Cheston, I agree totally. I myself have wondered how often I would change the setup once it's set. I think probably almost never at most. However the cost seems to be similar for most of the kits. Some a little more, some a little less, but roughly the same so cost doesn't seem to be a big factor.

What I think is important to me is height adjustability so that I can find my compromise between too low (scraping) and not low enough. The NISMO kit is probably sufficiently dialed for the 350z as far as ride but is it correct for height? Ride adjustability is not so much of an issue if the kit I buy is good from the start. But with the Teins I would be able to program 3 different settings that I could select from the car. I would probably only use 2. One for the road and one for the track.

I am also concerned about durability/quality. I obviously don't want to spend $2K and have to replace or repair something a year from now. I would assume that all of these kits would be fine in this area. Do any of these kits have any kind of warranty?

So I'd love to hear from Raceboy and Skidazzle on their kits. I have read a little on the forum from them but I'd still like to hear what their expectations were when they bought their kits and what they feel they got (how their expectations were met).

 

The EDFC makes the adjustability feature of the nicer setups more usable for me. Without the EDFC I might as well get non-adjustable shocks because I probably wouldn't use it much, if at all. And the price for EDFC makes it a no brainer if I get the Teins.

But what is more important to me is the quality and performance of the base kit. If the JICs or some other brand have proven better performance on this car, that is what I will go with...as long as the ride isn't terrible (but I'm pretty forgiving on ride as this is a sports car and I appreciate performance more).

 

Tokico/KYB will have kits for our cars soon, perhaps for the price you should wait a while for them.

as for me, i've seen nothing better quality than the TIEN and JiC kits.

obviously nismo is nismo, but they're built systems and once they poop out, you'll have to replace the entire shock.

the JiCs are rebuild-able , and i *think* the TIENs are as well.

in the long run, quality of the kit usually is better if you pay a bit more at first.


i am talking with a company here in so cal to prototype their 'competition' coilovers for the Z, details to come within a month...they did my setup for the maxima, and damn. those feel great *non adjustble but superior dampening* with linear spring rates [400/350] and adjustable ride height.


i think with your body kit, you dont want to slam it too much (neither will i) so u just need to find the drop height you want..

 

Im not sure exactly what the minimum lowering stance is on the JIC but i will check that for you tomorrow.

My whole point aboutthe difference between the JIC and the Tein is something you guys have missed. JIC is the one of the only ones, (I think Buddy Club is the other) which uses a thicker piston. This is the reason the car rides smooth and handles so well.

EDFC can only adjust not dampening, not ride height. If you want to adjust the height you must lift the car and release one of the collars. This goes for all the coil overs. You really dont want to mess with this anyhow once the suspension is installed, aligned, and corner balanced. The corner balancing and alignment are some critical components to the system that many people forget. Without them, your car will ride worse and handle worse than stock.

The ability to adjust the dampening from inside the car is simply a novelty. There really is no need to make adjustements to the suspensions dampening on the fly. The times you may need to do it you can do at the track. Adjusting the JIC's takes no more than 45 seconds a corner.

One last point i would like to make is something i neglected to mention earlier. There is a reason i am so biased towards JIC. Besides the fact that i sell their products and have theor coil overs on two of my cars, I truly believe they have the cutting edge technology that seperates them from almost every other company out there. The first being the thicker piston, the second being the ability to lower the car without losing any suspension travel. Two things that almost no other company does.

JIC also does something else that seperates them from other suspension tuners. They not only use their own products, but they race with them as well. Since coming to the US almost 3 years ago, the US distribution owner and all the techs attend many local track events. They are continuosly working with the community to better their products. Even though the units are sourced from Japan they are not the same peces. The US spec units are revalved for our streets and our roads. Having such an active local distributor means better service and faster service, just in case you do encounter any problems

 

So can some retailers PM me with prices for the JIC kit?

 

What about Tein's Spring Rate? Thanks!!

 

I haven't started mods on my Z yet but I have Tein coilovers on my IS300. I've had it for a year now and its still performing like it was since I first installed them. Hate to use an old cliche but the car does feel like its "running on rails". I would have to agree w/ the Doc (DocofMind) though on the EDFCs as being a novelty because adjusting the damping takes just seconds and IMO its not worth the extra $300(?).

Hey DocofMind, is your location LA (CA) or LA (Louisiana) ? I might be interested on the JICs. Thanks.

 

I'm considering the HKS Hipermax LS's because I intend to start some serious traveling in the coming months. Also, I don't want to drop my ride height. I want a really firm ride w/o harshness. So far the HKS's sound good, but I need more info before I drop $2K. I might just wait for the KONI adjustables coming out this fall, or so they said recently. I want the Bounce gone forever, so I am real picky. One of their dealers who does installalations is Alamo Imports in Arlington, Texas. Anyone know good/bad about them?

 

I am in Los Angeles. We are actually doing another 350z in about a week or so if you are interested you are more than welcome to come by and check out the ride.

 

The Tein Flex and HKS LS are designed for better ride comfort than all out performance. The JIC Flt A2 and the HKS hypermax II are for max performance. Curious Boomer where are you looking at $2K for HKS LS coils? Pretty steep.

 

hey Doc: Check your PM. Thanks.

 

Doco what else does JIC have for the Z??

 

I know, part of the problem is I haven't gotten the measure of my car yet. Short trips will not do it, and I have 2000 miles on it. I only have 400 miles on my new A/Ss! I'm stuck here for a while until some legal issues sort out. After that and the weather breaks, no more ice storms, I plan to take off for the Southern Ozarks in NW Arkansas. There are lots of sports car roads there and I can drive Interstates for contrast and really see if I need to change anything.

The problem rests w/my ortho problems along with my wife's too. If the ride on long trips is too harsh, I'll have to go in search of a compromise, because I'm not giving up the Z. If it takes the LSs to keep it, I'll pay it. Another route is adjustable shocks like Konis, Bilsteins, etc. Put them on full soft to start and tighten as needed. I'll probably go that route when all is said and done.

The lure of the LSs comes from traveling long distances at high speeds through mountainous terrain in the Southwest. I once drove from Bakerfield, socal to central Okla. in 23 hours, slept 4 hours, left and drove back to Tucumcari, N.Mexico before I slept again. No way in hell could I do that again, but I love to drive long trips, so a compromise may be in order, we'll see next month.

Boomer babble--I'm driving the Z to Laguna Seca for the races in early September, regardless of the ride, change or no change. You can put money on it.