Sup peeps, replacing all of my suspension from OEM parts. Bought a full set of Whiteline bushings, Tein Street coilovers. I've read through most of the DIY stuff on here but I wanted to ask all of you if there is anything else you think I need (minus sway bars). This car is my DD but it is getting up there in mileage so I wanted to replace everything just to feel a little more confident and sporty in my drives.

I was looking at some how-to videos on the tube and noticed many people have difficulty with taking off/ out screws and such due to rust and what not over the years. Should I look into getting some new bolts and screws or will the OEM ones I have currently be fine? The coils I ordered also don't come with upper strut shock mounts so do you think I should replace those? They aren't super expensive and should only be $100 for both.

Can you think of anything else I need other than tools (which I have) that would make installing everything easier or any additional parts I should replace while I'm at it?

I'd love to hear your input! All the parts should be in tomorrow so hopefully I'll be able to install everything this weekend!

 

A breaker-bar and torque wrench are super useful. Pre-treat rusty bolts with PB Blaster or Liquid Wrench overnight for easier removal. Gl!

 

You answered your own question. x2 on a large breaker bar & a quality torque wrench, be sure to look at a comprehensive FSM for specific torque specs. Good luck

 

Are you replacing OEM shocks or do you already have new ones? Figure on 50k being the best you can hope for on OEM shocks.

New springs are useless without good shocks to control them.

 

Complete coilover system- new shocks and springs.

 

Where would I even get new bolts and screws? I can't find them anywhere.

 

Oh, missed that. All good then.

S'far as getting new hardware, Nissan dealer or if you wanna take chances, try and find comparable grade bolts at the Home Despot or Blowes. But it's just as easy to get what you need at dealer or discount Nissan houses on web.

 

More than likely going to just drop by the dealership. Shouldn't be too much $. (Hopefully)

 

I just reused the oem bolts... If mine were in good shape I would imagine yours will be in good shape also...

I used a 18volt impact and it made life much better... I also used a grinder to cut my oem springs in half so they were easier to remove...

I didnt remove my sway bar bolts and it made the installation a ***** so I would recommend you remove your sway bar...

I also had a big *** spreader that made pushing down on the suspension easier.

Only thing I really wish I would have done was add a rubber gasket on top of the front assembly.. I reused the cheesy paper gasket...

Also few more things the your supposed to not spin that rod on the front shock, I found that almost impossible, mine spun like a champ, haven't had any trouble with it...

The rears are a pain in the *** to adjust so just put them max low... They wont be that low...

The rears are super easy so do that first... Will give you a sense that the jobs is going smoothly... I just removed the one (non adjuser) bolt on the rear bucket, pulled out the old put in the new and rebolted... Easy peasy

 

I was reading up on the sticky's and noticed it said if you drop the car .75+ of an inch then you need to do some parts replacement. The coilovers that I bought shouldn't drop the car but about .5 inches. Do you think I need to get the front upper control arms and such so my camber isn't all out of wack? Or since its only lowering .5 inches will it matter?

 

The 0.75" is a guideline only. Some cars will require alignment correction all the way around, some front only/rear only, some none-at-all. Z33s can usually take down to -1.0" or so before correction needed.... however, true coilovers at the rear may alter the camber and toe moreso than independent shock/spring setups due to slight altering of pickup points.

Recommend that since you'll be getting the car aligned after you install your new components (you will, right?), just wait and see what the alignment says. Maybe yes, maybe no. If you're lucky, you'll just need to set toe and that's it.

 

Alignments are over rated, just drop that bad boy and enjoy the new suspension... I haven't gotten mine aligned yet... I haven't gotten it to sit right just yet... The first shop I was going to bring it too for an alignment said they have to put some special brackets on to make sure all the coils are adjusted to the same height etc... So I was like F that...

Once I am done messing with the height I'll get it checked and go from their.... The car handles so well I dont really want to change anything...

 

Also im thinking about removing the top adjuster lock so I can go down another 10mm or so...

Any thoughts on that idea?

 

Did you remove the rubber part that sits below the rear springs?

 

Nope still got the rubber in their. I would 100% rather have no adjusters than have metal on metal contact back their.

 

yeah, I was asking for myself really. I have been running without the rubber back there since I got my bc's, but I think it makes a bit of noise under some conditions. Other than that no issues so far, I don't think the spring is going to rust too much in the long run either.

You can also machine it down, if you're into that sort of thing. I contemplated it with mine

 

I think once I remove the top lock it will be sitting right how I want it... Cant go too low you know how horrible these Massachusetts streets are... These springs are not that stiff so the car goes down like 1/4 inch when you add passengers...

Their is also that big *** pirch on top that the adjuster sits on... That could easily be modified, but im not looking to be slammed mini truck style or anything...

The only thing I didnt like about this kit was once my car was lowered my sunken in oem wheels became super noticeable... I almost got spacers for them, but opted to just get a new set that fit better.

 

I work in MA, if you need anything machined let me know. You may want to find a way to keep the adjuster from spinning if you take off the locking nut. At least until it seizes up this winter

 

I don't think it will spin... It would have no place to go but down and the spring pressure would prevent that... I should just remove both the adjuster and locking nut and scrape like a boss.

 

[QUOTE=dboyzalter;10797239]I don't think it will spin... It would have no place to go but down and the spring pressure would prevent that... I should just remove both the adjuster and locking nut and scrape like a boss.[/QUOTe

yeah just make sure you preload your shocks properly for the new ride height, that way the spring stays in place if you hit a big bump or anything that would take the weight off of the rear end.

You forgot you can sawzaw the top perch after you remove all that shiz to really be gangsta.