So I just installed the Nismo S-tune suspension and sways this weekend (did it myself), and was wondering how long it takes to settle to it's final ride height? I measured before and after the install and afterward, it was sitting just as high (actually a bit higher in the rear) as stock. I figured it should be at least somewhat lower, then settle the rest of the way, but it's not at all. I bought it used off a guy that had it installed for a few months/couple thousand miles, so it should already be broken in, right? What's the deal? Do I just need to be patient? It rides and handles as expected; just bugged by the ride height...

 

at least a couple hundred miles.

 

Really? Huh, ok... was getting worried; been a couple of days and it's still sitting at pretty much stock height. It's 1/8" lower in front, 1/8" higher in back... wonder if I should stick my spare back in for a while to help it settle in back??? So how long should I wait before I get it aligned?

 

Mine was fully settled in about one week. Since you purchased yours used I would think it would settle faster since it should have already been broken in.

 

That's what I would have thought... Guess I'll just try to be patient... Does it matter if it's driven or if it just sits? I only put about 120 miles on it a week...

 

Bushings are putting torstional lift on suspension. It would settle the best if you put the car on a rail style lift and loosened it all up (at the pivot points) with the weight of the vehicle on the tires. Then bounce vehicle and retorque all fasteners.
It will settle over time if you do nothing but drive the car it's just a little harder on the bushings the lazy way.

 

a good spring should never settle....

 

Hmm, well so far it hasn't settled a bit. I torqued all the bolts with the suspension under load (just didn't bounce the car or anything first), so the bushings shouldn't really be putting torsional lift on the setup, should they?

A good spring should never settle... ok... so why do I not have the advertised drop from the suspension? Were the stock springs not good and they settled to Nismo level over three years???

It handles great and looks good; I don't really care if it drops or not. If it doesn't, do I need to even bother getting it aligned? It was just aligned a few months ago after I got rear ended, so if the new suspension sits at the same height, there'd be no reason to change it, right? Or do I still need to?

 

why don't you have the drop? I cannot answer that. A spring with a consistent rate will not settle...a shock will once it has gone through a few compressions and rebound cycles, but this happens quickly after driving the car for even a few minutes. The only "settling" that should take place is between the spring and the rubber isolator, but this is minmal (and its in the rear only on a Z)

do you need to align it? No one can answer that. Everytime you remove the strut, it is nearly impossible to bolt it back into the same exact spot twice. So at the very least, I'd have it checked to make sure you are still in the specs you want

 

Hmm, sound advice. Though would there really be any cost difference between having it checked and having it done? The struts' positions are static, though; there is no adjustment in them and they are not involved the alignment of the car.

Here's a thought: My car is an '03 Track. did it have any differences in suspension from other models, so that it may have sat lower than the rest, anyway, thus accounting for not having a drop with the Nismo setup?

 

the strut positions are not static, and yes, the do affect the alignment of the car. When the strut goes in, there is wiggle room in the bolt, and in turn, that will affect the contact patch the ground

I have no idea if your local shop would charge you to check or not

the track is the same as all the others in terms of suspension mounting

 

Hmm, prob right on the wiggle room (though, there didn't seem to be any play at all when I installed); wouldn't hurt to have it checked, at least. Don't want to eat up my new tires; can't be that far off, though, so shouldn't hurt to give it a little time, right? Still wondering where my frigging drop is...

 

+ INFINITY

Springs may seat themselves a bit in the rubbers, but settle they don't. After the install, the dampers and springs are a bit stretched, as is the entire suspension. Once you drop the car back down and cruise around the block enough to put a litte force onto all four corners, that's it. That's your drop

 

...you do realize the drop on the NISMO suspension for a Z is only .75 inch right? It is not a large drop at all. The specific tire you run will largely determine how it looks. IE a T1S/T1R has a much taller sidewall than many other tires of the same size

 

Yes, I am aware of the drop and the difference that tires can have. I measured from the floor of my garage to the fender as well as from the ground to the bottom of my front splash gaurds on both sides right before I installed the suspension and have been using those measurements to compare the ones taken after install against. I measure it each day when I get home. Last night, I saw the first evidence of a drop; it looked to have settled about a 1/4 inch, from my previous observations, so it looks like it might be on it's way down. Last couple of days I've tried to make a point of hitting the rough spots, bumps and dips in the road and take the corners a little harder to work the suspension a bit; perhaps that's helping. I'll give it another week, then get it aligned.

 

Its only going to drop 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch when it completely settles.