Up front, some minor fender...
Up front, some minor fender trimming was necessary to prevent tire rub while turning during suspension compression. A non-Nismo Frontier may require even more fender trimming because the stock ride height is about 1/4 inch less than a Nismo-spec truck. As you can see, the necessary trimming was pretty minimal with the Toyo Open Country Mud-Terrain tires we installed. It's worth noting that different wheel backspacing may also affect tire clearance, so we recommend asking retailers for advice before cutting.
We installed a sweet-looking...
We installed a sweet-looking set of 18x8 American Racing "Fuel" wheels. These wheels are air-sensor-compliant and feature gloss-black painted spokes. The tires we picked were the extremely tough Baja-proven Toyo Open Country MT in a 33x12.50R18. With a 10-ply rating, these tires should provide a surplus of puncture-free service miles.
Our friends at Light Racing...
Our friends at Light Racing of Catheys Valley, California, designed, built, and installed the Compact Jounce shock kit you see here. We had them install this system after the prototype Calmini lift was removed and the original OE suspension parts were reinstalled. This way, Light Racing could prototype the system and ensure fitment on both lifted and non-lifted Frontiers. As you can see, the front kit is pretty simple, consisting of two main parts; the jounce shock with upper mount, and the lower A-arm contact pad.
The rear Jounce Shock kit...
The rear Jounce Shock kit is equally simple to the front. A frame-mounted bracket houses the jounce Shock canister, while a lower contact pad, secured to the top of the axlehousing, provides a sizable flat contact patch setup to accommodate the axle's range of movement.
Here you can see our Project...
Here you can see our Project Frontier restored back to its stock suspension, tires, and wheels. The only difference now is that the Jounce Shocks are absorbing the force from this small jump at Light Racing's R& D facility. Now, the truck lands smooth every time and we never get a harsh shock or loud bang associated with a bottom out. Instead, the Compact Jounce Shocks are absorbing the energy in a controlled manner.
This is a stock '05 Nismo...
This is a stock '05 Nismo Frontier that we borrowed from our friends at Antioch Nissan in Antioch, California. We brought this truck along to demonstrate the differences between a stock and Jounce Shock-equipped truck. We ran each truck over the same jump at the same speed. We first ran our Jounce Shock-equipped Project Frontier, and after four successful landings we were satisfied with the results. Next we hit the jump with the stock truck you see here. This was the third jump of our test session. Just as the shutter of our camera snapped closed, the stock driver-side front Bilstein Nismo-spec strut experienced a catastrophic failure. The shock simply wasn't designed to handle the force of the jump. Something had to give.
We pulled off the driver-side...
We pulled off the driver-side front tire to inspect the failure. Shock oil was everywhere, indicating complete destruction and an end to our day's test session.
Upon closer inspection, we...
Upon closer inspection, we found the swaged end cap, now separated from the shock body, had simply popped off, bending the shock body in the process. Residual damage was also found on the shock's cast-steel piston. Needless to say, we proved the worthiness of the Jounce Shocks with this carnage. Our Project Frontier, having survived the test, was good to go for another round, thanks to the Jounce Shocks.
This shot shows the dome-shaped...
This shot shows the dome-shaped contact pad Light Racing uses on the front of the Frontier kit. The shape of this pad is very important to help align the Jounce Shock during impact.
The Total Chaos UCA kit comes...
The Total Chaos UCA kit comes complete with high-misalignment spacers, urethane bushings, inner sleeves, bumpstop pads, and Grade-8 hardware. We like these because they solve two important issues and feature user-serviceable 1-inch uniballs.
This is the new tubular upper control arm (UCA) by Total Chaos. These arms are designed as a bolt-on system that eliminates the factory ball joint and provides a 1-inch Teflon-lined uniball instead. We can't quite figure out why, but all '05-and-up Nissan Frontiers have a weird problem where the factory upper control arms contact the coil bucket during full droop. The contact is often amplified when aftermarket coil spacers are installed. These new tubular arms incorporate urethane droop stops, which contact the coil bucket instead of the arm, thus eliminating the problem. These arms also add caster, which will aid in vehicle cornering and overall handling, both on- and off-pavement. They also assist in correcting alignment issues when aftermarket lifts are installed. These arms are manufactured using 4130 chromoly tubing and come powdercoated silver with an additional layer of clearcoat. In some cases, these arms will actually allow for slight gains in wheel travel. The system is 100 percent bolt-on and requires no drilling or welding. The arms can be installed on any Frontier, Xterra, or Pathfinder. Zerk fittings are included to lubricate the urethane bushings and inner sleeves while bolted on the vehicle.