DIY 2" Body Lift

Hugetanker

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Nesquehoning, PA
This is a write up on how to install the Do It Yourself 2" Body Lift.


Difficulty: Medium
Cost: Around $100
Time: 4-7 hours
Equipment needed:

-Full set of metric and standard wrenches and sockets
-Extensions for sockets (a couple of 3" and 6" will be fine but it's helpful to have a very long one for the steering shaft)
-Small hammer
-Set of phillips and regular screwdrivers
-Drill
-Half inch drill bit
-Tap set (may not be needed, I used this to relocate the holes for the brake line bracket)
-2 scissor jacks and some railroad ties or other large block of wood to set jacks on
-Some rope to tie steering wheel
-Torque wrench
-At least 2 cans of PB Blast
-Red lock tite

Hardware needed:
-Parts for DIY 2" Body Lift Found right here.



First things first. You should start a week or two in advance by PB Blasting all bolts that will be taken off or loosened. Do this every day at least once a day to break rust loose. There are 4 bolt heads inside of the truck that need to be "exposed" by taking off the white plastic cap that covers them. I used a small chisel and a hammer to get them out. They are a pain, but just keep at them. They'll come off.

I don't have any pictures with the caps still on but I did take a picture of where they are. Take caps off and PB Blast bolt heads.

To get to the front mounts in the cab you first have to take the carpet up. Not all the way, just a bit. Here is how you do that.....

First take off the plastic kick rails shown here by removing the plastic screws......
xJl5Bjz.jpg


Then take off the panel shown here......
qtuKjOo.jpg


Here is where the front one is located, I didn't have time to take the carpet up, but it's right under where my finger is pointing on both sides of the truck......
W5qeT7s.jpg


And here is where the rear body mount is located inside the cab. It's under the seat and carpet on each side of the truck.....
nNZzO5V.jpg




Now for the mounts themselves. I only took pictures of the passenger side mounts, but obviously the drivers side are located in the same spot opposite of these. *These are the exterior mounts*

Front most mounts. Located in front of the front wheels........
SohG5pP.jpg


Second from front and other side of the mount under front carpet. It's right behind the front wheel under the rocker panel......
cyL2tNj.jpg


Third mount back. It's right in line with the door seam in between front and back doors under the rocker panel. This mount bolts right to the body so there isn't another side of it.........
GxFXxDP.jpg


Here is the fourth mount from the front. It is the other side of the mount under rear seats. It is located right in front of the rear wheels and is set up higher. You have to look up under there pretty good to find this one.......
MKzQqDs.jpg


Finally the rear most mount. This mount is located at the rear of the truck right behind the shackles. It also mounts right to the body so there is no other side to this one......
PcEIbdl.jpg



You also want to PB Blast the bolts on the steering shaft to make life easier later. Here are those bolts.......
e43I1AU.jpg


And the bottom side.......
LXdbrxc.jpg




So now that you know where all of the mounts are, be sure to PB Blast the crap out of them for 2 weeks prior to lifting.


Okay, so it's finally lift day! You have been spraying bolts forever and you just want your X to grow already. Here we go.

First thing to start off with is.......Yup spray all of the bolts again with some more PB Blast. Once you do that start with the bumpers. There are 4 main, 2 smaller bolts and 2 brackets holding the metal and plastic bumper on. The main 4 are in front of the radiator. *I chose to take these out rather than the bolts at the bottom of the bumper mount because I used the 2" square steel to lift my front bumper.* The 2 smaller bolts are located on the side behind the marker lights. The two brackets are pretty obvious, but they are on the plastic in front of the front wheel. Also be sure to disconnect the marker light cables while in there.

Front bumper mounts. *In this picture I already have my bumper lifted the 2".*
HIF7nSf.jpg


Side mounts for front bumper.....
pdTVNj5.jpg


Brackets for front bumper.....
TrXeAbc.jpg



Now for the rear bumper. There are 6 nuts holding on the rear bumper. They are located more tword the outside of the bumper on each side. Once you take the nuts off the other side is a bracket with the bolts welded to it. Slide the bracket out of each side and the bumper will come off. Be sure to remove the license plate lights so you don't break the wire. They just twist then come straight out.

