Well, after countless hours (just like most of you) I ended the paralysis by analysis!

I spoke with ARB/OME, Dobinsions, and a few others to get the general idea of the though process behind them all. I wanted the OME kit. In fact, i actually ordered it with the intention of installing it but Rocky Road Outfitters called me to inform me that the kit wouldn't work the way i wanted. I understood that the differences with the US models was in the camber bolts lacking adjustments. When i called up OME, I spoke to a technical specialist and he explained that they would NOT warranty any of the products due to the lack of a camber bolt for alignment. I explained that this is well known among the group and the general consensus is that its nearly required for all lifts. They still would deny the claim, EVEN if you swap in factory bolts. I moved on...

Dobinsons and Ironman were really the two left on the board. Yes, the Radflo kit seemed nice and so did the Fox, but I bought a $15,000 vehicle for a reason. I wanted a reliable, simple and low cost alternative to the $52,000 Jeep we just Lemon Law'd a few months ago. As for reliability, i'd like to think the Aussie's have this down. I spoke to both companies and really it came down to the better deal.



The process was quite simple. I called up Chris, who knew all of the answers and even had some experience in the others as well. He provided un-biased facts to consider. They are based in the US, Oregon, so shipping to LA was only 3 days and free! I did pay the additional fee for new tophat's and fittings. They will assemble it for you if its purchased initially.



My Pathfinder was in the shop for some warranty work and they gave me a killer price to install it.









The next step was to pick tires. The top pics were the General Grabber ATX, Goodyear Duratrac, and Falken Wildpeak AT3W. I decided on the 265/70R18 in hopes to have the height with out dealing with trimming. Nope, you're gonna trim.




After fitting/trimming for the next few hours with a heat gun and a hand saw, it was time to put the PF to through its paces.

Overall, the upgrade was magical over the stock setup with 55k miles. The small bump compliance is fantastic, larger bumps are soaked up with ease and it gives the vehicle a fairly sporty feel over any terrain.




Keep in mind, during my tests, i kept the tire pressure at 35PSI.

pictures are not showing for me

If you copy the address line between the [img] brackets and past it into the subject line, it will take you to the pic. It's a bit of a hassle, though.

Or you can go to his wixsite

https://borellaian.wixsite.com/borellaa ... ee-trailha

Thanks for the review.

We have a 2012 white "Silver Edition" 4x4 R51 with 56k that needs tires. We bought it in 2014 with 13k miles for $24k.

Strongly considering ordering this upgrade... I'm thinking I will replace the 17" wheels with black rims, and replace front bumper with a black push bar/skid plate (stock bumper on our is pretty dinged up). Get that storm trooper look going...

SDGuero wrote:Thanks for the review.

We have a 2012 white "Silver Edition" 4x4 R51 with 56k that needs tires. We bought it in 2014 with 13k miles for $24k.

Strongly considering ordering this upgrade... I'm thinking I will replace the 17" wheels with black rims, and replace front bumper with a black push bar/skid plate (stock bumper on our is pretty dinged up). Get that storm trooper look going...

Yeah, I think it rides well. I have had some thoughts about upgrading to the upgraded version. I noticed that over some washboards, it does float a bit. My though is its either too stiff or i dont have enough weight in it.

I do also have the issue with the front bumper. Totally ripped off the front faux skid plate first time out.

Hi so I am considering the Ironman 2 inch lift and wondering if that was the size you went with or the 1.5in lift?

How level was the vehicle afterwards IE front to back are both ends the same height or does one end up higher than the other?

Thank You

~ Phil

mpilihp wrote:Hi so I am considering the Ironman 2 inch lift and wondering if that was the size you went with or the 1.5in lift?

How level was the vehicle afterward IE front to back are both ends the same height or does one end up higher than the other?

Thank You

~ Phil

Phil,

The Pathy sits mostly level with the kit. It does have a natural rake to the front but that mostly goes away the minute I load it up. I think the kit looks great as it sits.

Hi thanks, so is it the 1.5 or 2 in and curious on either if your garage ran into issues with getting it aligned? Ive read a lot of threads and it appears going to two in can need the offset bushings and cam bolts and they can be a nightmare to get out. Some appears have just gotten new A-arms because they could not get the bushings out.

Did yours need any of that?

Thanks

~ Phil

mpilihp wrote:Hi thanks, so is it the 1.5 or 2 in and curious on either if your garage ran into issues with getting it aligned? Ive read a lot of threads and it appears going to two in can need the offset bushings and cam bolts and they can be a nightmare to get out. Some appears have just gotten new A-arms because they could not get the bushings out.

Did yours need any of that?

Thanks

~ Phil

Any time you attack the control arms, be prepared to use an angle grinder or something or to get the call from your shop that they can't get it out. I bought the smallest sawzall I could get from Lowes and cut just the bolt out of one of them, so it can be done surgically but it took a bit longer.

Each time I take one of those bolts out I stuff it with lithium grease before re-assembly. Why they're dry is a mystery...

Meanwhile...looking at this lift kit, at that price I'd kind of want to know who the actual shock manufacturer is. I'd wonder if you could use those springs and Bilstein 5100 0-2" shocks for a bit better ride quality...

Ironman is weirdly enough one of only two manufactures in AU that still makes their own stuff. Bilstein is made in Mexico unless you go for the custom stuff.

They are a twin-tube design which is a less expensive design.

For the price, no issues at all.

Thanks for the info guys, I started a new thread about the options I am considering, would like to hear your opinion.

THanks

~ Phil

Hi everyone!

I wanted to post an update. The shocks are doing well and taking a beating in stride although I do have some things to keep in mind.

1. I have a Tepui Ruggedized 1.9M mounted to the factory roof rack and it's been fine but the added 200lbs on the roof have had some effects on the head toss. It seems that the weight up top has created a pendulum effect with the suspension with the inertia being up top. I contacted Ironman and they stated the constant load springs would help the situation. So, I'd recommend starting there if you plan on any RTT.

2. The rear shocks are still quite soft and will sag with only moderate weight in the rear. With my 50L Fridge, 2 small camping boxes, and clothes for 3 nights, we were bottoming out on most bumps.

3. Alignment - Alignment seems to be fine but I am getting a bit of side to side vibration in the steering wheel. I initially thought it was a tire out of balance or uneven wear but both seem to be perfect. Hopefully, someone has some insight here.

Overall I am happy with it as it soaks up the big hits quite well when empty. My concern is if I get the HD springs that the ride will be horrible when unladen. I am considering running Airlift 1000 for the Armada's in the rear to see if that helps offset the payload issue. Next is the general design. It's a twin-tube so washboard roads do upset the suspension quite a bit. If I lower the tire pressure, it obviously helps but they do not seem valved enough on top of the twin-tube design. The only mono-tube design that works with our trucks is the Bilstein or ARB/OME units. I originally wanted the OME setup but was warned about dangerous highway behavior on long sweeping turns so I decided to steer clear.

Thanks for your feedback.

1. I've personally have noticed that about the R51 and that seems to be the typical complaints that the R51 is too tall as it is already. I've seen youtube videos of R51s look like they're about to fall over on its side...it's actually not very confident.

2. Definitely sounds like a spring issue here. Maybe Try a set of Armada or OME springs in rear?

3. Maybe wheel bearings? How's your endlinks and bushings looking on your front sway bar? Bushings for your steering racking? I'm guessing this is happening on-road and off-road?

As for the OME bit, what's the behavior on long sweeping turns? That's what I'll be installing here in the next couple weeks so I'm curious. I'll most likely be going with coilovers in a year or two for more articulation in the front, but I've yet to find anything bad about OME until now.