Questions about doing suspension upgrades right.

[Raz007]

I've searched, and read through a ton of info, but I started this thread to get a straight answer from those smarter than myself. I have a 96 Zenki, base model, with a completely stock suspension. I am running 18" wheels, no spacers. I am wanting to upgrade my shocks and springs, and possibly give my car a slightly lower stance. I have no desire to spend the money on coilovers, since I don't track my car, nor do any drifting, JDM hotness, etc. I DD this car, and am just looking for a more planted and controlled ride. My question is, what suspension parts need to be replaced along with the shocks/springs. I will more than likely be purchasing new bushing for everything that will be replaced at the same time. I just don't want to start on this project and realize I need much more than anticipated. It seems most shock spring combos lower you down about 1.5 inches, would I be rubbing fenders all over the place, or need to run spacers and the like to prevent this?? If there is somebody who has already done what I am looking to do, please chime in and give me your advice. Thanks.

[Gabes13]

you can get some koni yellow dampers and eibach springs, maybe some sway bars if you want, and misc bushings that look like they may need replacing. no need for spacers.

[costa_rican13]

you must buy rear upper control arms, toe rods and traction rods to make the geometry of the rear even and not have so much negative camber because once you lower the car the camber and toe mess up. now for the front you need adjustable lower control arms. and that really all maybe some camber plates. idk i have coils.

[Raz007]

Ok, so I did a quick search on ebay for everything you listed C_R13, and it comes to about $975 for decent parts. Now, if I go with coilovers, which cost about that much by themselves, do I still need to replace all those parts? I'm thinking I must just replace bushings and call it a day, if I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it right, and it seems like either way it is going to be expensive to do any suspension upgrades. Thanks for the insight!

[ashibah83]

Lowereing the car on springs will not require all those arms listed above, you may need Ruca's however unlikely. I would say the springs and struts, bushings, possibly camber plates for the front (only because i REALLY dont like cam bolts), and just cleaning and refinishing all the old components (arms and hardware).

[costa_rican13]

when i got my alignment after i even just put tokico blues springs and shocks on, just for the rear i 100% needed them for a correct alignment so my tires wouldnt prematurely wear inside or out. if you just do the Rear upper control arms that will only correct the rear tires from being eaten from the inside. now your toe will be pushed in as well. so you will need the toe rods so you can make your rear wheels straight and not pigeoned in. now the front will also creep in on the camber which is why you need the camber plates so the insides dont eat away prematurely as well. cleaning and refinishing wont hurt but it wont affect the tire wear or performance of the parts only the longevity of the parts. so ^^^^ he is correct you dont need any of those parts to make the springs and shock combo work. but if you dont want to replace tires alot then you'll want these parts.

[Raz007]

I defiantly don't want to buy tires often, 18s aren't cheap. I already have wicked camber on my right rear tire, the inside is completely worn, and the rest of my tires are at about 60% life left. So I need to correct that regardless, it seems that in order to save money long run I should invest in all new parts. It would be extremely nice if a company would sell all these parts in a bundle..... know any?

[gijoe392003]

Contact SPL, PBM, Yamato, Battle Version, or whatever company you go with. They may offer a discount when buying all the arms but it depends on the the company.

[OutToWinPAHC]

Mildly lowered.
Replace bushings
Do sway bars and end links
RUCA's
You wont need the other arms, but a more solid arm is better.

[S14Kouki10]

There are companies that sell the whole kit as a bundle.

[Raz007]

Ok, I see some of the kits. Anybody have experience with Godspeed parts?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GODSPEED ... ccessories

Seems too cheap to be true @ $208.50.

Or this kit, same parts, but comes with sway bars for ~ $260.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/95-98-24 ... ccessories

[Raz007]

Also, this is the shock/ spring combo I was considering. Again, not looking for a track setup, just a decent suspension refresh and slightly lower profile.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TOKICO-S ... ccessories

[laxands13]

From what ive heard Godspeed is either really good, or just terrible. I have no personal experience though, so i cant really say. If your considering them i would read as many reviews as you can first

[Raz007]

Yeah that's what I'm trying to do. It seems that the people that say bad things about them are the same ones that strip interiors to save weight for drifting and the like. From what I've read, they seem like they would hold up fine for me, since other than some spirited country road driving, I won't be trashing on them. No JDM tyte drifts will be had in my ride. If I want to go sideways, I have cars for that.

[Razi]

I bought some Godspeed FLCA's to modify, and the bearings that came with them were horrible, same with the hardware.
The welds are ugly but they'll hold.

If you want, you could buy some knockoff arms for cheap and buy some quality rodends from QA1, and maybe some better nuts from a hardware shop.

[Raz007]

Yeah Razi, I ran across your thread while searching "Godspeed". I really don't want to have to modify anything like you had to, although you did an awesome job. I really just need something I can purchase and install, without too much headache. With that said, would you feel comfortable putting those parts how they come onto a stock S14?