Rear bumper mounting bracket......
RacmMeU.jpg


Bolts for rear bumper mounting bracket......
3ZdNggE.jpg



Now that you have your bumpers off, you need to do the following.
-First tie off your steering wheel so that it cannot be turned at all.
-LOOSEN the bolts on the steering shaft so that it can extend a bit while lifting. DO NOT REMOVE THESE.
-Undo the clip for the heater core hoses inside the engine compartment.
-Remove the bolts for the drive shaft safety loop.
-Slide the power steering reservoir out of it's bracket.
-Loosen the hose clamps on your intake.
-Remove screws that hold brake line bracket to frame.
-Remove lower half of cooling fan shroud.
-Cut a notch for your transfer case shifter so that it can have full range of movement. *This is case by case. Some may not need to do this.* More on this later.


Here are the bolts that you need to LOOSEN on the steering shaft. AGAIN...DO NOT REMOVE THEM. JUST LOOSEN THEM.

Top of steering shaft.....*Do not touch the bolts crossed out in red. You only need to loosen the one with the green arrow.*
3sEMNuz.jpg



Bottom bolt on steering shaft.....
0iHm8YS.jpg



Now for a pic of the clip for the heater core hoses......
PhWI10n.jpg



There are 2 bolts to take out to remove the drive shaft safety loop. The arrow points to the loop itself. The bolts are at the top of the loop.....
Am0m8tH.jpg



Here is the power steering reservoir. The lower arrow is where I cut and welded to shorten it so I could re-mount the reservoir.....
5yXsK2q.jpg


Better picture of where I cut and welded. Just simply cut 2" out of the bracket and weld it back together.
8DuvdS2.jpg


Hose clamps on intake....
PlQcepm.jpg


Brake line guard. Bracket is directly underneath the guard. Located on passenger side frame behind front wheel......
Tqpn38h.jpg


I do not have a picture of the lower half of the radiator fan shroud. But if you look behind the radiator from the bottom you will see that it unclips in half pretty easily. If somebody could post a picture of this I will edit it in.


Here is where you may need to cut to allow your transfer case shifter full range of movement for 4LO.....I don't have a picture of where I cut because it was getting late and I just wanted to get it done. But again if somebody would post up a pic I will edit it in. Some, including myself chose to do this before lift day to save some time, along with drilling the holes in the back bumper.
DOd2ERE.jpg


Now you want to go around and spray more PB Blast on all of the body mount bolts.

Now it's time to start removing bolts. Only fully remove the bolts on one side of the vehicle (I chose to start on the passenger side). LOOSEN the bolts on the opposite side to prevent extra stress on them, but do not take them out yet. After you get all of the bolts removed/loosened it's time to start lifting.
-Prepare your jacks and railroad ties under your BODY. Be sure not to place under frame.
-Slowly start lifting the body, listening for any unusual sounds and watching so nothing is binding or breaking.
-Place lift pucks in one by one as the body raises and creates room for them. Replace bolts as you go, just only put them in finger tight. Also put a bit of red lock tite on them before putting them in.
-Repeat this process on the other side.

So now you have the truck lifted and all of the bolts in finger tight.
DO NOT TORQUE ALL OF ONE SIDE DOWN AT ONCE!!!!!
Torque the bolts in the following order and to the following specs.....
JPmaH1q.jpg

1-P1,
2- D3,
3- P4,
4- D1,
5- P3,
6- D5,
7-P2,
8-D4,
9-P5,
10-D2

P2,D2,P5, D5 will all torque to 14-18 ft.lbs.

P3,D3,D4,P4 will all torque to 22-31 ft.lbs.

P1,D1 will both torque to 23-32 ft.lbs.
 
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Hugetanker

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Nesquehoning, PA
Okay, so now you're lifted and tightened down. Time to start replacing things.
-Front bumper.....As you saw in a previous picture I used a piece of 2"x2" square steel to raise my front bumper. All you have to do is drill holes into the square steel to line up with the holes on the current mount and place bumper on top of this. Pretty simple actually.
-Rear Bumper....Just drill holes with a half inch drill bit 2" LOWER than the current holes and re-mount. That will lift your rear bumper the required 2".
-Safety loop......Use the 2" as "big washers" to put between the loop itself and the body. This will allow you to re-mount it to the body.
-Tighten the bolts on your steering shaft.
-Replace power steering reservoir if you modded the bracket. Some just leave it hang there. I prefer it to be secure though.
-Tighten your hose clamps on the intake.
-You will notice that you can't re-clip the heater core hoses as they are too high now.

And you should be finished. Be sure to check the bolts 100 miles later to ensure tightness.

I still need to refine this a bit, I just wanted to get it somewhat finished. It should get you through the BL. If anybody has anything to add feel free.






Should be 2000-2004. But I have to finish it tomorrow. A family member broke down and I had to go help. Sorry again.
 
