CALMINI has been building accessories and components for Isuzu and Suzuki vehicles for 15 years, and are well known in the industry for innovation and quality. Now that they've seen the cult following the Xterra has generated, they've got on board with a selection of high quality aftermarket parts designed specifically for it.

We all know how weak the stock Nissan side rails are, they were designed for looks and stepping on, but not for serious off-road use. Several companies have designed replacement side rails, and have built them tough enough to be called "rocker guards", or "rock sliders". CALMINI has come up with a design quite a bit different than anyone else's on the market, and we got a chance to install them.

The main components of the CALMINI Rock Slider kit include:

• Rock Sliders
• Mounting Hardware

For more information about this product visit CALMINI

Installation is a no brainer. If you can turn a wrench, you can install these.

CALMINI includes grade 8 mounting bolts, washers and lock washers with the kit, or you can opt to use the existing Nissan hardware. If you do the latter, you will need 4 extra bolts for the middle mounts. For my previous rock sliders, I pilfered the bolts from the harmonic weight mounted just above the rear spring hanger. Considering 45 lbs. is being bolted to the side of the Xterra's frame, the 5 lb. weights wont be missed.

Rock Slider Installation

The rock sliders come packaged extremely well, with several miles of tape and wrapping, assuring no damage during shipment. At about 45 lbs. each, they are shipped in 2 boxes, but are light enough to be shipped via UPS.

After unwrapping them, you'll notice the difference between the CALMINI rock sliders and everything else on the market.

CALMINI has used plasma cut, 5/16" thick steel plate for the mounting brackets, instead of square tubing. This allows the CALMINI rock sliders to fit closer to the body without interfering with the body pinch seam.

The rock slider itself is made from thick wall 2"x3" rectangular tubing, which is capped and hand finished. The welds and powdercoating are top notch.

After removing the stock side rails, support the CALMINI rock sliders with a couple of jackstands.

Insert the 6 bolts per side and tighten.

You're done. It's that easy.

The picture to the right will give you a better idea of how the mounting brackets follow the contour of the pinch seam, and allow the rock slider to sit up (about 1") higher than the frame. This design still allows ample clearance between the slider and sheet metal for flexing.

Once mounted, you're ready for the trail.

Appearance-wise, the CALMINI Rock Sliders don't disappoint. It's a nice fit, and looks good on the Xterra.

The CALMINI rock sliders don't stick out as far as some other designs, some people will like this, others will not. I prefer the slimmer design, which means less mud on the back of my leg getting in and out. It also means less area to get a Hi-Lift jack under.

There isn't much room to step on the rock slider either if you have big feet, but I solved that by adding a strip of skateboard tape for traction.
I still stand on the tire to reach the roof, and did even with the stock step rails.

Off Road Performance

To date, the CALMINI Rock Sliders have held up well.

They have had the weight of my Xterra on them many times, and have shown no signs of flexing, or caused any damage to the pinch seam. The bottoms are scratched up quite a bit, but there are no signs of denting or metal fatigue.

Since proper 4 wheeling technique instructs us to place tires on top of obstacles, the extra inch of clearance offered by CALMINI's design comes in handy for getting over the big stuff.

Overall, I'm impressed by the design and quality, and expect to keep these on the Xterra for a long time.