raf84ny

iTrader: (7)

What brand/type bushings would you recommend to replace the compression arm bushings please?

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

for the compression arm to body mount is the only bushing as the other side connecting to the spindle is a ball joint pointing down....

For that bushing the only thing available aftermarket is SPL parts.com compression arm bushing and OEM replacements from mynismo.com..see page 2 for my post on "Bushings"

https://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-...-bushings.html

www.splparts.com

-J

raf84ny

iTrader: (7)

Once again, thank you! You are a huge asset to this forum.

SparkleCityHop

iTrader: (30)

Since the alignment specs are only provided for factory/stock tire sizes, etc...

I was wondering if we should just use the factory specs or if there are factors that would affect what specs/settings we ask the alignment guys to tune our cars to. I'm asking because one place that I went to didn't know what they should use as targets for an alignment since I am not running stock wheels/tires.

For example, do any of the following affect what our "goals/target specs" should be for aligning camber, caster, toe:

1) Lowered (I'm on an Eibach Pro Kit)
2) Wheel height (I'm now on 19" wheels, but close to stock overall diameter)
3) Wheel width & stagger (I'm 285 in the rear and 245 up front)
4) Wheel offset (considering spacers my wheels are effectively -8mm in front and 0mm offset in rear)

In other words, if we have spent the money and can adjust our camber, caster & toe in front & back, do we still shoot for the same specs as stock 18 wheels even if we've changed the geometry of our cars by changing 1-4 above?

jcog08

iTrader: (1)

Hey Jason little question for ya that's probably already been asked but, I just recently got my new coilovers and noticed that they didn't come with the rear nuts for the rear coilovers, the nuts I'm refering to are welded to the oem struts. I guess my question to you or whoever is what size replacement nuts I need to purchase for my coilovers. Thanks I know the question is kind of vague and I don't know too much about suspension, but any help is much appreciated!

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

Place you went to:
go to where they have an alignment machine and the fact they will let you be there to watch and input on what is done....nine times out of ten the place you went to and the machine they used will do everything needed, but the tech doesn't know exactly how to do it, or what screen he needs to click on above to imput different heights, etc..


1) Lowered (I'm on an Eibach Pro Kit)
Some/most newer alignment machines take into account height....tech must enter it by measuring at each fender. Just like shown here:

The alignment machine will actually ask: "input new height measurements" and the alignment tech needs to click on "yes or no" and actually measure with a yard stick or tape measure fender height so the computer takes it into consideration. IF the machine doesn't ask, like mentioned above - he must find the screen that lets him change it...most dont even know thats available...

2) Wheel height (I'm now on 19" wheels, but close to stock overall diameter)
Tire calculator and compare, odds are your 19in wheels are same or similar diameter to stock 18 245/45/18s as you mentioned...so use 18 specs.

3) Wheel width & stagger (I'm 285 in the rear and 245 up front)
wheel width:
Tech will use these big plastic calipers and enter wheel size into the alignment computer.

Staggard:
Having some more rubber in the rear will give it some more grip and reduce oversteer

4) Wheel offset (considering spacers my wheels are effectively -8mm in front and 0mm offset in rear)
Laser sensors are mounted on the face of the wheels, so the machine knows where they are located as adjustments are being made off from the hub, so thats covered with these:

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

Yes, i know what your talking about, its covered here on post 16:
https://my350z.com/forum/8293580-post16.html

Its most likely(verify) a M12x1.25 nut - which can be hard to find at times, but if you removed your oem toe bolts to install SPC toe bolts, the the nuts that were on the oem toe bolts will work at the missing nut location.


-J

SparkleCityHop

iTrader: (30)

Jason, you are the man. That's exactly what I needed to understand better. I'll get my final specs and come back with them once the alignment is done.

PS: I'm going to be flying into DFW sometime next week for business & owe you a drink if you're in town. Any advice on things to check out while I'm in the area? PM me if so... not trying to thread jack.

Thanks again!

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

^ pm sent...

no prob..

-J

imp

Hi,

I noticed this is a thread mostly for healthy rides that just want to get a bit closer to the ground.. Well, I've got a post-mortem for ya

Here are the facts:
- car had been hit in the front right and 'repaired' (quotes intentional)
- it drives straight - slow, fast, braking accelerating - no problem AT ALL
- tire wear looks good

However - geometry printout is a bit off and WAY off on SAI, so either the geometry guy wasn't know what he was doing or some parts are bent (where to look?) or installed upside down...