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TheFauxFox

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Location
Huntsville, AL
Just a thread suggestion, but I would put the parts list on this thread rather than using a link to another page. It keeps users from having to refer back and forth between pages. If/when you do, credit the post you found it from.

Good write up so far!
 

GoBUFFS

Bought an X
Location
Amarillo, Texas
First off this DIY is great thanks a ton!

-You will notice that you can't re-clip the heater core hoses as they are too high now./QUOTE]

I will be doing my body lift very soon, this is the only part that is confusing me. What do you do with the loose hoses?

And is there any chance somebody could post a pic of a new lift puck installed versus what stock looks like?
 

AbuseTheElderly

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Founding Member
Location
Pearl, MS
I just left mine unclipped. The hoses are too stiff to go anywhere anyway. BTW Hugetanker, I have pics from my body lift, I'll PM you a link to them as soon as I get them uploaded. So you can use any that may be missing (I have one of the lower fan Shroud, progress shots and a list of needed wrench sizes), I just never got around to writing it up. Haven't even had time to make myself a Build Thread.
 

Hugetanker

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Nesquehoning, PA
Buffs...I left mine unclipped too. Also I'll try and get a pic of the installed puck tomorrow.

Elderly, that would be great, I didn't take enough pics during the actual lift so they would help this DIY a lot. I've been pretty busy lately so I havn't been on much but I really need to catch up with forum updating.
 

UofA_Xterra

Bought an X
Location
NV
A word of advice for those installing the BL and still using the stock spare tire holder: I had to lower my spare tire to allow the rear portion of the body to separate from the frame. This was with a 31 x 10.5 R15 spare.

If I missed it in the write up than disregard this post.
 

Roadwarrior

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Something that was brought to my attention that I don't think has been mentioned ever, is that there is a cable that needs to be disconected from the power steering resevoir bracket

naKRZYx.jpg


If you don't it isn't a massive problem, but I noticed that my positive terminal on my battery was at an angle and was starting to slip off when I would go back to tighten it down.

o6IwTgT.jpg


This is the gap that releases the pressure on the terminal via the wires that go up to it. All of this being said, it was a simple fix and just something else to think about when doing the BL.

*You can also see how much the bracket was warped/bent by the connection piece. Granted I bent it back to show what needed to be shown.
 
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Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
Brake line guard. Bracket is directly underneath the guard. Located on passenger side frame behind front wheel......


This is one area that was missed when we did my body lift. Dave remembered that there's a line that usually needed to be popped out of a clip but not which one. He said if it was a problem I would get an evap code and to check with greentennx if I did. Well, I did. He said on his it was an emission hose behind the guard that cracked. I checked mine and sure enough it was dry rotted and had snapped completely in two. I replaced the broken hose section with a new piece of 3/8 fuel vapor hose. My original plan was to just use a longer section of hose so I wouldn't need to pop the line out of the clip but upon closer inspection the two fuel hoses felt stretched a bit tight too. I ended up unclipping the emission line and replacing the hose, then moving the two fuel lines up one clip each to relieve the tension on them. I thought about unbolting the whole clip assembly, the drilling and tapping a new hole higher up on the frame which would be a better way to do it, but when I unclipped the fuel lines they moved up one clip space and seemed to naturally settle there so I just popped them in like that. I'll probably still move it all up eventually anyway. Here's a picture from after the repair so you can get an idea of what's behind that guard. The emission line is originally clipped in the top most location and can be reached and unclipped without removing the guard if you choose to do it that way before lifting the body. The emission hose can be identified by having only spring clamps while the fuel hoses are high pressure and as such have high pressure fuel injection style clamps.


nDRe5cd.jpg
 
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CaptainMorgan_SOS

Need Bigger Tires
Location
Alamogordo, NM
I swear that you all are reading my mind. I am about to tackle this this coming weekend and I just popped on here to look for a step by step on this and boom, first post to show up on the page.
 

TKDx00

Lockers Installed
Founding Member
On all DIY BL threads I've read there seems to be 1 set of pics not shown...the placement of the RR ties(or whatever is actually used) and how the lifting was done. Does anyone have this?

I ask because I welded on my sliders. If I need to cut them off fine no problem, I need to make a better set anyway. I just don't see how to lift the X's body with them on. I guess everyone else didn't have them or they just unbolted them.
 
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Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
On all DIY BL threads I've read there seems to be 1 set of pics not shown...the placement of the RR ties(or whatever is actually used) and how the lifting was done. Does anyone have this?

I ask because I welded on my sliders. If I need to cut them off fine no problem, I need to make a better set !anyway. I just don't see how to lift the X's body with them on. I guess everyone else didn't have them or they just unbolted them.


