heavy85

Ditto what others have already said - this is great info. I think I'm going to stay with the Illuminas based on the conversation here. I already have the BZ3038s on every corner and from what I can guess they were probably installed around 1991 by a previous owner. When I got the car it had 500 lb/in springs (scary on the street 'cause it tended to skip around) and NO bumpstops. I put on the 225/250 springs and bumpstops at which time I noticed the rods on all the struts were blued in a small range of travel. jmortensen has said this discoloring is normal so how do I tell if the struts are good or not? The spherical bearings in the camber plated were also all siezed to the top of the struts. I ended up having to cut the bearings off after trying several other methods (gear puller, hammer, larger hammer, etc) - so my point is the threaded top end of the struts are no longer the straightest anymore but I can still tighten down the nut. Dont know if this matters but it bugs me. The rears have a fairly long spacer under them, maybe a couple inches long, and the fronts only have a single washer as a spacer. Anyone know the part numbers of the struts to use when I section the housings? Finally, I assume you use shorter ones on the front or due you use shorter ones all around and keep the longer spacers in the rear? Thanks again Cameron

Ditto what others have already said - this is great info. I think I'm going to stay with the Illuminas based on the conversation here. I already have the BZ3038s on every corner and from what I can guess they were probably installed around 1991 by a previous owner. When I got the car it had 500 lb/in springs (scary on the street 'cause it tended to skip around) and NO bumpstops. I put on the 225/250 springs and bumpstops at which time I noticed the rods on all the struts were blued in a small range of travel. jmortensen has said this discoloring is normal so how do I tell if the struts are good or not? The spherical bearings in the camber plated were also all siezed to the top of the struts. I ended up having to cut the bearings off after trying several other methods (gear puller, hammer, larger hammer, etc) - so my point is the threaded top end of the struts are no longer the straightest anymore but I can still tighten down the nut. Dont know if this matters but it bugs me. The rears have a fairly long spacer under them, maybe a couple inches long, and the fronts only have a single washer as a spacer. Anyone know the part numbers of the struts to use when I section the housings? Finally, I assume you use shorter ones on the front or due you use shorter ones all around and keep the longer spacers in the rear? Thanks again Cameron

So do you recommend this strut with this valving as the best relatively low cost option? It's again for an autocross / street driver (probably around 2400 lb) and I'm just looking to go as fast as I can with quality components realizing I wont really be competitive. I'm running 225F / 250R springs but that's just because the general consensus on the board seemed to recommend. Last questions are any idea how much these run as I couldn't find them on the Shox.com site and how much do you section the struts (240) with these? Thanks Cameron

So do you recommend this strut with this valving as the best relatively low cost option? It's again for an autocross / street driver (probably around 2400 lb) and I'm just looking to go as fast as I can with quality components realizing I wont really be competitive. I'm running 225F / 250R springs but that's just because the general consensus on the board seemed to recommend. Last questions are any idea how much these run as I couldn't find them on the Shox.com site and how much do you section the struts (240) with these? Thanks Cameron

Well as I've mentioned in a couple other threads recently I am in the process of sectioning my struts. I was planning to upgrade to single adjustable Konis at the same time but they are no longer available. I currently have Illuminas and I think they are on their last leg plus I've also thought the Konis to be a superior strut, well and I will need shorter ones anyway (at least on the front) . The suspension is completely dissassembled (well except that damn spindle pin - erg) and I'm ready to start cutting I just dont know which strut to go with. This is a dual purpose street / autox and I'm going with FP next year but only local stuff. Just trying for fast raw times realizing I will be uncompetitive PAX wise. It'll probably only see one or two thousand street miles a year. So I'm looking for recommendations on which struts to go with. It seems that struts seperate the men from the boys so to speak so I would like to get decent ones without going stupid crazy expensive. Choices I've seen are (non-stupid crazy expensive): - the new SA konis but they have to be re-valved - DA konis but the second adjustment can't be adjusted once installed - new shorter Illuminas - Carerra (dont know anything about them) - Advance Design (dont know anything about them either) - ??? So is it worth it to pony up to the more expensive options or should I just stick with the Illuminas? Thanks Cameron

Well as I've mentioned in a couple other threads recently I am in the process of sectioning my struts. I was planning to upgrade to single adjustable Konis at the same time but they are no longer available. I currently have Illuminas and I think they are on their last leg plus I've also thought the Konis to be a superior strut, well and I will need shorter ones anyway (at least on the front) . The suspension is completely dissassembled (well except that damn spindle pin - erg) and I'm ready to start cutting I just dont know which strut to go with. This is a dual purpose street / autox and I'm going with FP next year but only local stuff. Just trying for fast raw times realizing I will be uncompetitive PAX wise. It'll probably only see one or two thousand street miles a year. So I'm looking for recommendations on which struts to go with. It seems that struts seperate the men from the boys so to speak so I would like to get decent ones without going stupid crazy expensive. Choices I've seen are (non-stupid crazy expensive): - the new SA konis but they have to be re-valved - DA konis but the second adjustment can't be adjusted once installed - new shorter Illuminas - Carerra (dont know anything about them) - Advance Design (dont know anything about them either) - ??? So is it worth it to pony up to the more expensive options or should I just stick with the Illuminas? Thanks Cameron