Front:
Caster +7.5 left, +7.1 right
SAI: +2.5 left, -7.3 right (!)
Camber: 0 left, -1.1 right
Toe: -0.24 left, +0.07 right
wheel shift: 0d10'



Going to see a mechanic next week, but the question is: which parts should he inspect more carefully that can be bent.. Happy to replace the necessary, buy adjustable arms and such, but my nightmare would be coming back to this over and over again...

This is a 2006 on 18's

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

^ dude, ya have a good mechanic look it over.......

those numbers are a bit nuts left to right....

if the car is something you wanna keep, then of course start buying adjustable arms, but when a car has been recked, sometimes removing arms and inspecting mounts is necessary.

the compression rod to unibody mount is a beefy stud that drops down from the unibody...check that one for straightness..

-J

imp

Yep - got a visit scheduled for next week.

What really puzzles me is the negative SAI on the right.. In short - looking at what SAI represents, negative values are physically impossible (the strut would have to go THROUGH the wheel to the outside and be attached to the frame of another car standing next to the one being measured ). So really I think the geometry measurement was scr.d up.

Following your advise, I'll go ahead and already purchase the adjustable front control arm (SPL) and back camber (Kinetics). How important are other aftermarket elements considering I don't plan to lower or otherwise adjust the car stance?

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

^ without a drop, you should be more than good there....install those parts and go from there..

-J

jcog08

iTrader: (1)

Hey jason its jordan from the dfw lounge, quick question, i have the rear camber kits with out bushings and they make a good bit of sqeeking noise! Anything i can do to eliminate some of this?

Thanks

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

Do you mean rod end style camber arms??


If so, i have had those before and found using white lithium grease to keep everything quiet.

what exact camber arms? etc did you buy? brand? or do you have pics?

-J

jcog08

iTrader: (1)

Theyre the rod end style you have pictured on the top cant recall the brand, bought them over a year ago.. Where can i pick up some lithium grease?

Thanks

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

^ autozone, its a spray can..


-J

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

Would like to note that not one vendor, company, outside manufacture or any "experts" have chimed in...

https://my350z.com/forum/8293657-post28.html

-J

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

IMP, did you get your car fixed up???

get everything figured out...

The SAI on right has to be a fluke.......with out posting an alignment sheet i don't know exactly what its reading and what the uppers and lowers are on "their" machine to know if its reading correctly to begin with..

Range should be +4.3 to +5.8 so both L and R are not good..

-J

imp

Well, here's a quick update:

1) I found the following quote in the service manual:

FSU7:
King pin inclination angle is reference value, no inspection
is required. (Due to the type of suspension, the kingpin inclination angle cannot be measured correctly using a normal alignment tester.)

Mystery solved. Based on this, I decided that I would focus on the other #s (caster, camber, toe) that are most likely true and still deserve a closer look.

2) 2 independent mechanics looked at the suspension and did not find any obviously bent parts upon general inspection.. However looking at your post from a similar thread Jason, your reco is to take the suspension parts OFF the car for inspection - which is something I could do over the winter (takes shipment from SPL (2 weeks), a good 2-3 days in the shop, and a mechanic you can trust).
Key question here: what are the throw-away parts as you take out all struts and rods? Looking at the service manual, there seem to be A LOT (found at least 2 nuts and 3 pins per side according to FSU-8). Do you really replace them every time you play with your suspension Jason? Do you use originals from Nissan as a replacement?

3) Meanwhile I've had the laser frame measurement performed on the car that indicated slight dislocation of the strut mounting spots looking from the top of the car (one side is shifted 8 mm and the other 4mm sideways towards the outside - limit is 3mm). Mechanic recommended to fix it by tightening the over-the-engine tower bar (as dislocation at the same places looking from UNDER the car is within limits).
Could you measure and post your exact distance between the 2 opposite mounting screws on the tower bar for reference ? As there are 4 bolts on each side - let's use the one closest to the engine

There was one more aspect that is totally illogical out of the measurements which I've chosen to ignore (there are like close-to-none 350z's in this country, so mechanics suffer from a heavy case of no-cluism ); but this one should be easy to verify: could you measure and post the distance from the ground level to a fixed part of the bottom of your car:
a) at the front (side of the front cross member)
b) in the front part of the cabin
c) in the rear part of the cabin
As you know the car better than I do, pick places that are firmly attached to the subframe and let me know what you used as reference (photo will help).