On mine the block of wood was placed under the body right in line where the middle support of my Shrockworks sliders goes under. My sliders unbolt so it wasn't an issue. Yours may not be in the same place but there will be two bolt holes in the frame around a foot forward of the rear edge of the front door. (confusing enough?) Dave had cleverly cut a notch in the wood to clear the pinch seam there or it would have been flattened. You might be able to use the floor pan itself if your wood block is big enough to spread the load enough so it doesn't bend. The important thing is the placement so that the body is properly balanced when you start jacking it up.


I just ran out to the parking lot and improvised a marker. Try not to laugh too much.


6iHfaCE.jpg
 
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TKDx00

Lockers Installed
Founding Member
And the floor jack went under the wood block... so I gotta pre-measure the hight of the jack then add the space for the pucks to determine how large the wood block needs to be... then cut the notch... ok I think I got it.
 

Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
You got it! You're most likely still going to bend the lip just a little so be sure to have some touch up paint handy in case any paint cracks and pops off. You don't want it to start rusting.
 

TheFauxFox

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Location
Huntsville, AL
And the floor jack went under the wood block... so I gotta pre-measure the hight of the jack then add the space for the pucks to determine how large the wood block needs to be... then cut the notch... ok I think I got it.

The one Dave has is either a 4x4 or 6x6 block that has been notched to fit the thin strip on the rockers. I wouldn't say there is any "pre-measuring" to do.
 

drbandkgb

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Also.. Do one side at a time !

Loosen the opposite side but DO NOT remove the hardware. This will help keep the body from shifting.
 

Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
Funny thing is I never wanted a body lift. Now that mine's done I think it should have been one of the first mods.
 

CaptainMorgan_SOS

Need Bigger Tires
Location
Alamogordo, NM
So I started my body lift tonight; it is a suuuuuuper simple job! This thread was clutch in getting this done! Another good thing was that I had almost zero rust on any of the body mount bolts so I only had to PB Blast them once and I was ready to go.

I did run into one problem though... I discovered this is not a one man job haha! I got the front bolt, middle bolt and rear bolt off one side, then I went to do the ones that are in the cab that you have to have a socket wrench on the inside of the cab with pressure on it and then another socket on the bottom end and realized that there was no way I could do these two (four if you count both sides) by myself... So I was unable to finish it tonight and I will have to recruit someone to help me remove them and then put on the new bolts :p

Now, I do have 2 questions though: Do the new pucks sit on top of the old pucks that are already there? And if so, should something go in between the old ones and the new ones or do you just put the new ones on top of them and then go ahead and run the bolts and tighten everything down?

EDIT: One more question: Will 265/75R16s look funny with the 2 inch body lift and a PML? Just curious. I know 285/75R16s look awesome with this setup by looking at alot of y'alls Xs, but I am not in the market for new tires just yet.
 
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Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
The new pucks go on top of the old ones. I ran my 265/75R16s for a few days and they looked fine. I'll see if I have a decent picture and post it here if so.


Found one.


cnB1XZh.jpg



I never did a PML so this is just the 2 inch body lift with 265/75R16s on 8 inch wide wheels with 4.78 backspacing. I had previously raised the front by about an inch measured at the front fenders to level it but otherwise no other lift.
 
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CaptainMorgan_SOS

Need Bigger Tires
Location
Alamogordo, NM
Awesome! Thanks for the response and pic! I guess I am not really doing a PML, I am just adding the rear lift shackles. The rear end is starting to sag a bit and I figure I will go with the lift shackles for the moment.

And you are killing me with these pics of your rig! That thing is nice! I talked to James about a week or so ago to get see about getting a bumper built (single hoop, 2" receiver hitch instead of the winch slit) and I am just waiting for the funds to come together to go ahead and place an order. After that I am looking at wheels, tires and sliders (gonna see if RLC can do those too).
 

Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
Thanks for the kind words. I'm sure James would do sliders for you too. I know he's modded some for someone who did a body lift after getting the sliders so maybe he got some measurements while he had them there.

Can't wait to see some pictures with your body lift done.
 

CaptainMorgan_SOS

Need Bigger Tires
Location
Alamogordo, NM
I will also add to this that you may want to get a longer upper coolant hose or else it might decide to explode off while you're doing 70 on the highway on your inaugural run right after you have successfully completed said body lift, causing coolant to spray everywhere and cover your windshield and the car next to you and you might almost wreck into said car while trying to pull off the highway because you are spazzing the hell out and you can't see anything and your wife is screaming and the dog is barking and then once you do get to the side of the road and check your pants for any fecal matter, you might be sitting there with your thumb in the air hoping that a decent individual (and not some serial kill/rapist) can give you a ride to a parts store and back, or at least let you use their phone, because your cell phone died and you don't have a charger because you cleaned out your Xterra right before you started the body lift and forgot to put the charger back in there and oh, your wife forgot her phone too... ask me how I know.
 
