Help choosing next mod(s) please?

[scottm]

Hi All,

After rectifying the loss of acceleration due to a bad earth on the aftermarket Autron cruise control (with plenty of pointer from this forum) I'm ready to take the next steps with my Nav and would love some help trying to prioritise / make decisions around from those more experience.

Basically want to make camping more pleasant and be able to get to more remote places with wife and friends, I'm a geek at heart so love gadgetry (gauges, dual batteries, electronics etc) and handy things that make life easier / create space (water tanks, roof console etc)

First of all what I have:

D22 2002 3.0L ZD30
3" Lift
Winch bar + Warn Winch
Scrub Bars / Side steps
Rhino Rack roof rails Heavy Duty
TJM Awning

I've got about $1500 - $2000 to spend this time around. There's accessories etc and then engine mods which I separated. Ultimately I'm jut finding there ar e so many damn options it's hard to know what to buy in the "I don't want the rolls royce version but I want quality" range without spending hours upon hours. So any comments about what people have done or the direction they would go would be awesome.

Accessory type things I'd like in a loose order of priority:

Light Bar / Fog Lights / Reversing spot light- On a recent trip back from NSW found it very taxing to concentrate on the road with totally insufficient lighting (have a couple of crappy spotties on the front came with car) and then add to that fog was a nightmare. This is at the top of the list as I think it's one of the most important for safety etc... No idea where to start. You see cheap light bars for $300 then all the way up to $2k+....

Water Tank (underbody?) - One of the tiresome things about camping is water supply / convenience. I'd love to be able to find a watertank that could fit under the tub that had a convenient tap. Yet to find one of these for a D22 despite plenty of searching, probably need to call around and find out which generic one I could make fit. I hate the idea of taking up room in the tub or the back seat on the floor, but if it's absolutely necessary I will.

Dual Battery - Totally overwhelmed by the amount of literature around on this. Got quoted $1200 from TJM for an install of a CTEK system with tray under bonnet but I'm 90% sure this was without battery. I'm not majorly experienced with car mods but I am technically minded (IT Systems Engineer) so could probably work out how to get it done. Happy to spend decent money on good kit but just finding it hard to wade through the plethora of info / opinions on the forums...

Long range fuel tank - Again, bit overwhelmed with options, the easier to fit the better as far as I'm concerned.

Roof Console - Creating more space to hold maps / radio / sunglasses. I don't really like the outback ones so probbly somethings more like http://consoles.com.au/Nissan_Datsun_Navara_low.htm

Canopy - This would be really cool to create more space but they seem pretty pricey...

Recovery Kit / High-lift jack
Reversing Beeper
Diff Breather
Bash Plates

Now comes the performance stuff. I'm in two minds about whether I actually even need more power with a chip etc given that I don't really tow anything, and from what I understand fuel economy improvement is minimal. If it was going to significantly increase the life of the engine etc (by running cooler and cleaner) then I'd give it more weight because I intend to really look after and maintain this car and hopefully have it for a good while longer (and even rebuild if need be as it seems to be a very good car in comparison to the newer stuff). The other concern for me is that when doing a mod like this I can't help but wonder if it's trying to make the engine do something it wasn't designed for (I know people say that manufacturers are just emissions conscious etc).... That could be totally naive of me but I guess it seems like introducing mods, introduces more moving parts which could potentially increase the risk of something going wrong. Please correct me if I'm just being a paranoid newbie. Anyway here's the list that I'd probably do all at once:

chip $1,099
http://www.chiptuning.com.au/products-page/pre-common-rail-dps315-performance-module/
egt controller $299
http://www.chiptuning.com.au/produc...haust-gas-temp-ecu-with-remapping-capability/
dawes valve $69
http://www.chiptuning.com.au/products-page/dawes-valve/
Manual boost controller $50 (with chip)
http://www.chiptuning.com.au/products-page/manual-boost-controller/
Electronic boost controller $159 NB: For some vehicles which monitor air flow as a way of understanding the correlation between air flow and boost level you will also require an Electronic Boost Controller (see link below) as the factory ECU will still go into limp home mode if it sees the air flow travelling too fast past the MAF Sensor if boost is wound up past 4 or 5 pis. These vehicles include, but not limited too, 100 Series Toyota Land Cruisers. Mitsubishi ML Tritons and Nissan D22 etc
http://www.chiptuning.com.au/products-page/fuel-cut-defender/
Catch Can $150
http://www.chiptuning.com.au/products-page/provent-style-oil-catch-can/
EGR Blanking Plates $69
http://www.chiptuning.com.au/products-page/egr-blanking-plates/

But... maybe I should be putting on an intercooler first? To cool but also to protect from the scariness of a blown turbo (as so many have mentioned on this forum) . Again so much range, front mount, top mount, $200 - $1100.

