trwebb26 Posted November 18, 2006 Share Posted November 18, 2006 Ok... I'm about to stow away the 78' 280z for the winter and I'm prepping for my winter project - a complete overhaul of my Z's steering, suspension, wheels/tires, & brakes. Here's what I've got so far: - A full energy suspension bushing kit - Modern Motorsports coilover kit (8" 200 & 225 SR) - New steering rack boots - New Tie rods & Ball joints - ST Front and Rear Sway bars - Modern Motorsports rear disk brake conversion kit - Modern Motorsports spacers for 4X4 front brakes - Rota-Grid 16X8 wheels - "Performance" ends for my T/C rods The things I'm missing: - New spindle pins - rebuilt brakes for my brake kits - shocks... I don't know if I'm going to section the struts, yet - front and rear wheel bearings and seals - tires for my new wheels (I think i'm going with 245 yokohamas - strut tower braces - some method to adjust camber and LCA angles (bump-steer spacers) Am I forgetting anything for my overhaul? What would you reccomend for camber adjustment. I've been looking at buying adjustable rear control arms. I'm not sure about the fronts. I'd really like to stay away from camber plates - as I've heard they are TERRIBLE noisy. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe d. Posted November 18, 2006 Share Posted November 18, 2006 I have rear disc brackets if you need them. Also the toyota junkyard near my house sells the 4/p 4x4 calipers for $20 each. let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete280z Posted November 18, 2006 Share Posted November 18, 2006 I'm in the middle of a very similar project. I've been on hold for a week or so while I build enough confidence to weld on the coilover perches. I'm using EMI Racing camber plates for camber adjustment as the advice I received was that adjustable control arms won't allow the same level of adjustability. If you're going to the trouble of doing all of the suspension bushings, you might as well replace the diff mount while you have it all apart. I went with the stock replacement, but I'm starting to think that I'll eventually wind up with the sway bar end link style (poly) mount from the current thread. Also, you'll need the nuts for the stub axles from Nissan. When I ordered mine I tried to order the ZX (non-staked) nuts, but wound up with the earlier style (staked). Front brake lines? Wheel spacers for the front wheels. I picked up a set from pep boys and ground the center opening slightly to allow them to fit around the hub. The hub bore won't clear the hub without them. I put BFG gForce Sport 225/50/16s on my 16x8 Grids this week. They look good and the price is right. If they fit without issues I'll probably try 245/45s next time around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted November 18, 2006 Share Posted November 18, 2006 Especially in the front you won't have a heck of a lot of adjustment for camber with the adjustable LCAs. The problem is that you can only lengthen the tie rod so far before you run out of threads. If you were to do camber plates in the front the noise wouldn't be inside the cabin, which might be better than in the rear where it is right behind your head. Plus John says the EMI plates that he sells don't make noise, so maybe try his first. I think that trying to adjust camber with the LCAs is not the best idea. Our chasses are usually not straight so rarely would you end up moving the control arms the same amount, so then you have one wheel which sticks out further than the others to adjust camber, and you're still really limited in the front due to the tie rods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete280z Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 I thought of one more thing I added to my list "while I was at it." Wheel studs. It's much easier/possible to replace the rears while you've got the stub axles out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Plus John says the EMI plates that he sells don't make noise, so maybe try his first. Did I say that? Must have been in comparison to the open 3" exhaust I put on my 240Z. With camber plates (any) you generally won't hear much noise from the front but the rears will transmit shock piston movement and road noise into the cabin. You can isolate the EMI Camber plates from the car by cutting and fitting a 1/8" thick sheet of urethane between the plate and the strut tower. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 I was referring to the monoballs clunking around, should have specified what kind of noise I was talking about... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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