If you can find some late model RX-7 seats they have a hole in the fixed headrest which begs for a harness to go through it. They are leather, fit in a Z well, look good, and in the two times I've autox'ed it (so far...) I didn't notice sliding around. I've raced in other seats where it was noticably irritating that you are trying to hold yourself in place while driving and I didn't notice that with these. They obviously are not race seats so consider that if you plan on running on a track but they seem OK for autox. Something to think about if you can find some in a yard. Cameron

When I got the car it had 500 lb/in springs which were just scary on the street as there was not enough compliance and it felt like it was just skipping around bumps. I think this is what killed my Tokicos as the strut rods are actually discolored in a very small range of travel like they got hot. I'm now running 225F / 250R. Anyway I'm aware of those new Konis but at least according to JohnC they have something like double the compression damping of the old ones and are therefore not suited to the Z unless you get them revalved which adds like $100 per strut! That's why I'm still looking. Cameron

I've decided to go with the FA 22.5x9.5-15 in R35 compound. These seem to be a good compromise with enough sidewall for my dual pursose set-up while being much lighter (and cheaper) overall than the 16's and the cantilever's I dont fully understand but from what I read they seem to be on a bit lower level of performance than the others. Even though I'm not going for Nationals here if I'm going to do it I might as well go as fast as I can. I'll run them on 15x10 Diamond wheels and think I need 5" backspace (?) - can anyone cofirm that? So now that I've decided I'm going to start trying to find some used tires. Now I just need to find some struts. Last night I finished taking appart my suspension in preparation to section the struts. I was planning on SA Konis but since they are NLA I dont know what to do. My Illumina's are tired and I wanted to upgrade but there doesn't seem to be any other options for < $1,000. Cameron

My first car - a 260Z - I used to drive a little on the aggressive side. Actually my speedo stopped working when I landed once. Stupid kids to stupid things I guess. Anyway, there was this one hill - 'Thrill Hill' - that was very steep and halfway down it leveled off for a sideroad then got steep again. Well I think you can imagine how that goes when you hit leave the flat at about 60-70. I can distinctly remember bouncing at least three passengers heads off the roof including my wife (girlfried back then). Teach them not to wear their seatbelt. Sorry had to reminise (spel?) Cameron

I'm going with the R35 compound as I dont want two sets and will run over the summer. So for size I come up with two options - the 16's or the 15's. The 16 inchers weigh 156 lb and cost $1428 (including the 16x10 diamond racing wheels) while with 15 inchers would come in at 140 lb and $1104 again including the wheels. I realize that the smaller diameter 16" tires might actually have a lower PMOI to offset the additional weight of the wheel so I think it would probably be somewhat close to a wash effective rotational weight wise well other than the obvious 16 extra pounds of unsprung weight. Also, JohnC has said before that you cant effectively run very low profile tires without $$$$ struts which I dont have. So is it worth it to go with the 16's in the end and will they work the best on my non-trailered dual purpose car? Also any recommendations on wheel offsets w/ flairs would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again for the advice Cameron

I've now decided to go with slicks vs DOT rubber for next year. I'm thinking about Hoosiers in either 23x9.5x15 or 23.5x11x15 in a R35 compound. Either way I'm guessing I'll run Diamond Racing wheels in 15x10 size. I've got flairs and coilovers and stock brakes so clearance is not a concern. Any recommendations on which would be better - is wider always better here as looking at National pictures it seems to be the trend. And then would the 11" wide ones better fit on 12" wheels? I haven't bought the wheels yet so I'm flexible and just trying to decide what I really need. Last question is any recommendations on offsets? Thanks Cameron

I tried to start a thread a month or two ago asking if anyone had used a Kirk rollbar but got no replies. Have you used one in a Z and possibly have pictures of the fit? Thanks Cameron

What one did you get? I'm thinking about getting one this winter for same reason when I section my struts and am looking for recommendations. Thanks Cameron

I'm guessing (so take it for what it's worth) that the turbo system has more water in the system and therefore needs more expansion volume which meant that the N/A expansion tank was then too small so Nissan decided it would be easier / cheaper to add a second expansion tank to the turbo version instead of developing a single bigger tank. Cameron

OK so I'm leaning towards 15" but those 13's seem like a good idea (well except for the ugly factor which is not a real concern). Cost and weight should be down 15 vs 16 and the 13's well they kind of scare me as I want something that will work without a huge amount of development due to my limited race schedule so I'm afraid they would take some work but again just speculation. So where can I get these good deals on slicks? Thanks Cameron

