Rollins240z Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 (edited) Hi all. Finally bolting on all drivetrain after a ground up restoration. I have a 1/4" difference between the top of my front brake rotors to the strut housings. Below are some pics to clarify the measurement location. Is this common on 240z? Will this affect my alignment ( I do have camber plates). If it is a bent strut housing how can I tell which one is bent? I did remove my Hubs and re-checked bearings/races. This car has not been driven in 20+ years. 1972 240z with Arizona z car hubs/rotors. Thanks!! Edited August 15, 2015 by Rollins240z Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beermanpete Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 Have you put both hubs on the same strut to make sure it is not the hubs? As for inspecting the strut, look for deformation in the strut tube where it meets the knuckle. Also, place a straight edge along the length of the strut to look for a curve. If you have an angle finder of some type you might be able to measure the angle between the strut tube and the spindle. The problem with measuring the angle is deciding which one is wrong if they are not the same. The service manual does not have a specificaton for this angle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 A thought - put a long straight edge on the rotor and compare distances at the top of the tube. If it's angle they'll be different than 1/4", if it's hub depth it will still be 1/4". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollins240z Posted August 15, 2015 Author Share Posted August 15, 2015 Thanks Pete! Ok just swapped hubs with same results. No visible damaged at tube/spindle, I sandblasted and powder coated these myself and did not notice any damage at that time either. The shocks slid into the tubes ok. Used a straight and could not see any visible bend. I'll try to find an angle finder and try that. Am I overreacting or is 1/4" difference a big enough deal to be concerned about? Thanks, Ryan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88dangerdan Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 If you haven't already done this there is a free app you can download called "angle meter" comes in handy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beermanpete Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Do the calipers fit ok? If the hub is not going on all the way the caliper won't go on or will indicate an offset. Another test would be to put a wheel on and measure the gap between the rim edge and the strut tube. Basically the same as what NewZed is suggesting but perhaps a bit easier to execute. I don't know if the 1/4" is a big deal or not. If there is no indication of damage to either strut tube it could be within normal production tolereances. Perhaps it will show up as a problem during a front end alignment, perhaps not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 The camber on my car is not even side to side by almost 1/2 degree. I still enjoy the car a lot and drive the hell out of it. Your car is so nice-I wouldn't let this slow down my build. I lowered my S10 and found out that the truck isn't square-I now run a 2" lowering block on one side and a 3" lowering block on the other. I would rock on to the next part of your build and check this off the list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Make sure you have two 240Z strut tubes and that you don't have a 260 or 280 strut tube. Take the hubs and brake rotor off and measure the gap between the strut tube and the spindle flange. Those numbers should be identical within 1/16". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-E Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 I have a set of ae86 coilovers converted from stock struts by JIC, the owner hit a wall drifting and one is bent. The bend is almost imperceptible and is located right where the tubing meets the base (cast portion), I checked tube straightness where accessible with no obvious curving, but it's still bent. If I measure from the hub face to the strut tube, it clearly deviates from the good one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Duncan Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 (edited) 1/4" right there is quite a bit. Assuming a 12" rotor, that's 2.4 degrees. That translates to 1" at the strut top which is pushing or exceeding the limits of some camber adjustment setups. And it's going to change your kingpin axis inclination. Remains to be seen if it drifts or pulls. Something is bent. To find out which side get someone to measure a known good strut. You may have to get a measurement with the stock rotor since the rotor offset is probably different. That or measure with an angle gauge as already mentioned. Edited August 16, 2015 by Chris Duncan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 I will measure mine when I get home since my tires are off. If mine is off, Im not fixing it. Too many other issues more pressing on the list. Do you have weld-in camber plates installed/do you plan to install them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 I will measure mine when I get home since my tires are off. If mine is off, Im not fixing it. Too many other issues more pressing on the list. What style camber plates do you have? With the brake pads installed, does the rotor spin smoothly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollins240z Posted August 16, 2015 Author Share Posted August 16, 2015 (edited) Confirmed s30 strut tubes. I measured the top inside spindle flange to the strut tube and I have a 3/16 difference. The left side is 15/16 and the right is 1 1/8" . I have welded in camber plates. As much as I want to ignore this, I didn't realize that it makes as much of 1" impact at the top. Having one side of my camber plates maxed out kinda eliminates the reason for having them in the first place. Crap!! Last night I ordered 2 angle meters from eBay. I haven't test fitted brakes on again yet but I did a while back and don't recall anything funky. I guess the next step is to start comparing other people's struts and eliminate the bad guy. Thank you everyone for the advice! Edited August 16, 2015 by Rollins240z Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Confirmed s30 strut tubes. I think that johnc's point was that the 240Z tubes are different from the later 260Z and 280Z tubes. They're all S30's. Check the camber specs in the FSM's. The later S30's run more camber. Not much, but not the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollins240z Posted August 16, 2015 Author Share Posted August 16, 2015 Part #'s for the strut tubes 54303 E4128 54302 E4128 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Wow, this is a quality build! That engine bay looks great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Sorry, one of the strut assemblies is bent, As mentioned above its most likely bent where the strut tube meets the casting. Does it matter? Functionally it's not much of an issue since you have camber plates and are building a street car (I assume - too nice for a race car) with the typical camber settings less then 2 degrees negative. It would still bug me but not enough to stop the assembly. I would go with what you have to get the car on the road and then source two more front struts (a left and a right). I would then measure and determine which one needs to be replaced on your car and then build the replacement strut. Swap them later when there's a reason to tear down the suspension corner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollins240z Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 I'm going to keep moving forward with my build and swap the bent strut at a later date. You guys Rock, thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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