I'm going to stop there as I'm starting to do my own head in with choice. If anybody would like to have a pow wow on the phone or over a beer let me know...

Cheers in advance,

-Scott

P.S: If I had setup a poll for these options / this thread would it have been used etc or just a gimmick that would have made me look like a bigger forum newbie?

 

[Rumpig]

Engine wise you don't need a dawes valve or electronic boost controller, the Navara zd30 is different to the Patrol zd30. I'd start with blocking the egr, catch can, manual boost controller and better exhaust, they're all good for engine longengivity.

 

[Rumpig]

And these, http://www.chiptuning.com.au/produc...haust-gas-temp-ecu-with-remapping-capability/ come from here, http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=5_26&products_id=230 , just $200 cheaper.( Formerly $300 cheaper).

 

[Old.Tony]

With limited funds, look at what you can do for little expense and what you need to get to achieve the goals.

Primary goal: getting there and back. You've got most of that covered, but the intercooler issue is important. If you don't look after your turbo you could have trouble - you should always allow the turbo to cool a little at idle before turning the engine off, and consider the intercooler as a vital piece of equipment if you're not 100% happy with the history of your turbo. Use an intercooler out of a XR6 Turbo - that should be fairly cheap, it'll actually work as an intercooler and is excellent insurance.

You do need to see while you're getting there, and while I would have once spoken volumes about the benefits of driving lights, I really cannot go past a small LED light bar like I have on the front now (just like this one). It's seriously effective. You'll have to blink when low beam returns (maybe get some Narva +120's to help with that!).

Secondary goal: making sure you can do stuff. Power is everything. If TJM were quoting $1200 without a battery then they're stealing from you. You can buy an Ark pack like this one (which you can buy from Rays Outdoors for $449, here) or a pack like this that is simpler and cheaper, allowing you to put more $ into the battery or even better, a solar panel. If you go solar, consider the simpler box with a C-Tek D250S and an unregulated panel.

The fridge is important and ought to be the thing that governs which battery you buy. Get enough capacity to run that fridge on a hot day for the whole day, and a solar panel that can deliver that much power over 9 hours.

A long range tank is worth it. Not sure I'd fuss over the roof console, but if water crossings are called for then diff (and gearbox) breathers are important as is underbody protection.

There's plenty more to think about too! I'm not sure I'd throw any $ at the engine performance stuff. I'd block the EGR for sure, catch cans are nice but not vital.

Longer term, consider things like awnings, on-board water, diff locks before things like beepers and highlift jacks. I've found our canopy absolutely wonderful, I'll never have a ute without one now.

 

[dylan the villian]

In my opinion and order of priority I would say:
intercooler
Egr
Catch can
Light bar
Uhf
Dual Batts

All within a reasonable budget and will prolong the engine and your own safety.

Have fun

 

[rabbit-chop]

And these, http://www.chiptuning.com.au/produc...haust-gas-temp-ecu-with-remapping-capability/ come from here, http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=5_26&products_id=230 , just $200 cheaper.( Formerly $300 cheaper).

^ yeah. And that gives you an idea of the kind of mark up they put on the tuning module too. Printing their own money.

 

[scottm]

Engine wise you don't need a dawes valve or electronic boost controller, the Navara zd30 is different to the Patrol zd30. I'd start with blocking the egr, catch can, manual boost controller and better exhaust, they're all good for engine longengivity.

Hey Rumpig, thanks for your opinion really appreciate it. Understand the Dawes valve may be patrol specific but from what Robert from Chiptuning was saying the ECU on the D22 would put it into limp mode "If you add more than 2 or 3psi your MAF will error out so this overcomes the problem." is that not the case?

Any recommendation for better exhaust?