Well I think I'm thoroughly unsure but am leaning towards FP for the sheer speed of it - would be fun to beat that damn SS Z06 who got FTD two races ago. This weekend there was a BM Formula Continental who beat everyone by about 4 seconds (and all but one by about 6 seconds) but other than that there usually isn't any serious Prepared or Mod cars out there so it would be fun to have a shot at raw FTD. Breakage has me a little worried, though, just for the sake that I dont have a tow vehicle but otherwise the more I type the more I'm leaning towards slicks and FP. Since I only plan on racing about a half a dozen times a year (four kids under 10 kind of limits that) I am not going to buy a new set every year (or maybe even every two at that rate) so I would rather get something that I'll keep rather than starting with DOT's then moving to slicks a year later. I raced DOT's years back on my old GTI and slicks on go-karts fewer years back so I have an apples to oranges comparison but in general understand the very high grip slicks offer - bruised ribs anyone? I dont know how much difference there is between the latest DOT and slicks as far as grip goes but I'm guessing a lot. So any recommendations on slicks - size, compound, rim diameter, where to get them either new or used, etc. I'll probably use Diamond wheels to keep costs down unless I can find some decent used wheels. Thanks Cameron

So now the year is over for the Z - I officially parked it for the winter today after getting home from the autox. Over the winter I am going to section the struts and get some race rubber for it among other things like fix the tranny...again, install aluminum flywheel , electric fan, etc, etc. So I'm debating on which tires to get. I've been running SM2 on really crappy street tires but I'm not totally 100% legal for SM. I dont have heater, wipers, or wiper/headlight controls on the steering column all which technically puts me in FP. Either way I would not be nationally competitive and I am no where near the limit in car prep so I dont feel bad running SM2. So now the question is do I go with slicks and FP which would also allow me to relocate my front control arm pivot up and get rid of the 4 wheel drive stance (currently running with front arms level which has nearly 8" clearance to the rockers!) or stay in SM2 and get some R compound DOT tires? I think the index is very close between the two classes so I could possibly be more competive in FP with the stickier tires but at the same time there are usually a couple cars in SM2 but rarely one in FP. Any suggestions? Thanks Cameron

Sure it's the diff? My clunk was caused by the nut being loose on one of the companion flange. I could tell this because with the wheel locked I could move the half-shaft back and forth. Just a thought to check before you tear into the diff as I originally thought mine was the diff as well. Cameron

I'ld say no and for the most part doesn't matter anyway as the power loss should be very small through the bearings. It's the gears where most of the power loss occurs in a drivetrain. Cameron

Sorry to hi-jack but I run Redline MTL in my early 5 speed (I think the same kind JohnC refers to) and it is VERY hard to shift - expecially into first and second. Sometimes stopped at idle it wont shift into first so you have to put it in second before it will go into first. I just replaced the second gear synchro so it doesn't grind at all it just is very hard to move the lever into gear (well it almost always grinds going into reverse but never the forward gears). Once in gear the car doesn't move as may happen if the clutch was not completely disengaging so I'm not sure where to go from here. I am wondering if I have the wrong throwout bearing and maybe the clutch is not completely disengaging? I have adjusted the pedal all the way out so it will have the maximum travel to provide the most possible clutch travel but that didn't help. Any ideas? Thanks - again sorry for the hi-jack Cameron

The front of the driveshaft in my 240 is a cv joint while the back is a u-joint. Dont know how it got that way as it was already there when I bought the car. About driveshaft angles - the manufacturers (at least the ones I've talked to) will tell you that you need a little angle otherwise they will not live. I'm not talking theory here just what the manufacturers say. Also, the angles should be equal front and back otherwise you can get vibration and reduced lives. If you are moving the diff around you should consider trying to make the angles equal front and back which should help the vibration issue if they are not the same now. I've not played around with this just going by the manufacturers recommendations. Cameron

I hear what everyone's saying but am still a little torn. The reason I'm looking at IR vs whatever the hardware stores happens to carry is durabilty. I think the IR will last a lot longer but dont have any data to back that up. The reason I pointed out continuous duty is the same reason - it's designed to run all the time without overheating or other issues so it should last a long time. I also am still thinking if I need more capacity down the road I could always add on an additional external air tank. Thanks for the feedback. Cameron

Well it's got four holes on each side so there are discrete points which is a minor issue. The first real issue is that you have to remove the bolts to adjust then hold the wheel up to realign it and hope you dont crossthread into the aluminum. Also not all the possible positions are even achievable because it hits the strut towers near the outer (or inner - dont remember) holes. Lastly to adjust caster also changes camber and when you use diagonal holes to adjust caster the spacing obviously gets bigger so you have to wallow out the mounting holes at an angle to maintain the same camber. With all that said I've never had any others to compare to I just think these are sort of a backwards way of doing it. I know johnc used them and I assume liked them so maybe it's just me. That sucks - so $600 struts now just turned into $1,000 struts. Wonder how much double adjustable ones are??? Have to start researching other options. Thanks Cameron