Cracked Coil Tower & Chassis Strengthening Nissan Navara NP300

Overloading Your vehicle Can Result in Major Damage

This Nissan Navara NP300 D23 with Cracked Coil Tower arrived last week to be repaired.

So you have just got an NP300 as a work horse and/or tow car because of its huge 1T payload and 3.5T towing capacity. The ads on TV show you how you can load this baby up & it will handle everything you throw at it or in it! No problems at all? Right? Well here is the problem and a little bit of maths.........

So as shipped from Nissan your dual cab has a kerb weight of 1783kg with a full tank of fuel and a 2910 kg GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass)

So some quick maths that gives you 1127kgs for payload, right?

Nope sorry, now we need to put a tray on it.... a light weight alloy tray is approx 100 kgs, but now you need to carry all your gear, so most tool boxes and draws add on average another 200kg.

Now you need a bull bar on the front with a winch? There is another 130kg. What about side steps and scrub rails to protet your vehicle? Add another 70kg or so. Oh don't forget a dual battery system 50kg, some underbody protection 30kg and a tow bar at 40kg.

So before we even load it up with the stuff we have used 600kg just in the basic modifications you want to put on your truck. Now that leaves you about 500 kgs right? Nope sorry....  now you have to jump in the drivers seat, so there is 110kg, just because your not at your fighting weight anymore cause the missus feeds you too well, bugger!! Now we have to put her in the car as well for those trips away spending quality time with her, so there’s another 75kgs (she has looked after herself well since having the kids)

Oops now you have the kids, we need to put them in as well cause that’s why you got the dual cab in the first place so lets add another 60kg between them. So some quick maths at this point and we are down to 250 kgs of stuff we can actually put in the car.

So without even trying we are close to our GVM before we have put the fridge in, recovery gear, the food, clothes and tent or hooked up the camper, by the time you get everything in you are 400kgs over weight! Meh no big deal what are the chances of getting pulled over and put on the scales? Pretty low right so just roll the dice? You are only going to own the NP300 for a few years before trading it in. It wont matter if it doesnt last 10yrs for YOU.

Now you would of heard why you shouldn’t overload your late model dual cabs? And up until now you didn’t realise just how quickly that 1T payload is disappearing & now we have calculated just how heavy the car is just driving around empty we now need to beef up our suspension to handle it right? This will make it stronger, handle better, its what everyone else is doing!

Because you’re not doing any serious 4wding, it's just a work/family driver with a few trips a year along 2WD access roads you don’t need the high end stuff so off you go to shop around for your suspension.

Most reputable shops knowing how heavy the NP300 will be with all the gear you have will recommend something heavy duty, that will suit the weight but unfortunately this can make things worse without you even being aware.

Fast forward 3 years and 100,000km and unless you have traded the car in here are some of the issues you will be dealing with or even worse the new owner totally oblivious......

The coil tower has torn the welds away from the chassis

Another view of the damaged chassis

The extra weight combined with the thin factory material and poor-quality factory welds has cause the coil tower to completely peal away from the chassis. Not looking so pretty under all that gear anymore!

The only cure is to cut out the old coil tower, drill the ends of the cracks in the chassis before welding, then replacing the old coil tower with a new Nissan one, welding it properly this time to prevent failure.

We then welded in Superior Engineering Coil Tower Brace Plates to the inside of the coil towers. These plates fit in from inside the coil tower and are welded to the cross beam. Made from 4mm steel these will help support the coil tower & avoid bending & tearing under continued load.

 

Those old Nissan robot welds are pretty poor against the human eye. No wonder there is failure.

Nissan Factory Welds vs Our Welds

We wanted to add some extra protection so why not add it with these chassis plates from Superior Engineering.

These Chassis Brace Plates will dramatically increase the sectional strength of the chassis in key critical areas.

These Side Bracing Plates were added to the chassis rails to stop any cracking or folding in the rail.

Now your ute will be able to deal with being constantly loaded, and avoid any undue stress on the chaissis, coil towers etc giving you piece of mind whilst driving the vehicle.

So when you are considering loading up your dual cab ute remember, the GVM is not only what it can legally carry, but its what the manufactures have designed it to carry!! Gone are the days when things are built to last, now they are built to a minimum standard and a price.

We have the Chassis Brace Plate Kits & Coil Tower Brace kits available and we always recommend fitting by a professional.

Why wait until you have an issue. For peace of mind look into giving your vehicle the support it needs to support you & your family.

Fitting is available at our Bayswater workshop at additional cost so give us a call to discuss your needs on (03) 9720 8783 or drop in at 66a Barry Street Bayswater Vic 3153.

The Superior Engineering Chassis Brace Plates are currently available for a range of vehicles such as Toyota Hilux Vigo & Revo, Nissan Navara D40 & NP300, Ford Ranger PX2/ Mazda BT50, Mitsubishi ML/MN & MQ Triton, Holden Colorado / Isuzu D-Max, Toyota Landcruiser 79 and many more. Click here for more information.

More photos below of the process....