Cheers

 

[scottm]

And these, http://www.chiptuning.com.au/produc...haust-gas-temp-ecu-with-remapping-capability/ come from here, http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=5_26&products_id=230 , just $200 cheaper.( Formerly $300 cheaper).

I've got to say that is really disappointing. I was actually feeling quite comfortable and trusting with Robert from Chiptuning but this unfortunately undoes all of that. He was standing behind his prices saying they were very competitive when I asked if he could do better...

Thanks for the enlightenment.

 

[scottm]

With limited funds, look at what you can do for little expense and what you need to get to achieve the goals.

Primary goal: getting there and back. You've got most of that covered, but the intercooler issue is important. If you don't look after your turbo you could have trouble - you should always allow the turbo to cool a little at idle before turning the engine off, and consider the intercooler as a vital piece of equipment if you're not 100% happy with the history of your turbo. Use an intercooler out of a XR6 Turbo - that should be fairly cheap, it'll actually work as an intercooler and is excellent insurance.

You do need to see while you're getting there, and while I would have once spoken volumes about the benefits of driving lights, I really cannot go past a small LED light bar like I have on the front now (just like this one). It's seriously effective. You'll have to blink when low beam returns (maybe get some Narva +120's to help with that!).

Secondary goal: making sure you can do stuff. Power is everything. If TJM were quoting $1200 without a battery then they're stealing from you. You can buy an Ark pack like this one (which you can buy from Rays Outdoors for $449, here) or a pack like this that is simpler and cheaper, allowing you to put more $ into the battery or even better, a solar panel. If you go solar, consider the simpler box with a C-Tek D250S and an unregulated panel.

The fridge is important and ought to be the thing that governs which battery you buy. Get enough capacity to run that fridge on a hot day for the whole day, and a solar panel that can deliver that much power over 9 hours.

A long range tank is worth it. Not sure I'd fuss over the roof console, but if water crossings are called for then diff (and gearbox) breathers are important as is underbody protection.

There's plenty more to think about too! I'm not sure I'd throw any $ at the engine performance stuff. I'd block the EGR for sure, catch cans are nice but not vital.

Longer term, consider things like awnings, on-board water, diff locks before things like beepers and highlift jacks. I've found our canopy absolutely wonderful, I'll never have a ute without one now.

Hi Old.Tony,

Really appreciate your comments and thanks for all the time and effort you spend on helping so many people on this forum - it's truly invaluable.

I read your FAQ on the caring for Turbo, I'll certainly be more aware about letting it warm up and cool down and I'll put it on the list of things to take out and make sure it's in good condition. Perhaps a Turbo Timer would be a prudent investment (I've also seen those Mongoose Alarms with Turbo Timer seem pretty popular). I think that the intercooler will be right at the top of the list as it mitigates the most amount of risk (and it seems the Turbo crapping out is not uncommon). Is the XR6 intercooler just a cheap option or would it be easier to buy a kit which comes with the correct hoses / clamps etc (seems like it can be complicated?).

That light bar looks pretty cool, do you think that the next one up is totally overkill?

Those Ark packs look great, the flexibility of being able to take it out and have 240V available is very handy. If I still wanted that flexibility with the xtra ports / inverter I still need the C-Tek D250S yes? I think I would be investing in the solar mostly to keep the fridge (not sure which yet) going for storing meat during hunting trips. Not sure about solar panels at all (regulated / unregulated) but I'll read up on it soon. The only thinkg about the Ark Pack is it's going to take up cabin or tub room (unless it can be mounted underneath somewhere?) and at the moment my Tub is not lockable (no canopy) so not sure how practical it would be day to day (it'd be nice to have the dual battery all the time not just on camping trips in case I leave the lights on etc).

Which long range tank did you go with?

As for diff breathers found this on ebay, which look to be the business...

One of the first purchases I made was a 2.5M awning before we went on our first trip with the Navara and my wife and I love it.

What do you do for onboard water? A quality solution to this would have my wife singing praises as struggling with our big water containers can be hard for her if I'm not around to lift them off the ute etc.

Thanks again Tony, cheers,

-Scott

 

[scottm]

In my opinion and order of priority I would say:
intercooler
Egr
Catch can
Light bar
Uhf
Dual Batts

All within a reasonable budget and will prolong the engine and your own safety.

