suspension newb.. please help him
suspension newb.. please help him
My new car is a 97 240sx, and I do not understand suspension too much, I have read as much as I possibly can tonight, thus the reason for my reluctant post. I really do not want to get flamed. My goals are: nice stiff suspension, not for autoxing or drifting, but more to adjust ride height through the use of coilovers. I also would like a nice set of brakes, ie. stoptech, endless... All of this I want to go with my wheels, thus far the flavor of the week is Volk GT-As, I dont know the offset I would need to fit all of this. Also I will be having traction problems, so the widest wheel possible would be the best, but I do not want to roll the fenders or stick out way past the wheel well. 17X10?? on rear different on front... oh and money... about 4k... thanks very much for just reading through this, thanks more if you answer me.So the best possible setup with all of this...
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sapix @ RHIT
- Posts: 129
- Joined: Sun Oct 06, 2002 3:40 pm
Alright, I'm still learning about suspension (I don't think anyone ever stops learning), but first of all I would say you don't need 17x10. Unless your pushing some large power numbers. Your probably having traction problems because you've got some cheap tires right now. If you get 225 all around you should be good. 225 tires will look great on some 17x7.5 wheels. By keeping the wheels at a narrower width, you won't have to have as high an offset. That'll give you more room for your coilovers. It'll also keep your suspension geometry in tact a little better. For some good brakes, try some 300zx brakes. You can research that here and find lots of information, just read the sticky in the technical formum (I have a feeling I'm spelling everything wrong). Just my opinion, but if your not going to be getting any track time, then a nice expensive set of coilovers is a waste, but hey, just my opinion. If you want some coilovers you've got lots of choices. Most people here will recomend JIC or TEIN. I don't have any experience with any of these yet, still saving. As far as clearance issues go... from what I hear its just kind of a guess and check thing. You can measure to find the offset needed for wheel to clear the coilover, I think you'll probably need around a +35 with 7.5 wide wheels. But if your wheel of choice will clear the 300ZX brakes is hard to tell until you've got it all on there... that sucks, but I think thats how it is.
If anyone finds any mistakes in this, correct me.
As far as clearance issues go... from what I hear its just kind of a guess and check thing. You can measure to find the offset needed for wheel to clear the coilover, I think you'll probably need around a +35 with 7.5 wide wheels. But if your wheel of choice will clear the 300ZX brakes is hard to tell until you've got it all on there... that sucks, but I think thats how it is.If anyone finds any mistakes in this, correct me.
For no racing, a set of apex-i world sport coilovers, or a good set of srpings and adjustable shock would be fine for your purposes. Check out getting a TEIN setup that offers more "street" emphasis, such as the super-street coilovers, etc...I know you want coilovers, but if you dont do any racing..Its not necessary and provides a lot of expense...
on the wheels:17x10 is far more than you could ever need. chris may runs a 17x8 or 9 with a 255-40-17 and it works fine(and had 428rwhp).
My recoomendadtions for street driving would be the following setups:16x7 40mm offset front and rear with 225-50-16 tires, if you want to get out fairly cheap. 17x7-8" on the front and 17x8-9" rear, running a mild split such as225-45-17 and 255-40-17, that setup works very well on the street, but I would advise you to learn as much as possible about how and why tire width isnt the end-all in traction...
if your going all-out, you can run something "sick" (as in 'lets put this on even though theres really no reason except Ive got money to burn and want it THIS way):18x8F ~30mm offset, 225-40-18 or 235-40-18, and 18x9R ~27mm offset 255-35-18 or 265-35-18
anything wider than a8.5" rear wheel with a nice offset(low) may stick out a little, just FYI. check the offset calculator)in the FAQ)to see what wheel width and things will work the way you want.-chet
on the wheels:17x10 is far more than you could ever need. chris may runs a 17x8 or 9 with a 255-40-17 and it works fine(and had 428rwhp).
My recoomendadtions for street driving would be the following setups:16x7 40mm offset front and rear with 225-50-16 tires, if you want to get out fairly cheap. 17x7-8" on the front and 17x8-9" rear, running a mild split such as225-45-17 and 255-40-17, that setup works very well on the street, but I would advise you to learn as much as possible about how and why tire width isnt the end-all in traction...
if your going all-out, you can run something "sick" (as in 'lets put this on even though theres really no reason except Ive got money to burn and want it THIS way):18x8F ~30mm offset, 225-40-18 or 235-40-18, and 18x9R ~27mm offset 255-35-18 or 265-35-18
anything wider than a8.5" rear wheel with a nice offset(low) may stick out a little, just FYI. check the offset calculator)in the FAQ)to see what wheel width and things will work the way you want.-chet