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Trexterra

Wheeling
Founding Member
Location
Alabama
I will also add to this that you may want to get a longer upper coolant hose or else it might decide to explode off while you're doing 70 on the highway on your inaugural run right after you have successfully completed said body lift, causing coolant to spray everywhere and cover your windshield and the car next to you and you might almost wreck into said car while trying to pull off the highway because you are spazzing the hell out and you can't see anything and your wife is screaming and the dog is barking and then once you do get to the side of the road and check your pants for any fecal matter, you might be sitting there with your thumb in the air hoping that a decent individual (and not some serial kill/rapist) can give you a ride to a parts store and back, or at least let you use their phone, because your cell phone died and you don't have a charger because you cleaned out your Xterra right before you started the body lift and forgot to put the charger back in there and oh, your wife forgot her phone too... ask me how I know.

Also if you don't get a longer hose, and you go to Moab and abuse your X, the hose might just shear off the hose fitting on the radiator (which is plastic). Then you are dumping coolant everywhere in front of everyone and have to get it reattached with rescue tape and hose clamps. Then because there is a bubble in your coolant line you overheat the rest of the way back in until someone figures out that they need to burp the coolant lines. And you learn a very valuable lesson in the middle of the desert... ask me how I know and if we have pictures.
 

CaptainMorgan_SOS

Need Bigger Tires
Location
Alamogordo, NM
Explain to me this burping of the the coolant lines... I had to throw these parts on on the side of the road and now my temp guage is constantly stuck in the middle of the range instead of at the bottom where it normally resides and I have a strange feeling that this may be the problem. Or, since you mentioned it, I might be paranoid, but either way, the engine is now throwing a code (which I will get checked out this evening) and the temp gauge is funky. Also, my hose fitting on the radiator is almost toast as well... how does one go about fixing that?

Sorry for the thread jack, I just need to know.
 

Muadeeb

Nissan al Gaib
Admin
Location
Dallas
Temp gauge _should_ be in the middle. As for fixing a broken fitting, a SC radiator is a great fix.

As for burping the coolant, you loosen the plug on the top of the intake, and fill the radiator with coolant till it comes out the top of the intake. Close the plug, and top off the radiator. Start the engine and let it warm up, then rev it to about 3K a few times. Kill it, check the coolant and top off as necessary. When it stays full, you're done.
 

Trexterra

Wheeling
Founding Member
Location
Alabama
Temp gauge _should_ be in the middle. As for fixing a broken fitting, a SC radiator is a great fix.

As for burping the coolant, you loosen the plug on the top of the intake, and fill the radiator with coolant till it comes out the top of the intake. Close the plug, and top off the radiator. Start the engine and let it warm up, then rev it to about 3K a few times. Kill it, check the coolant and top off as necessary. When it stays full, you're done.

SC radiator is a good replacement yes, but the fitting is still plastic. Get a new (longer) hose or drop the radiator. Maybe you could add the coolant burping as a maintenance post somewhere with some pics muadeeb, so noobs aren't trying to get coolant out of their filter box or something hehe.
 

Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
I have a Gates hose number 22517 on mine. It's listed as a "cut to fit" but mine fit fine without cutting before the body lift. Once lifted it still doesn't feel like it's in any kind of bind. I would suggest loosening the hose before starting the lift then if everything looks good once lifted, tighten it up and top off any coolant you lost.
 

bigjim247365

Anime boobs & male genitals? Sign me up!
Supporting Member
Location
Hainesville IL
I have a Gates hose number 22517 on mine. It's listed as a "cut to fit" but mine fit fine without cutting before the body lift. Once lifted it still doesn't feel like it's in any kind of bind. I would suggest loosening the hose before starting the lift then if everything looks good once lifted, tighten it up and top off any coolant you lost.

you might have just saved me from jumping the gun on my body lift, i had no idea 1st gens need a longer upper rad hose lol.
 

Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
I don't think it's a "must replace" thing by any means. More something to keep an eye on as you start raising the body since it has been an issue on some. Like many things with Xterras, it's a case by case issue.
 

Roadwarrior

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
When the engine dropped, the hose kinda went with it, but I didn't see too much stress or flex on the hose. I have looked at the clamps, once you said that and I noticed no movement on that.
 
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