Z32 super HICAS?

[MinisterofDOOM]

Alright, I was browsing a website for pricing information on Z32's. Reading their little summary thing, I noticed mention of super HICAS. That seems like something you'd hear about the car having, but I've never heard mention of a Z with it before. Is the website full of crap, or did the Z32 have super HICAS?

[freakonaleash1187]

yes, all twin-turbos had HICAS. in lamens terms, just in case you don't know what it is, it is four-wheel steering.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Yeah, I know what it is from the skyline. I just never knew the Fairlady ever had it. That's cool. Thanks man.

[aaacomp]

The Z32 does have the Super Hicas just like the 1st generation Q45 T.. except that there is no elimator kit for the Q45 whereas the Z32 does have since many of the Z32 owners are replacing the older units.

[freakonaleash1187]

another reason z32 owners eliminate HICAS is because i have heard that it is very intrusive when racing around corners. it kicks in at 35 mph (correct me if i am wrong) and if you are taking a corner around that speed, it can change the cars feel a lot.

[MinisterofDOOM]

So it's a safety-oriented system? I thought it was to enhance the roadholding and handling capabilities of the car. Why on earth would cars like the Fairlady and Skyline have safety equipment that impedes performance?

[freakonaleash1187]

well, unless your z is going to be a track car, HICAS shouldn't be a problem. and also, i think the system in the skyline is different than the z32.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Ahh, I see.I want to drive the car. I don't want it to drive me. I want total control over it, otherwise, I can't drive to the best of my abilities. The electronic drive-by-wire on my dad's A34 Maxima is even too much for me.I do see its applications and advantages, though. I'm just a manual transmission, no traction-control kind of guy.

Which models can you get super HICAS on, aside from the Z, R, and Q45? I thought it was available on 240sx as well. Any others?

[KaZ (VaBch)]

The HICAS system is a good system... the problem is if you're the type of driver that really pushes the car to the edge of adhesion... the car will "twitch" when you start to oversteer and the rear starts to slide a little... if you're not expecting this, you can easily wreck the car. Now if you never drive it quite that hard, you'll never notice. The HICAS actually makes the car corner better... but its once you push it past the adhesion limit that the system "freaks out" trying to compensate for your excessive oversteer. Basically, normally once you oversteer you start turning the wheel opposite the direction of the corner a little... the HICAS will do the same (HICAS normally steers opposite the front wheels at high steering angles helping you around the corner). So you could see how this would cause a problem. If you never breach that adhesion point which you have to correct for, the HICAS won't cause any problems. Hope that helps.

[nsrZ32]

Hicas is great stuff but like Kaz said, when really pushing the car to the limits it can be intrusive, espeically on high horsepower applications.

All twin turbo Z's have it. Also some s13's and Q45's have it.

There are a couple ways to eliminate it, most common is just throwing an eliminator out back or since the system as a whole is quite heavy you can ditch the whole thing as I did while my motor was out.