[inf3rno]

while still on the market i told my uncle bout' the mada and he wasnt quite sure about it. i asked him why and he brought a really good point to me... he has a pathy 97' and told me that when his car is loaded the rear wheels just go wide open, and i guess is because of the weight. but then i dont think 97 pathy has independent rear susp. so that got me thinking.... yesterday i saw an armada with cargo box on roof, 5 passengers, and i SAW the rear wheels wide open.

now i know the mada has independent rear suspesion, but just seeing the rear wheels open wide like that... not usual... in another words did not like it. that will cause the uneven wear of tires (rear) when loading cargo right?

 

[SE Off Road1]

Wheels Wide Open??

What on earth are you talking about.... "wheels wide open"? Are you referring to sag? I could not imaging 5 passengers, and a cargo box creating sag with the size of the Armada's coils. With the Big Tow package it would self level. I guess you need to explain "wheels wide open"....never heard that one

 

[92TripleBlack]

while still on the market i told my uncle bout' the mada and he wasnt quite sure about it. i asked him why and he brought a really good point to me... he has a pathy 97' and told me that when his car is loaded the rear wheels just go wide open, and i guess is because of the weight. but then i dont think 97 pathy has independent rear susp. so that got me thinking.... yesterday i saw an armada with cargo box on roof, 5 passengers, and i SAW the rear wheels wide open.

now i know the mada has independent rear suspesion, but just seeing the rear wheels open wide like that... not usual... in another words did not like it. that will cause the uneven wear of tires (rear) when loading cargo right?

Not sure what that means either. If you mean the rear saging under the load and wheels popping out at angles due to independent suspension, this doesn't happen. Armadas with the big tow(All LE or option selected for others) have an air bag that levels the suspension. The rear will be level, regardless of if you hit the max weight or not. The tires will pancake under load, but this is the tires, not the SUV. Adding air will fix this or better still, just add tires with higher load ratings. They would look the same on a Mada or on a Chevy, regardless.

So Wheels wide out doesn't seem to make much sense to me, nor does worrying about tire wear.

 

[scr38]

If you are talking about the change in camber of the rear wheels, then any independent supension will have negative camber (wheels tilted in at the top) when a heavy load is placed in the rear. But your uncle's Pathfinder does not have independent rear supension, but a solid axle. I don't know what he is talking about, the camber will not change with a solid axle.
If this is what you are talking about then you have nothing to worry about. I have never heard the term "wheels wide open" in my 50+ years of working on cars.

 

[omored]

05 MADA for $38000

My friend told me that his sister just bought 05 mada LE with tech parkage and DVD for $38000. this sound like a bs right guys?

 

[masterwong]

Is your uncle perhaps a barber?

 

[92TripleBlack]

My friend told me that his sister just bought 05 mada LE with tech parkage and DVD for $38000. this sound like a bs right guys?

Yeah, the invoice on the 2wd version of that is $41k. If it was used maybe, but what does this have to do with the wide wheels?

 

[PumaFiveOh]

while still on the market i told my uncle bout' the mada and he wasnt quite sure about it. i asked him why and he brought a really good point to me... he has a pathy 97' and told me that when his car is loaded the rear wheels just go wide open, and i guess is because of the weight. but then i dont think 97 pathy has independent rear susp. so that got me thinking.... yesterday i saw an armada with cargo box on roof, 5 passengers, and i SAW the rear wheels wide open.

now i know the mada has independent rear suspesion, but just seeing the rear wheels open wide like that... not usual... in another words did not like it. that will cause the uneven wear of tires (rear) when loading cargo right?

Make sure you rotate the air in your tires as well....this can also be a big problem on Armadas. And don't forget about the muffler bearings when you have a large load.