Have fun

Thanks for your thoughts Dylan, really helps to get other opinions to help get clarification. What sort of intercooler are you running?

 

[d22dave]

I live out of town, so for me lights are always a priority, I love the 150 watt lightbar I have on the front, downside is it makes your low beam look weak when dipping your lights.

 

[scottm]

I live out of town, so for me lights are always a priority, I love the 150 watt lightbar I have on the front, downside is it makes your low beam look weak when dipping your lights.

Is that Wombat Forest in VIC? If so love that part of the state, have spent much time walking around Lerdederg...

Which Brand / Style of 150W lightbar did you go for?

 

[scottm]

Intercooler options

So this forefront intercooler seems pretty elite:

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Nissan-N...=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item43cb186333

But then again over at this thread there's talk of having lag if it's at the front of engine bay because of the length of pipes.

On the other hand if you mount it on the top it's going to get hotter so you may need to chuck a scoop and a fan on it....

Wowsers.... Any opinions?

 

[dylan the villian]

Thanks for your thoughts Dylan, really helps to get other opinions to help get clarification. What sort of intercooler are you running?

I have a yd25 so already intercooled, but if I needed a cooler for a zd30 I'd look at the forefront industries one, as I have one of there catch cans and it's a great unit, I think his kits for the coolers are well priced.

Cheers

 

[bert546]

the first things i would spend my money on is a 3 inch exhaust and a pre cleaner bypass.

 

[Old.Tony]

Hi Old.Tony,

Really appreciate your comments and thanks for all the time and effort you spend on helping so many people on this forum - it's truly invaluable.

I read your FAQ on the caring for Turbo, I'll certainly be more aware about letting it warm up and cool down and I'll put it on the list of things to take out and make sure it's in good condition. Perhaps a Turbo Timer would be a prudent investment (I've also seen those Mongoose Alarms with Turbo Timer seem pretty popular). I think that the intercooler will be right at the top of the list as it mitigates the most amount of risk (and it seems the Turbo crapping out is not uncommon). Is the XR6 intercooler just a cheap option or would it be easier to buy a kit which comes with the correct hoses / clamps etc (seems like it can be complicated?).

That light bar looks pretty cool, do you think that the next one up is totally overkill?

Those Ark packs look great, the flexibility of being able to take it out and have 240V available is very handy. If I still wanted that flexibility with the xtra ports / inverter I still need the C-Tek D250S yes? I think I would be investing in the solar mostly to keep the fridge (not sure which yet) going for storing meat during hunting trips. Not sure about solar panels at all (regulated / unregulated) but I'll read up on it soon. The only thinkg about the Ark Pack is it's going to take up cabin or tub room (unless it can be mounted underneath somewhere?) and at the moment my Tub is not lockable (no canopy) so not sure how practical it would be day to day (it'd be nice to have the dual battery all the time not just on camping trips in case I leave the lights on etc).

Which long range tank did you go with?

As for diff breathers found this on ebay, which look to be the business...

One of the first purchases I made was a 2.5M awning before we went on our first trip with the Navara and my wife and I love it.

What do you do for onboard water? A quality solution to this would have my wife singing praises as struggling with our big water containers can be hard for her if I'm not around to lift them off the ute etc.

Thanks again Tony, cheers,

-Scott

The next bar up is marginally better in lumen output (11220 vs the 10320 of mine) so for the dramatically larger cost, you're getting less than 10% extra light. And really, I could turn ALL my other lights out except that light bar and I'd still be blinding everyone coming towards me. For a little light, it's stupidly bright (and I bloody love it!!). So in my opinion, the "next bar up" isn't overkill, it's more overpay for what you're getting.

My LongRanger long range tank is from ARB Newcastle. It's an auxiliary tank which adds "on top of" the main tank, so I don't see any movement in the fuel gauge until I'm using the main tank. I don't mind that, I'm used to it now. Cost was about $1400 fitted.

If you get the expensive Ark pack you won't need the C-Tek D250S. Get the lower priced unit, ignore its charging circuit, use the C-Tek D250S and get a solar panel for it. That's the ultimate in portability and reliability. The problem with storing it is understood - getting it out from under the tub isn't easy but if the tub's unavailable that's what you're left with.

