TravZ Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 New 240z owner here. The car has a little shimmy when driving, and it pulls a bit to one side as well. I've ordered all new bushings. I've ordered a new steering rack w/ inner and outer tie rods. I've ordered new ball joints. Am I missing any "must do" suspension refresh parts? Thanks all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neverdone Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 What kind of bushings did you order? Rubber or Polyurethane? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhm Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 I would check your shocks as well. Good chance that they're worn out, unless you know for sure when they were last replaced (and with what kind of replacement units). KYB are pretty popular replacement shocks and very affordable. Konis are the bomb, but pricey. Several threads here discuss the many available shock and spring options you can choose from. Obviously, check your brake function too, for driveabilility and safety. Many owners go for long times between pad replacement, brake fluid flush and bleed. Congratulations on your acquisition. Do you know the car's history? If it's like 90% of the used S30's up for sale, it will need a solid going-through to ensure it's road-worthy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravZ Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 39 minutes ago, Neverdone said: What kind of bushings did you order? Rubber or Polyurethane? A bit of both. I prefer rubber but poly for the most part. I went with energy suspension graphite infused, which has a softer durometer than prothane. Anything will be better than busted bushings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neverdone Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 If you're going to use Poly bushings, be aware that using them on the stock tension rod in the front suspension is a bad idea. Read the linked thread, but it basically sums that the poly bushing doesn't flex enough and won't let the tension rod rotate at all, so it snaps. You can fix this by not using poly bushings on the tension rod, or change to an aftermarket tension rod that has a pivot point built into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravZ Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 25 minutes ago, jhm said: I would check your shocks as well. Good chance that they're worn out, unless you know for sure when they were last replaced (and with what kind of replacement units). KYB are pretty popular replacement shocks and very affordable. Konis are the bomb, but pricey. Several threads here discuss the many available shock and spring options you can choose from. Obviously, check your brake function too, for driveabilility and safety. Many owners go for long times between pad replacement, brake fluid flush and bleed. Congratulations on your acquisition. Do you know the car's history? If it's like 90% of the used S30's up for sale, it will need a solid going-through to ensure it's road-worthy. I don't know a ton. Previous owner had it for 10 years. Didn't drive it much. Kept it fairly clean. Owner before that was in TX. Very little scale rust. Clean car. It's been swapped to an L28. Has round top SUs. 5 speed trans. Definitely some work on it here and there, but fairly stock, original. I've changed the oil and plugs. I'm going to do trans and rear end fluids asap as well. I drove it home from the seller, 90 miles. Mostly back country roads and some highway. It'll do 70+ no problem. But it doesn't FEEL great. For a beautifully running 73, I'm happy to far. I got a crazy deal on it, $4500. Been a dream car since I was a kid. So I couldn't be happier. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravZ Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 (edited) 13 minutes ago, Neverdone said: If you're going to use Poly bushings, be aware that using them on the stock tension rod in the front suspension is a bad idea. Read the linked thread, but it basically sums that the poly bushing doesn't flex enough and won't let the tension rod rotate at all, so it snaps. You can fix this by not using poly bushings on the tension rod, or change to an aftermarket tension rod that has a pivot point built into it. Thank you. Thoughts on this then http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/classic20m01b/23-4190 ? Edited May 13, 2019 by TravZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 18 hours ago, Neverdone said: If you're going to use Poly bushings, be aware that using them on the stock tension rod in the front suspension is a bad idea. Read the linked thread, but it basically sums that the poly bushing doesn't flex enough and won't let the tension rod rotate at all, so it snaps. You can fix this by not using poly bushings on the tension rod, or change to an aftermarket tension rod that has a pivot point built into it. It's only a problem if you use them on the back side. It puts a side force on the rod tip as the suspension moves and fatigues it until it breaks. You can use them on the front and it will reduce toe out when you brake hard, and make the steering firmer. The rubber on the back really only gets used hard when you brake in reverse. Most people use rubber on the back and polyurethane in the front if they want to tighten up the steering, inexpensively Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgsheen Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 1 hour ago, NewZed said: It's only a problem if you use them on the back side. It puts a side force on the rod tip as the suspension moves and fatigues it until it breaks. You can use them on the front and it will reduce toe out when you brake hard, and make the steering firmer. The rubber on the back really only gets used hard when you brake in reverse. Most people use rubber on the back and polyurethane in the front if they want to tighten up the steering, inexpensively +1 I've been running my daily driver with this configuration for 7+ years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted May 15, 2019 Share Posted May 15, 2019 On 5/13/2019 at 4:09 PM, TravZ said: http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/classic20m01b/23-4190 The G Machine TC setup is better than running poly in front IMO. Still should run rubber on the back so that it moves freely. They do wear, and may need replacing every few years. I used to take them apart and inspect and grease them up every so often. This video on polyurethane bushings in a Miata is really really really good. If you understand how the bushing is supposed to work than you can reduce some of the problems you'll encounter with the poly bushings that you'll buy for a Z, main one being the poly is too wide and the center sleeve is too short on pretty much everything as it comes out of the box. You can fix with a belt sander. Also I'd suggest drilling and tapping the control arms and sway bar saddles for zerk fittings. You will have to drill a hole in the bushing as well, but this will allow the bushings to be greased during services and will cut down on friction a lot. Don't bother with the inside bushings on the rear control arms. The bushing saddles aren't tight enough and the grease won't get in between the bushing and the sleeve. Outers on rear lcas works, as does inners on front, and the saddles on the sway bars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravZ Posted May 15, 2019 Author Share Posted May 15, 2019 Thank you for all the support guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twisted46 Posted May 20, 2019 Share Posted May 20, 2019 I just went through a full energy suspension kit, tie rods, and ball joints too. As others have indicated there are some slight fitment issues with the busing and bearing sizing but nothing that you can't overcome. I personally replaced everything that I needed to remove from the car to do the install including brake parts as the car is nearly 50 years old now and mine sat in a barn for the last 25 of them. The struts are probably the biggest thing that I would not want to go back and do (mainly in the rear). They are not expensive but also not cheap and I think worth replacing if you are not sure. Bad struts will make the rest of your efforts moot. Just beware of the spindle pins :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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