Oh and here are the Front lower control arms..... Godspeed as well. Thoughts?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GODSPEED ... ccessories

[Razi]

Yeah, those are what I bought. If you aren't going to modify them to correct your rollcenter, just keep your stock ones.
The bearings were too tight, which I expected.
I replaced the rodends with QA1 rods so they move more freely.

For the other arms, I guess it'd be okay to put it on a car with the stock rodend bearings

[Raz007]

Ok, I hear ya. But say I used them, and used the bearings that came with them? Would they free up some after awhile, be dangerous, or just suck a**?

And thanks for being patient with me. Suspension is not my strong point.

[S14Kouki10]

try spc suspension parts. reasonable price and ive heard nothing but good reviews.

[Razi]

Ok, I hear ya. But say I used them, and used the bearings that came with them? Would they free up some after awhile, be dangerous, or just suck a**?

And thanks for being patient with me. Suspension is not my strong point.

Yeah, they might free up, but I'm not so sure.

You might also get some bearings that are tighter than others, their quality control isn't all that great.

But, if you're only going to be on lowering springs, stock arms are completely fine.

On my lowering spring setup, my toe and camber in the rear were all within spec.
My front camber was starting to get pretty extreme due to the dieing lower arm bushings.

I'd say get some new front lower control arm bushings, and get an alignment after the lowering springs, you should be able to get everything to spec and not worry about buying suspension arms.

[Raz007]

cool, thanks for the info. I'm just thinking that if they all come in a kit together, I must just give it a go. I can save the stock parts, install all the new stuff, and see where I am. There is a shop a couple miles down the road that has a nice alignment machine, which the car will be on the day the work is done. I suppose if anything, at least I'll know somebody who tried it.......... My camber is already waaaay off on the RR tire, which is kinda the reason for this whole thought process. I'm thinking that if I just replace all I can, it's gotta be better off than parts circa 1996.

[Razi]

I guess so.

If you're going to install aftermarket traction control arms, keep em at stock length and use the other arms to correct camber/toe, or you'll get traction problems.

Good luck with the install!

[Raz007]

Don't worry, the professionals will be setting all that up. They have machines and computers, I do not. I know when something is beyond my level of expertise. But I will make sure that that is done. Hopefully this thread will be updated soon with positive statements, and not @#%&^%$#@#$%^&^%$##$!!!!!!!

[Nissan_Driver]

Oooo I like this thread Not to thread jack here since it was Raz who asked the question but I'm somewhat on the same boat. And have been looking at MAX and wonder if their stuff is worth a look, their prices are high but if they have quality to match than I don't see a problem. Any thoughts?

http://www.gtfactory.jp/cms/page.php?14

[Razi]

PBM is top notch.
Worth every penny!

[Hoffman5982]

Questions about doing suspension upgrades right

Ok, so I did a quick search on ebay for everything

LOL

Anyways, I ran Tokiko Blue struts with Eibach Pro springs. I bought godspeed RUCAs, which you will need, to correct my camber. I didn't need toe rods or anything else. The Godspeeds will work. I've had them on for a year and I honestly haven't had a single problem with them. But the bushings, as mentioned, aren't the best. You get what you pay for, and if you are one a tight budget I'd recommend Godspeed. I'm upgrading all of my arms to either Yomato Garage or Stance whenever I get my SR running right

Now, I know you said you dont need coilovers because you don't drift, but neither do I and my favorite upgrade was my Stance LX+ coilovers. As far as ride harshness, they are about the same, maybe a tad more firm. BUT, they give the ability to customize your ride height and ride softness. If you have start taking your car to the track you can put them all on hard and have more fun than you will on struts/springs. BUT, with coilovers comes the need for all of the arms. Just some food for thought.

As far as needing spacers, we can't really give you an answer without your wheel specs. What offset are they? You should be fine no matter what though

[Hoffman5982]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GODSPEED ... 815wt_1073

By the way, I don't think those are Godspeeds. Godspeed usually run ~$100 for each set of arms

Who woulda guessed there'd be knockoff Godspeeds?

[Raz007]

Yeah those were the first set I found, just threw them up for comparison. I'm basically just trying to re-fresh what I've got, and not spend a boatload of money. So I want to do it right (ie replace everything that might be needed) without spending $2000 on suspension, which is how much I payed for the car. I already know that my 240 will never find its way onto the track, so I''m not too worried about it. I do envy your build Hoff, but my 240 is my transportation car, not my weekend car. I gotta save my money for gas so I can drive the Mustang around this summer!!

Oh and btw Hoff, what lip is that on your car? I'd like to get that exact one as well.

[Raz007]

This is what I have kinda narrowed it down to.
Shocks/struts/springs:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TOKICO-S ... ccessories
Godspeed Suspension set:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GODSPEED ... ccessories
Godspeed Front Lower Control Arms:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GODSPEED ... ccessories

I can get all of this for about the same price as just a set of coilovers, so it seems like a good option. And I would defiantly buy from some place other than eBay, but living where I live there really aren't any places around me that sell anything Nissan.

Can't argue with a lifetime warranty on the suspension set either. 5 years on the front control arms.

[Gabes13]

You'll probably end up redoing stuff if you go that route. If you're on a budget, just buy what you need.