We don't do onboard water usually, if we're tenting it we'll have a 25L willow container, but usually when we're away we have plenty of water in the caravan (160L in the previous van, 140L in this one but I might add another 80L tank yet). Several people have grabbed stormwater pipe, glued ends on, put a tap on it and a filling point with the obvious result.

 

[Rumpig]

"If you add more than 2 or 3psi your MAF will error out so this overcomes the problem." is that not the case?
The ZD30 in the Navara doesn't have a MAF ( mass airflow sensor) it has a MAP ( manifold absolute pressure) and doesn't go into limp from overboost. Beaudesert Exhaust have been given plenty of good comments, type their name in the search box.

 

[scottm]

The next bar up is marginally better in lumen output (11220 vs the 10320 of mine) so for the dramatically larger cost, you're getting less than 10% extra light. And really, I could turn ALL my other lights out except that light bar and I'd still be blinding everyone coming towards me. For a little light, it's stupidly bright (and I bloody love it!!). So in my opinion, the "next bar up" isn't overkill, it's more overpay for what you're getting.

My LongRanger long range tank is from ARB Newcastle. It's an auxiliary tank which adds "on top of" the main tank, so I don't see any movement in the fuel gauge until I'm using the main tank. I don't mind that, I'm used to it now. Cost was about $1400 fitted.

If you get the expensive Ark pack you won't need the C-Tek D250S. Get the lower priced unit, ignore its charging circuit, use the C-Tek D250S and get a solar panel for it. That's the ultimate in portability and reliability. The problem with storing it is understood - getting it out from under the tub isn't easy but if the tub's unavailable that's what you're left with.

We don't do onboard water usually, if we're tenting it we'll have a 25L willow container, but usually when we're away we have plenty of water in the caravan (160L in the previous van, 140L in this one but I might add another 80L tank yet). Several people have grabbed stormwater pipe, glued ends on, put a tap on it and a filling point with the obvious result.

Hi Old Tony,

I bought the smaller light bar. Hopefully shouldn't be too tricky to get installed, have never really done anything like that before. Did you get heavy duty mounting brackets for it or just use what it came with?

Is there any actual benefit in getting the smaller ark pack over just mounting a deep cycle under the hood (I believe the common mounting spot is move the fuel filter and put the battery tray there?) ? Which battery / panels would you recommend? And which fridge do you use? Sorry for all the questions just trying to get an idea of what a reasonable setup is....

Will explore onboard water soon. Thinking about maybe getting a rear bar sticking the spare tyre there and then have massive amount of room underbody where the spare was. That or investigate whether this WTP45FV might suit.

Chat soon,

-Scott

 

[Old.Tony]

The Ark pack just means you can stick it in your tent when you need it and it won't look like a smelly acidy battery with blue frosting on nice lead-flavoured lollypops.

Personally I have a 75Ah Optima D31A yellow-top, 900CCA if I want it, spiral-wound AGM that's so bloody tough Chuck Norris would think twice before trying to charge it. It lives in a poorly-made temporary enclosure in my tub with its inverter and a C-Tek XS7000 charger. It's fed by a pair of 8Ga cables (both positive and negative brought from the battery to the rear of the vehicle, and I do that twice because I also feed power to the caravan when towing). That might not be the way you want to do it, if you can squeeze a battery under the bonnet you can, but with the factory air filter in place in my engine bay there's not really enough space for a AA battery let alone something like a real battery. I have contemplated putting a solar panel on the roof of the canopy and changing the C-Tek from the XS7000 to a D250S which takes both alternator-input and solar-input, and uses the best to charge the battery.

To mount my light bar, I bought a pair of 75mm exhaust clamps, mig-welded a piece of 25mm-wide 3mm steel flat bar to it, drilled through for the bolt provided, painted the thing black and clamped it to the front of the bullbar, positioned so that the light bar sat just back of the bullbar itself (thus complying with the ADR specs for items on bullbars).

I have an Engel fridge, have owned it since about 2001 when we got sick of feeding ice to eskies, and particularly when the eskies got hungry when there wasn't any ice nearby. Not hip on Waeco fridges, the Danfoss compressor uses more power than the Sawafuji in the Engel, but ARB have a fridge that (while it uses a Danfoss BD35 compressor) has other features that make it very appealing.