im wanting to make some modifications to the suspension on my 06' MT Base Z. In light of going to deals gap north carolina & ripping through the dragon, i realized that the Z handles very well for a stock sports car. But there was still alot of body lean & roll. I'm wondering what would be the best way to stiffen up the ride as much as possible. I know it will give me a rough ride but, if i wanted a nice ride i would've bought a cadillac or a mustang ha. What coilover, spring, & sway bar kits will give the most radical improvement in handling?

 

You should really consider what you are getting into when you start modding your suspension. People will say that they dont care how rough the suspension is but they dont really realize it can get very rough. If your car is a daily, Id recommend getting something like that HKS Hipermax RS, great for everyday driving conditions and stiffens up the suspension enough to enjoy spirited driving, even some autocrossing and light track use. As far as sways, there are a couple different options but Im personally bias to the NISMO sways.

 

I use the Z as my daily driver but also like to have some fun with it on the weekends. I have also been to the dragon and tested out various suspension components to see how they differ from stock.

I originally started with a set of eibach adjustable sways which gave me the most noticeable difference IMO and allowed me to tap into the suspension and adjust my settings. I set it to soft on the front and medium on the rear. This setting is great all around and I have not changed it since the original install.

After several runs I still felt that the Z was too bouncy and a little sloppy around the corners. I knew I needed more but didn't want to go overboard with too low of a drop or a very stiff set of coil-overs which would make a bad experience on these already bad NC roads.

I decided on a set of stock 06 revised shocks and struts paired to TEIN H. TECH springs. This eliminated the annoying 03 bounce, improved handling and lowered my ride slightly giving it a more aggressive stance. The springs deserve most of the credit, they improved handling while still providing comfort which is what I was looking for. Shocks and struts felt more responsive then the stock 03 but still not quite as much as I was looking for.

My next and final choice was a set of nismo shocks and struts. I felt an immediate difference after the first test drive. A lot more responsive then my previous setup and gave you a feeling oneness between the car and road. Turning around these sharp corners was now a lot easier and very enjoyable. Not too stiff for daily driving and perfect for having fun.

I will tell you one component which I have yet to upgrade but will very soon and should not be left out are your end links. Pushing the Z to its limits put a lot of stress on the links especially as I replaced most of the components with aftermarket pieces. I manage to bust both of my fronts after just one day at the dragon. Several others members on this board have experienced similar occurrences after upgrading their suspension or a lot of track use. It truly is the weakest link. Many companies are now making thicker and stronger links using better materials which are also adjustable which gives you the option of adding or removing preload. I will post my opinion on these when I get a set.

Hope this helps and sorry for such a long post its late and for some reason I cant sleep, LOL

 

If you want something that improves handling and keeps a great ride for daily, consider the Nismo setup. Completely gets rid of understeer and body roll is almost gone. Rides as good, if not better than stock around town now, more solid and less bounce. Ive had the Nismo setup for about 8 months.