I know most of you are turbo freaks and would tell me, "with all that money... you could've bought yourself a turbo by now idiot!" Yes i know, but I'm a handling freak and my back-roads serve as a full blown autox track. So with that being said...

We started off the day looking at a pair of Cusco Zero II's, Cusco A-Arms, and SPC Camber arm and Toe Bolt (not pictured) to get everything properly aligned:



Here's a shot of them on the car:


Then we decided that the locals would laugh if they saw OEM sway bars underneath the car, so we junked those for a set of Hotchkis adjustable bars. However, that wasn't enough for hardcore autox'ers so we needed more handling toys so I threw in a GT Spec front lower tie bar, rear lower tie bar, and the new Tanabe Underbrace:

Hotchkis bar and the GT Spec front lower tie bar:


GT Spec rear lower tie bar:


Tanabe's newly engineered underbrace!

If you noticed, GT Spec also has an underbrace but their design didn't fit my tastes because the mounting points were all weird. If you look at how Tanabe mounts up, it stabilizes more flex in the front suspension where the two front bolts mount.

Here's a shot of all the bars under the car:


Does it end there? I'm affraid not... every hardcore suspension addict must never forget the... adjustable end links (our OEM ones are CRAP)! (These new and improved ones are great for corner balancing your vehicle and taking the pre-load off the sway bars) I found that this part is one of the MOST overlooked items when modding a car!

Big strong SPL End link on left, wimpy OEM end link on right:


Wimpy OEM End Link that needs to be destroyed:


Big pimpin End Link from SPL installed (Nismo also makes a set at 2x the cost for those that fall prey to nismo's marketing campaign and name branding):


What next? Beefier brakes for last minute stopping power before corner entry, I picked out a set of OEM Brembos as a perfect balance between stopping power/weight. There really is no need for 6 pistons or 8 pistons unless I had 500+ HP.

Wimpy OEM brakes that need to be junked:



Cooler Brembo Big Brakes!


Even Cooler Upgraded Slotted rotors for extra pad cooling:


Ok, now that we got all the undercarraige stuff out of the way, time to tackle aerodynamics. It took me a whole year to pick out a kit that I actually like and provides extra down force + provides room for an upgraded oil cooler and front mount intercooler (coming soon!). If you notice or take a close look at this kit, it has ridges that channel the air across the car, a rear carbon fiber diffuser for added down force, and the bumper has slits just beneath the license plate for any trapped air that may have been caught inside the rear bumper to escape freely.

Time to get naked:


Here she is showing off her sexy butt:


The bodykit in question, Do-Luck:


The finished product (gf standing on left rolling her eyes because I'm snapping a random picture in a parking garage):


Driving impressions:
I can tackle corners at 2x the regular speeds. The coilovers have a bumpy noise, but that's normal for any race suspension and is also music to my ears. The ride is VERY stiff (NOT GF FRIENDLY AT ALL). MY gf hates riding in my car and she tells me it gives her major headaches, but I just tell her the extra bumps and rattles is for her own protection... you never know when you're gonna hit a corner at 140mph + and would need that race suspension to save your life! this setup is definitely not for wimps that enjoy the luxury air cushion suspension ride.

Next up in the works: Quaiffe LSD, Clutch/Flywheel combo undecided and still researching, Fully built long block, Greddy TT (just need to do more research so I don't blow anything up) but in the meantime, my "Push button BOV" will suffice and ward off those pesky 911's and Ferraris.

Big thanks to Juan (Wht05z), Umar (Umzz), Robert, and Dave @ Function:Tuned for helping me throw it all together!

 

LOVE the body kit! nice! nothing wrong with bein a handling freak

 

damn talk about christmas coming early.

 

Looks nice man!

 

Nice! What body kit did you have before? Is it for sell? How much?

 

Wow-that car is a handling BEAST! Very nicely done suspension set-up, one of the best Ive seen...btw is that Dave@Active tuning's old body kit?

 

love the project and love your choices... nice nice nice

 

ext3meeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!

 

You went all out and replaced everything.....that's rad. I need swaybars next.

Who did the installation, was it difficult?

 

VERY NICE set up man! Cangratts!

 

looking good as always ahn...how are you not gonna mention the nismo headrests for added stability in corners?

 

nice setup, congrats

 

Sweet Jesus....I came this close to buying the cusco's for my 240. Setup looks nice, I can only imagine how it handles. Enjoy it and be safe.

 

He said himself with the help of Dave Shiroma did the install. Who you ask depends on the answer for is it difficult. Id say for all that to be put on maybe one afternoon 4-6 hours at a leisure pace, def something somebody with some experience and tools could tackle.

 

Can't wait to see more pics of the car!

 

WOW.. DRRROOOOOL! That suspension is really great from what I hear. Damn nice! Congrats!

 

I've seen this car in person, it's just sick

 

really enjoyed reading your thread!! very informative and your style of writing makes it lighthearted..

keep it up!

 

Thanks guys for all the comments! Am i missing anything else in the handling department? Oh yeah Umar, now that u mentioned the headrests, the other day I hit a corner at 90+ and flew outta my seat, the only thing saving me was my elbow wedged into the passenger seat. These OEM Burnt Orange leather seats aren't cutting it, considering replacing these with 12lbs carbon fiber buckets + 5 pt. harness but still haven't decided which ones to go with. Belt harnesses are mad expensive!

The hardest install I left for Dave: Brakes. I didn't want to tackle this field solely because if anything goes wrong with your brakes... well... self explanatory this is a job a newb should not tackle on his/her own and usually takes 2 people anyways because one guy needs to sit there and pump the brakes while the other wrenches away to rid the system of air bubbles. The sway bars are a piece of cake, you can knock that out in like 30 mins both ends. These Hotchkis aren't beefy enough for me (great for the daily street driver though!), I'm gonna swap them out for a set of solid Cuscos within the next few weeks.

Yup it is! hahaha, the only reason why I didnt get this earlier was because of him. We live only like 15 miles apart and it'd be too weird having 2 of the same car, same color, and same bodykit at the next meet.

I actually never thought about selling it but now I am just because you mentioned it, hahaha. People were asking me to seperate the kit (especially the rear apron) but it's hard to find buyers for the rest of it. I really don't know what to ask for it because I spent over a grand getting a perfect paint match and perfect fitment on the body (you can checkout the fitment for yourself in the pics). But if you're interested, here are a few pics so you know what it looks like installed.

Trial Force Lip Kit:


















Yeah, like I said before, I really dont know how much to ask for it, I was honestly thinking of having some room decor since I know I can't recoup any funds anyways! So PM me an offer =P

 

That Trial kit is sick!