side to all of this, I also rust killed and painted my lower xmember below the rad.
 

BCXterra

Bought an X
New rad is in. By re-indexing the upper red hose I eliminated all the stress on it. Just had to clock it about a 1/4 turn.
The new rad came with two brass nipples on the bottom which were not on my original. I think it’s for a trans cooler ? I pressure tested them, and they are separate to the main rad. At any rate, just left the little plastic caps on it.
 
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