This thread is giving me a headache!! :crikey:

 

[inf3rno]

im sorry, i shoud be a bit more into details. the model i saw was an SE with cargo and 5 passengers. no big tow. i followed it for about 10 minutes and i could see the rear wheels of the truck making an angle to the outside, something like this: / \ (being / left rear wheel, \ right rear wheel) creating a wide angle to the outside. same goes to the pathfinders rear wheels making angles to the outside... i swear if u see carefully the rear end of an armada when loaded ( SE model again ) u can notice the tires on a wierd angle.

is like when u lift u car for an oil change the 4 tires create an angle to the inside right? well this time when heavy loaded it seems like the tires are creating an angle to the outisde...

 

[inf3rno]

any independent supension will have negative camber (wheels tilted in at the top) when a heavy load is placed in the rear.

yes wheels tilting a bit to the inside (top of the wheel)

 

[92TripleBlack]

This is a sign of incorrect camber. Not sure why it would be doing that unless it had a load of bricks in the back. Many SUVs have a solid axel rear. This will prevent this, but the back will sag. You also loose a lot of ride quality with a solid axel. Just shows you again why you should get the big tow.

 

[scr38]

im sorry, i shoud be a bit more into details. the model i saw was an SE with cargo and 5 passengers. no big tow. i followed it for about 10 minutes and i could see the rear wheels of the truck making an angle to the outside, something like this: / \ (being / left rear wheel, \ right rear wheel) creating a wide angle to the outside. same goes to the pathfinders rear wheels making angles to the outside... i swear if u see carefully the rear end of an armada when loaded ( SE model again ) u can notice the tires on a wierd angle.

is like when u lift u car for an oil change the 4 tires create an angle to the inside right? well this time when heavy loaded it seems like the tires are creating an angle to the outisde...

As I said in my earlier post, Pathfinders have a solid rear axle and this can NOT happen with the solid axle.

 

[Eclipse_Man]

Just as a .02 thing, I bought my 05 SL for 39,600.00 fully loaded ( tech package,entertainment,all the toys) two days ago. Invoice for the dealer is actually 39,064.00 base without the option packages. Researched on directcars.com I think? anyhow just thought I'd let you know it's not BS this late in the model season if you catch the right dealership. That was not the out the door price with tax title,gap,treatments, and low jack, but the sale price for the truck.

Regards,
Paul

 

[92TripleBlack]

Just as a .02 thing, I bought my 05 SL for 39,600.00 fully loaded ( tech package,entertainment,all the toys) two days ago. Invoice for the dealer is actually 39,064.00 base without the option packages. Researched on directcars.com I think? anyhow just thought I'd let you know it's not BS this late in the model season if you catch the right dealership. That was not the out the door price with tax title,gap,treatments, and low jack, but the sale price for the truck.

Regards,
Paul

Uh, how does this relate to camber on an Armada? With regards to the price, I'm surprised. The SL is a small vert and retails for $90+ for the base model. The ML however is the SUV merc and base goes for the high 30s. The Merc ML is a different class of vehicle than the Armada, competing with the BMW X5, FX 45, and RX300 and not Armada. I think I'd rather have the FX or Bimmer over the Merc ML, but that's my preference. I almost moved on a 2000 ML 55 a coupe years ago. Nice truck.

 

[Eclipse_Man]

Other then the fact that I mashed key and spelled SL and not LE no. and there is a prior post from the gent asking if his uncles' story of someone landing an LE for 39K or something was BS, to which you replied yes, I beg to differ...

 

[masterwong]

Then show us a picture if you differ. I think at this point your statement is not valid to anyone in here because seeing is beleiving in this case.

 

[92TripleBlack]

Other then the fact that I mashed key and spelled SL and not LE no. and there is a prior post from the gent asking if his uncles' story of someone landing an LE for 39K or something was BS, to which you replied yes, I beg to differ...

Now it makes sense. I was wondering how a Merc could have crept in.

 

[andy]

Damn, I was on my way to Mercedes to pick up an SL for $39K!

 

[Eclipse_Man]

Sorry about that! No, Merc, though I traded my '98 Audi A8 in on my Mada! The only picture I have of the truck is a lousy one from my phone, but I'll attach it for the time being until I can take some nice ones this weekend! Sorry for the mix up...

New Mada