KatsZ

So I have an 06 350 which I purchased with ICHIBA upper arms.
They are the biggest POS.

So I was drving when all of a sudden I heard a clunk from my Right Front Tire.I was doing about 35 mph.I pull over because the car was not drivable. I get off the car and the wheel is all the way in!!!(picture a cambered wheel to its MAXIMUM and then some).
So upon further inspection after raising the car, I saw the spindle arm was not connected to the ICHIBA Arm. What happened was the ball joint from the camber arm with the NUT went THROUGH the spindle hole/guide..I was like WTF!!!So now the hole on the spindle through which you mount the arm had a nut shape. (mind you ive driven this car on the highway and I THANK GOD this didnt happen at higher speeds!!).
So now I asked myself why they would make this camber arm with such skinny bolt/nut?? any who no damage was done other than the disconnection, so I had to purchase washers so the nut wouldnt go through again, and so I did to save the towing service. After I noticed that I went ahead and checked the other side which was fine but I went ahead and added a washer.

I figured ok now Ill just go and re align the car. But then I also saw the bushings on the ICHIBA Arms where they bolt to the car were bad, meaning the arms would swing forward and backward, and so now i was on the lookout for new arms.

I was /am on a budget and researched which arms would be good. I noticed MEGAN had the same concept so I disregarded them. Obviously another set of ICHIBA was out the picture (and their expensive $359.00). So I looked into the Kinetix but got bad reviews on them, issues like noise from the Poly bushings, no cover on the ball joint, etc.

I noticed they came out with a verison 2 and I went ahead and purchased them ($301 shipped). These came out with a boot over the ball joint, and The poly bushings dont allow the arm to move forward (neither do the other arms but once the bushing goes bad thats it, theres play).

I am new to the 350z, im a honda guy. This is my gf's car but Id thought id share the experience and the tech. hopefully not a repost. And for the record I like the z, its super fun to drive!! : )

Any who here are the ichiba


and here are the Kinetix version 2 I recieved:




This ball Joint and nut/bolt are MASSIVE in size and really doesnt require a washer. It even comes with a custom guide to fill in over the top of the spindle.

Now the issue of the poly's squeaking after a week of use was what had me ahh on buying them. But once I recieved the arms I removed the bushings and noticed they werent lubed between the bushing and the arm, only lubed between the bolt guide and the bushing, and so of course this is why I THINK, Just an I think that the squeaking occurs so soon, when it shouldnt squeak period (maybe a little). You can see in the pic what I mean. Even the lube that was used I dont think would of lasted it wasnt of the same consistency as the ES lube I purchased.





I went ahead and bought Energy Suspension PRELUBE. I gathered my materials and began.



I taped the arm itself to reduce the messiness cause this lube is very stick and a pain in the *** to work with.





Then I went ahead and lubed the inside of the where the bushings go. I also lube the aluminum guide where the bolt goes through as well.







I also lube the bushings. You want to make sure there more than enough lube.





And here the the final piece assembled and ready for install. I have not installed them yet but ill bring this back after a while to give an update on the outcome.







Hope this helps Guys..

Diesel350

iTrader: (6)

I went the same route you did. Bought those POS Ichiba's then got rid of them for the Kintetix and very satisfied that they have gotten me back into OEM spec in the front. One piece of advice would be to get some WD -40 and stick the red straw inside the rubber boot and spray a little bit on that ball joint. I did the same thing you did and greased up the bushings but after a few weeks the arms started creaking really bad. I took them off and re-greased everything and put the arms back on but they still creaked and it was driving me nuts. That's when I sprayed a little WD-40 on the ball joint and now my arms are dead silent.

KatsZ

Thank You for that, I will do that before I put them on then.

350Zdj

iTrader: (3)

I'm just saving up for these as well. So, to adjust the camber on those, you just rotate the ball joint part, correct? How many degrees does it adjust per 360degree turn?

Diesel350

iTrader: (6)

Yep, just rotate the ball joint part. I believe it's .3 degree per turn.

AllstarE4

iTrader: (5)

Kinetix says it's .18 degrees per turn on the V1 arms and I've checked this along with a friend and an alignment apparatus. I doubt it's different on the V2, but I would definitely call them and ask before guessing.

As for greasing the sleeves... you don't need to disassemble them. They put a grease zerk on there specifically for that.

Arvin89

iTrader: (1)

I LOVE YOU!!! Jesus christ. The creak was driving me crazy. I tried what you suggested here and it went away instantly. Thank you so much.

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

WD40 is a horrible solution for anything outside......look into a Teflon based lubricant instead....simple walmart bicycle department sells teflon based lubes for bike chains that cheap...

-J

Arvin89

iTrader: (1)

I used Wurth lubricant.

MUZZY

iTrader: (28)

Thank you for this tread. I purchased kinetix arms right before I was about to install ichiba ones. Thank you

Ibex

iTrader: (1)

Ichiba is a disgrace and lucky they havnt killed someone yet.

Ichiba< Kinetix< cusco/MomPerf/Stillen/SPL

thisishk350

iTrader: (8)

Having seen all of these in person, I second it.

ronn1

iTrader: (1)

You have Zerk lube fitting on them to lube em whenever you want!

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

I'm compelled to comment on the above quotes.........
I wouldn't call noise from poly bushings on kinetix arms bad reviews...I call those reviews a bunch of idiots that don't know how to use a grease gun....Ie, the arms come with ZERKS fittings people... Im sure adding grease with the zerk fitting is probably all you need.....

Katz, your method is very thorough and I love the effort put forward and your posting this thread! its an asset to my350z forum.

Also, the kinetix arms dont use a BALL JOINT anywhere...its a pressed stud rod end.....

I doubt any of the noise comes from that location at all, but having the boot is a nice addition in prolonging the longevity of the arms, ie road water, grit, grime, etc...so for that, the V2's coming with the boot is a at least kinetix improving their product..

The bang for the buck on the kinetix for the masses of people is great!
-J

2000atlanticgt

iTrader: (5)

I installed these same V2 arms but prior to installation disassembled and lubed the poly bushings as well. Once installed I used the Zerk fitting to add grease, all common sense steps I agree. Then 2 weeks later a creak noise started which honestly was not a big deal but worth noting for those that are concerned about this type of noise coming from their suspension (clearly mentioned in the other thread about this same discussion). I picked up some white lithium based grease in a spray can and added to the pressed stud rod end (lets not call it a ball joint and confuse people) and the noise immediately went away. So to correct your statement, yes, noise can and does come from this area.

As follow-up for those interested the noise coming from the pressed stud rod end did stop immediately when I added the lithium based grease, car has been driven on a 8 hour road trip to TGPR and back for a track day, still no noise. I am sure they will need to be lubed from time to time but the boot cover does a great job of keeping water and road grime out while also holding in the lithium grease I added.

Bang for the buck these are great arms and I would highly recommend them.

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

cool, yep, im pretty sure i've mentioned lubing that area with white lithum lube in other threads to help with "possible" noise:
https://my350z.com/forum/8961938-post9.html

not owning a set myself, only installing tons of them on others 350z's im glad to know your insight on that...

-J

2000atlanticgt

iTrader: (5)

Your welcome, as I was simply clearing up the confusion that would be caused by your statement above in this thread: "I doubt any of the noise comes from that location at all."

JasonZ-YA

iTrader: (60)

^

-J

Rogerdodger

DAmn those Ichiba arms look very similar to the Godspeed ebay crap i just got.

has anyone tried the Godspeed ones? Please let us all know if they are P.O.S or not and the fitment quality ect..

AdvanZ33

iTrader: (105)

Apparently, you have them already. Why don't YOU tell US?