Reaver's 03 Xterra XE "Gamora" build thread

[reaver]

Ok, just got back from a 3 Day trip on Sunday, and here are some observations I've made....

New switch panel needs to come out, as something is interferring with the circuit for my gauge cluster lights, and my light bar won't come on (I've checked the fuse for the dash lights, and it's fine, so it's probably a bad ground somewhere).

I also have made the decision to switch to a 50Ah LiFePO4 batter in the X to power my aux stuff. There are a few reasons for this.

1. Using a LiFePO4 battery (with proper charging protection) will give me more runtime on the fridge, and allow me to use the battery packs for other things. I don't REALLY need solar in the rig, but if I decide that I want to add it later, I can just add a cheap solar charge controller in addition to the DC-DC charger.
2. I can hardwire my fridge. Currently, I use a voltage stabilizer that I wired inline between the fridge and the battery pack. The stabilizer plugs into my unregulated 540Wh (45Ah) battery pack. My fridge then plugs into the stabilizer, so that I can use the entire battery pack. While this has been working fairly well, I've had many instances where the fridge has come unplugged and lost power. Ultimately, I just don't trust the connection.
3. I really want to try out DC-DC charging, and see how that works, in preparation for when I build the trailer

Amazon had the Renogy 20A DC-DC charger on sale for $88, so I figured why not. Let's give it a shot, and see how it does. I've been doing a lot of research on this charger, and it features simple use, multi-profile, and has low temp protection built in.

Now all I need is a 50Ah LiFePO4 battery....

 

[YoKramer]

Awesome thread man I was just looking around and possibly building a storage and sleeping platform that keeps the seats and this is exactly what Im looking for. Great looking X and cant wait to see where it goes!

 

[reaver]

Awesome thread man I was just looking around and possibly building a storage and sleeping platform that keeps the seats and this is exactly what Im looking for. Great looking X and cant wait to see where it goes!

Thanks man! The storage setup definitely makes life easier, that's for sure. I'm actually considering building a second, modular layer to the setup that sits on top of the platform, and bolts in, giving me extra organized storage for when the family goes. As it stands right now, stuff ends up EVERYWHERE.

Before that happens though, I have a couple of weeks to sort out an issue with my dash lights. I'm 99.9% sure it's related to my new switches I wired up, as it worked before we went out on our trip, but stopped working when we hit the trail (headlights still worked, but no taillights, dash lights, or aux lights).

 

[YoKramer]

Thanks man! The storage setup definitely makes life easier, that's for sure. I'm actually considering building a second, modular layer to the setup that sits on top of the platform, and bolts in, giving me extra organized storage for when the family goes. As it stands right now, stuff ends up EVERYWHERE.

Before that happens though, I have a couple of weeks to sort out an issue with my dash lights. I'm 99.9% sure it's related to my new switches I wired up, as it worked before we went out on our trip, but stopped working when we hit the trail (headlights still worked, but no taillights, dash lights, or aux lights).

Did you do any sleeping back there without the platform and do you notice any problems sleeping back there with the extra height?

 

[reaver]

Did you do any sleeping back there without the platform and do you notice any problems sleeping back there with the extra height?

No sleeping back there without the platform. With the way the seats fold (not flat), it would have been very uncomfortable. When I go without the family though, I always sleep in there. It's a bit tight with the fridge, and lower ceiling, but very comfortable once I lay down. Especially with my 3" insulated pad on top of 4 inches of foam. ;)

 

[YoKramer]

No sleeping back there without the platform. With the way the seats fold (not flat), it would have been very uncomfortable. When I go without the family though, I always sleep in there. It's a bit tight with the fridge, and lower ceiling, but very comfortable once I lay down. Especially with my 3" insulated pad on top of 4 inches of foam. ;)

Cool, we have done 2 trips with a 3-4" blow up mattress back there with just the seats down in our 02 and its not too bad, my only worry with the storage is the clearance but sounds like its not too much of an issue. Looking forward to more pics and see where the truck goes from here.

