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7 Posts
I finished installing all of the Northwoods Performance Goodies on our 2015 RAV4. First thank you to those on here that posted before me and Nathan at Northwoods Performance for answering my questions about the mods and upgrading my wheels and tires.
Second.... this car is soooo cool and much more fun now. The exhaust fits great and was easy. There was a mix up with the bolts for the Aluminum Skid plate. I emailed Nathan and he was sincerely sorry about it. They were moving shop, and he express mailed the correct bolts to me. It went on easy and improves the look of the front IMO.
When I opened the boxes with the Suspension and Springs I was pleasantly surprised. They look really good and are made very well. I got the Suspension and wheels put on in a day in my garage. It went very smooth and the directions and pictures that come with the parts are really helpful and very clear. I was able to install everything with two jack stands and a floor jack in my garage and regular tools. The only “special tools” I needed was to break torque working in tight space under car on jack stands. An Impact gun, a long breaker bar and a long torque wrench. (I’m an aircraft mechanic so I was able to use some tools from work). The Northwoods Performance Parts went in great with no problems.
The only issue I had was when disconnecting the OEM front sway bar. The hex bolt was a little corroded and started stripping. I had to grab the back side with a pair of vice grips and was able to remove the nuts.
I put KMC Wheels, Satin Black KM708, 17x8 5x4.5 38” offset. The tires are BFG LT245/65R17 All Terrain T/A KO2. These fit and have clearance all around from full left to full right, but I don’t see much room to go bigger. The best part is now I can change the engine oil and filter WITHOUT having to jack the front end up. Lol. The tires of course make some noise, but not any more than our roof rack. I can live with it.
There is about 2 inches of more clearance. You can definitely feel the car sitting and riding higher. It rides a lot better in my and wife’s opinions. She now steps up into it lol. We love the car and the mods.
I had fun doing the install and would recommend it.
Cheers,
Curtis
Second.... this car is soooo cool and much more fun now. The exhaust fits great and was easy. There was a mix up with the bolts for the Aluminum Skid plate. I emailed Nathan and he was sincerely sorry about it. They were moving shop, and he express mailed the correct bolts to me. It went on easy and improves the look of the front IMO.
When I opened the boxes with the Suspension and Springs I was pleasantly surprised. They look really good and are made very well. I got the Suspension and wheels put on in a day in my garage. It went very smooth and the directions and pictures that come with the parts are really helpful and very clear. I was able to install everything with two jack stands and a floor jack in my garage and regular tools. The only “special tools” I needed was to break torque working in tight space under car on jack stands. An Impact gun, a long breaker bar and a long torque wrench. (I’m an aircraft mechanic so I was able to use some tools from work). The Northwoods Performance Parts went in great with no problems.
The only issue I had was when disconnecting the OEM front sway bar. The hex bolt was a little corroded and started stripping. I had to grab the back side with a pair of vice grips and was able to remove the nuts.
I put KMC Wheels, Satin Black KM708, 17x8 5x4.5 38” offset. The tires are BFG LT245/65R17 All Terrain T/A KO2. These fit and have clearance all around from full left to full right, but I don’t see much room to go bigger. The best part is now I can change the engine oil and filter WITHOUT having to jack the front end up. Lol. The tires of course make some noise, but not any more than our roof rack. I can live with it.
There is about 2 inches of more clearance. You can definitely feel the car sitting and riding higher. It rides a lot better in my and wife’s opinions. She now steps up into it lol. We love the car and the mods.
I had fun doing the install and would recommend it.
Cheers,
Curtis
