StratonAce

Hello everyone. My first post here on the forums, and I'm hoping you guys can help me out with a few questions.

First, I've just bought a 350z to serve as my daily driver. Several years back I owned a 2011 black 370z, and I really enjoyed that car. I ended up modding it with a coil-over setup, an aftermarket exhaust, and several other goodies.

Then the new Corvette Stingray came out. I was driving home from work one day when they had first started arriving... and I saw one in a dealership window and immediately pulled in to check it out. I had no intention of buying it (in fact, I knew I wouldn't be able to anyway as there was a waiting list at the time). Long-story-short, the guy who had ordered the car backed out of his deal and they asked me if I wanted to buy it. I said screw it and traded in my 370 and drove out in a loaded 2014 Corvette.

Now, while I still DO love my Corvette, it had gotten to a point where I was starting to rack up some miles on it, and I really want to keep the miles from accumulating too fast. BUT, I still wanted a fun daily driver... another sports car... but something that wasn't quite as expensive to maintain.

And because I loved my 370 so much, I started entertaining the idea of, "Hey, maybe I could get a decent used 350?!" So, one day I'm passing a Nissan dealership and I see a bright yellow 350z sitting in their lot. I pull in, ask about the car, drive it, and the next thing I know I've bought a 2005 35th Anniversary 350z with 80 thousand on the odo. What can I say, I have a soft spot for the Z car.

It's not in the most perfect shape and needs some work and a lot of TLC. I don't wanna post pictures of her yet as she's a bit of an eye-sore currently. She has some fugly aftermarket , no-name, knock-off wheels on her. And one of the previous owners obviously thought it would be a great idea a put a clear bra all across the front. Maybe it was a good idea at the time, but now, all these years later, that bra has ugly black cracks all over it. I don't imagine that will come off without taking off some clearcoat and paint as well. I might start a journal as I upgrade her.

Anyway, so as not to drag this out any further, the first thing I'm wanting to do is replace a lot of the undercarriage... ball joints, tie-rods, bushings, and then some. I'm also going to replace the 20 inch wheels with some 19's and I'm looking at a certain suspension package. Now, I'm just going to put it out there, I don't want, or need a coil-over system. I went that route on the 370 and regretted it because it was my daily driver. This Z is going to be my daily driver as well. Plus, I do not plan to track it.

So, that said, I'm looking at this kit:
https://conceptzperformance.com/bils...z33_p_1429.php

Does anyone have any experience with this kit? If so, what are your impressions? What's the ride like? The reliability? What kind of drop did you get? It says that you can expect a drop of about 1.2". Is that accurate?

If I picked up that kit, and assuming it does give a drop of 1.2", what's a safe wheel/tire size to run if using 19 inch wheels? Also noting I'd like to go as wide in the back as I can... Well that's not true really... I'd love to go to 285 or 295 if that would work with a 1.2" drop. Also note I really don't wanna roll if I can avoid it.

On the 20s that are currently on the car (245/285), well the car sits really low on them (looks decent actually, I hate a big wheel gap), but they are rubbing on really sharp turns or if I hit a big dip in the road at speed. Now that could be because the shocks are blown/worn-out or the previous owner has had it lowered... I haven't looked yet, but plan to get it up soon and check it out.

Well, let me end this here before I make this wall of text any longer. And thanks in advance for any help you throw my way.

Sorry moderators if I've put too much into this thread that doesn't really belong in the Brakes & Suspension forum. I did struggle with putting this in the introductions forum or this one, but there is a genuine relevant question in my rambling. My apologies if this doesn't belong here, and please move it if so.

StratonAce

Something I forgot to add... I'm not stuck on that Bilstein B12 Pro Kit, I just thought it was convenient to have the shocks/struts already matched to the springs. If anyone can suggest a good shock/strut/spring combination that goes good together and only gives me a mild drop (would prefer only an inch or less really) that would be great. I did give some thought about just replacing it all with new oem stuff, but figured the aftermarket would offer better quality and handling.

Nocturnal

iTrader: (2)

When you say you don't want coilovers system, is it because they were harsh or was it because they were difficult to maintain?
I am getting a set of coilovers on my car shortly, been in a few cars with the same brand of coilovers and they aren't harsh at all.

Just wondering what was your reason that you regret it?

Jerrick

StratonAce

For me the reason was that it just lowered the car too much. Even with the setup maxed out at maximum height it was so low that I was bottoming out over everything. Again, this was a daily driver... Pot holes, road dips and speed bumps became my mortal enemy. If I remember correctly, the main culprit on the 370 was the exhaust. I even took it in to have the exhaust cut and raised, but they could only manage to raise it so much, and it still wasn't enough to keep it from bottoming out all the time. So I ended up having the stock suspension put back on. Sad day it was.

Now, it might have just been the brand or model of coil-overs I had chosen. Maybe some other brand or model would have allowed me more range for raising it up? I don't know.

I DID love the way it made the car look thoough! Amazing! And the handling was great around town. But I remember taking it on a road trip from Texas to Oklahoma and I was exhausted when I arrived at my destination. The car beat the hell out of me. And I bottomed out over every interstate dip there was. It was a trying trip.

If the car had just been a weekend car, I don't think I would have minded it as bad.

Anyway, I've decided to go with a Koni Yellow shock kit and the Hotchkis Sway/Spring Combo Kit instead of the Bilstein set. It's very minor drop, but after looking at some pictures of others on this forum who have gone a similar route, I think I'll be okay with that.