 

[reaver]

Cool, we have done 2 trips with a 3-4" blow up mattress back there with just the seats down in our 02 and its not too bad, my only worry with the storage is the clearance but sounds like its not too much of an issue. Looking forward to more pics and see where the truck goes from here.

Well, overall, the truck is more or less done. I might lift it a bit down the road, replace shocks, etc, but for the most part, I've been very happy with it as is. These things are awesome, and don't require much in the way of mods. I still haven't put my front locker in, or my 180 amp alternator. I haven't really felt the need to yet.

Then there's the matter of my other vehicle. I'm waiting for my AAL's to show up, then I can lift the Fronty 2 inches. Then I need to put a relay system in that for aux lighting, sell the fiberglass tonneau cover, get a soft topper, and if possible, build a modular bed rack that can go over the soft topper, where I can remove the crossbars, in case I need to put something tall in it. You know.....truck things.

Then there's the trailer.....but that's a whole different thread.

 

[YoKramer]

Well, overall, the truck is more or less done. I might lift it a bit down the road, replace shocks, etc, but for the most part, I've been very happy with it as is. These things are awesome, and don't require much in the way of mods. I still haven't put my front locker in, or my 180 amp alternator. I haven't really felt the need to yet.

Then there's the matter of my other vehicle. I'm waiting for my AAL's to show up, then I can lift the Fronty 2 inches. Then I need to put a relay system in that for aux lighting, sell the fiberglass tonneau cover, get a soft topper, and if possible, build a modular bed rack that can go over the soft topper, where I can remove the crossbars, in case I need to put something tall in it. You know.....truck things.

Then there's the trailer.....but that's a whole different thread.

Yea I've been impressed by the performance of mine for sure. Did the poor mans lift and put 33's on it with some cutting and the only rubbing is very little at full tuck in the rear and on hard right turns due to the cover in the wheel well. So far Ive only not been able to pass one thing, some deep offset holes that I would have been able to drive through if I had a front or rear locker, or took a better path, but I was able to back out of without issue.

 

[reaver]

Whelp, Gamora finally got some new shoes!

She's now sitting on a set of Kenda Klever At2s in. 265/75r16 load E.

If these tires are half as good as I hear they are, then I will be very happy.

Also, I think I need to look into adjusting my rear shackles, as the back end is definitely lower than the front. But that's a warmer weather project.

 

[reaver]

So, a while ago, I pulled out the chincey 6 switch plastic panel, and replaced it with a metal 4 switch box and dual usb quick charge/voltmeter combo.

The switches have been wired up for a few months now, but I finally got around to wiring up the USB ports:

It's wired up so that it switches on with the ignition.

It's too cold to do any major projects, but I can tackle some smaller stuff right now.

 

[reaver]

So the last couple of months I've been blowing taillight fuses. When I wired up the switch panel, I used spade connectors to make it so that I could somewhat easily remove it. In doing so, I must have crossed a wire somewhere.

I took the whole thing out, and decided to wire it up using DT connectors.

I finished making the connectors for the switches last night.

So much cleaner that what I was doing before. Yes, there are some 18ga wires in there. I'm only pushing 1 amp to the switches, and back again to the relays, so 18ga will work fine (I was using ethernet cables before, and it worked fine).

The connectors say that are for 14-18ga wire, but I can fit 12ga through there no problem. Solid contacts are where it's at. I'm pulling the relay box tonight, and wiring that up with a DT connector for the relays. I only need to run 6 wires to the back, but there's 8 at the box, as one is power for the usb/volt meter (green) and one is illumination for the switches (controlled via dash lights - yellow).

 

[reaver]

So, I finished installing the new harness yesterday, and did some testing.

No more blowing taillight fuses!

Now, everything seems to be working properly, except for one wire in the harness that runs from the switch box to the back.

For now, I'll run with three working switches up front, as I only have two lights at the moment anyways.

I need to pick up a multimeter with a continuity test feature to track this down.

