BF Goodrich's All-Terrain T/A tire has been a staple off-road tire for decades. Its newest applications include: 22-, 20-, and 18-inch sizes, such as these 285/65R18s. They added off-road capability without adding annoying noise on the road. We made sure to move the tire pressure sensors from the factory wheels when we mounted them onto the new wheels. These wheels are the latest from American Racing and are now available with Teflon coating that helps keep brake dust and grime from accumulating. The baked-on finish also gave the Frontier a stealthy appearance that we really liked with the charcoal paint.
YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED
| Time Spent Working: | 13 hours |
| Degree of Difficulty: | Intermediate |
| | (Mostly a bolt-on affair, but some grinding, welding, and drilling were involved.) |
PARTS USED:
| Advanced Flow Engineering intake PN 54-10492 | MSRP $293 |
| American Racing Fuel wheels | MSRP $220 |
| | (four needed) |
| BF Goodrich Radial A/T 285/65R18 | MSRP $275 |
| (four needed) |
| Calmini 5-inch Lift Kit PN 17500 | MSRP $1,295 |
| Carriage Works black billet upper grille PN 42323 | MSRP $165 |
| Carriage Works black billet lower grille PN 42333 | MSRP $110 |
| JBA Cat4ward headers PN 1410SJS | MSRP $625 |
| JBA Stainless exhaust system PN 40-1410 | MSRP $480 |
| Total Cost: | $4,948 |
| | (Not including labor) |
From the Driver SeatWe were very happy with the installation and results of the JBA kit and AFE intake. The owner reported an increase in mileage from 14/18 to 16/22, before the lift was installed. After the lift, mileage returned to 18 highway. That sort of increase would be worth the time and money by itself, as the fuel mileage would pay for itself over the course of the vehicle's life, but the added power and great exhaust note completely changed the vehicle's attitude. The peak numbers for both power and torque were up about 30, which is impressive, however, the biggest gains were found below peak, where the engine will spend most of its time. The air/fuel meter showed that the engine ran rich as it approached full throttle, and the intake and exhaust leaned it up a bit, but it still ran conservatively rich, so we don't see any possibility of lean conditions. The Calmini lift went on with only minor problems, and one was likely our fault. The first problem was the rear brake-line extensions, which seemed like they were designed with a slightly different (possibly pre-production) model in mind. This was a non-issue, however, because the factory brake lines had plenty of slack even at full droop. The second problem is that at full steering lock, the tie rod end rubbed the inside of the wheel. Since the American Racing wheels were 1/4-inch off of the Calmini recommended backspacing, that was likely our fault, but it's only at full lock and it's only a slight rub. The tires are the same overall width and diameter as Calmini recommended, and with just minor air-dam trimming, there was no rubbing. The only other issue was that at full droop, the large-diameter JBA exhaust tip had 1/4-inch clearance from the Calmini shackles. At normal ride height, the shackles pushed the exhaust tip. Since the exhaust was already welded, the best solution would probably be to cut and re-weld a hanger to add clearance, but so far the rubber exhaust hanger seems to have shifted enough to offset the shackles. After some off-road testing, the owner was satisfied that nothing was lost in the comfort department, and quite a bit of wheel travel and extra ground clearance aided in navigating the rocky terrain. The grille install took 20 minutes, and could not have been much easier.