I'm doing a 5 day trip with @GHCOE in April, so I have a few more things to knock off the list before then.

1. Get a full size spare (currently have a 265/70r16 junkyard spare).

2. Upgrade battery to a group 31 dual purpose rv agm battery. This will allow me to hardwire the fridge so I don't need to worry about the plug coming out

3. Revisit gear setup for solo camping. My needs are different than when the whole family goes (obviously). I've got a new utensil set I want to try out, and I'm thinking about downsizing my pots/pans for solo travel. I also want to pick up a small square reversible griddle plate that can go on the stove.

I also want to make some quick release stars for my gear bins that cinch down. I've been using ratchet straps, and they work, but they're kind of a pain.

 

[reaver]

I figured out why I wasn't getting the relay to trigger with the problematic switch. Turns out the spade connecter had dropped out of its holder, and wasnt touching the terminal on the relay. Reseated the connector, and everything works again!

I've noticed the rear tends to squat when the vehicle is loaded, so I'm debating either adjusting my shackles, or putting in an AAL.

I'm also going to switch to two round Spotlights on the bumper, and replace the light bar up top, as it's pretty much useless (it was free, but my 20in nilight on the front is much brighter).

Waiting on an auxbeam switch box for the frontier to get here, and I'm planning on moving the 20" bar over to that.

I also added a shower tent to the passenger side for the wife and kid to have a place to do a potty.

I've got some parts in the bin that I've still not installed. I'm not sure when I'll get around to doing the following, as I'm focused on trying to get the trailer to a usable state.

Lokka
Manual Hubs
180A Mean Green Alternator
HD tie rod adjusters

Fridge power cable modded to allow both hardwire to the aux fuse block, as well as to standard 12v socket, and a 5mm dc plug. I used DTP connectors for this. These are my new favorite connectors.

Full size spare purchased and delivered on Monday. These damn Kendas were 160 each when I originally bought them. The spare was 210! Good thing I only needed one.

Trying to source myself a set of Calmini Ucas from somebody on Xterranation.

I also have a hitch receiver from my sister that was in the back of the 04 she bought, and had no intention of using.

That's about all. Overall, I'm very happy with how the X is currently sitting.

 

[reaver]

So, the wife and I have been talking about getting a rooftop tent for the better part of a year, with the intent of mounting it on the trailer once I get it finished.

Well.....a few weeks ago, Ironman 4x4 was having a 25% off sale on all camping gear. We decided to pull the trigger on the new Nomad 1300 hard shell rooftop tent. It was delivered two weeks ago, but I didn't even take it out of the box until last Thursday, as we were out of town.

A buddy came over, and we decided to toss it up on top of Gamora so I could test it out.

 

[Ubiety]

Looking good!

 

[reaver]

Looking good!

Thanks! Though, I've noticed my rear leaf springs aren't a huge fan of all the weight back there, so I may need to look at adding an add-a-leaf at a minimum to add some additional load capacity. Even without the tent up there, she's been squatting for a bit.

 

[YoKramer]

How are the factory rails up there handling it? I know they are only rated for something like 180lbs or something small.

 

[Ubiety]

Thanks! Though, I've noticed my rear leaf springs aren't a huge fan of all the weight back there, so I may need to look at adding an add-a-leaf at a minimum to add some additional load capacity. Even without the tent up there, she's been squatting for a bit.

Yeah, same for me... Hit some "sharp" speed bumps this weekend and that reminded me to get on with installing the new suspension parts sitting here in boxes. ;) Been working on my kitchen cupboard and just finished up the second-battery/charging system. Need to get out and "test" things ;) Hope all is well with all y'all!

 

[reaver]

I don't know why I wait until right before a trip to get this stuff done. Probably has to do with the fact that I don't have a garage, and need to wait until the weather gets decent before I can get any work done.

 

[YoKramer]

How are the factory rails up there handling it? I know they are only rated for something like 180lbs or something small.

@reaver any opinion on how the rails are doing?