jonus079 Posted May 25, 2008 Share Posted May 25, 2008 so after alot of thinking and research i had my list narrowed down to two rear ends: lexus is300 and lexus sc400/300. well today i went ahead and pulled the complete rear end out of a 2004 lexus is300. in the end i choose it because the sc300 was so much wider (about 6 inches). ive also seen people put huge numbers down through the is300 rear end with supra engines. i mached it up and it looks pretty damn good. there is about an inch from the hub to the outside of the rear fender so it looks like ill be running small flares. i dont mind this but i really want to use the smallest flares possible. tomorrow i plan on putting the cars back on the rotisserie to get a better idea of how it will come together. just thought i would share some pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rudypoochris Posted May 25, 2008 Share Posted May 25, 2008 Just out of curiosity what made you choose this rear end over a 300zx, 240sx, etc. setup? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonus079 Posted May 25, 2008 Author Share Posted May 25, 2008 i dont know much about the 300zx rear but its my understanding that its not modular, that is the control arm connect into the body. the only 240sx rear ends i could find had 4 lugs which i wanted to get away from. not only that but i was never really impressed by the geometry of that set up. it just doesn't look like the best design to me when compared to is300 rear end. the only reason why i was even considering the sc300/400 rear end is because i'm using the front end. ive seen people put alot of power through the is300 rear end and it appears to be very sturdy. anyway i did alittle cutting and got it roughed in today. it looks pretty good. unfortunately my tig welder is out of argon and i cant get anymore until Tuesday so i guess it will just sit there until then. i really wish i had a wheel to test fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rudypoochris Posted May 25, 2008 Share Posted May 25, 2008 Looks great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkach Posted May 25, 2008 Share Posted May 25, 2008 Looks good!! I'm assuming it's limited slip. How will the Strut Spring assembly fit to the datsun frame, will you be able to mount near stock locations? Also any info on the IS 300 front end? G00d luck ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinOlson Posted May 25, 2008 Share Posted May 25, 2008 Looks really good!!!! I might have to do something like this. Justin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators BRAAP Posted May 25, 2008 Administrators Share Posted May 25, 2008 This looks like a fun project that will have lots of WOW factor. Looking forward to seeing this project come to fruition. i dont know much about the 300zx rear but its my understanding that its not modular, that is the control arm connect into the body. the only 240sx rear ends i could find had 4 lugs which i wanted to get away from. not only that but i was never really impressed by the geometry of that set up. it just doesn't look like the best design to me when compared to is300 rear end…. I realize this info is pointless here, though just wanted to share for clarification purposes. Regarding the multilink rear suspension from the 240-SX, Z-32, J-30 and Q-45, they are very much alike and differ mostly in subtle differences in track width, calipers, rotors, etc, otherwise they are essentially the same multilink rear suspension. They do all come in 5 bolt wheel pattern, except the early 240-SX which is 4 bolt. Not sure what you mean by the Z stuff “not being modular”, but ALL of the control arms do attach to a cradle like the Lexus set up and that cradle attaches to the car at four points like the Lexus set up. In looking over the Lexus pics, even without plotting out the dynamic geometry of that suspension, I would agree that from a performance standpoint, the Lexus set up looks to be an improvement over the Nissan rear multi-link. Due to how the Nissan rear suspension operates with the geometry changes it undergoes during different braking, acceleration, cornering loads etc, that rear suspension is not really a world class corner carving set up. It works fine if it doesn’t move, i.e. overly to stiff and the road/track is perfectly smooth, but so does a welded/locked/unmovable suspension in that scenario. Outside of those conditions, my opinion is that even semi trailing arm would be an upgrade over the Nissan Multilink for a truly performance oriented sports car. This Lexus set up looks like it behaves like a double A-arm set up and should compliment your Lexus front suspension, not only in name sake, but in performance as well. Keep us posted on your progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rudypoochris Posted May 25, 2008 Share Posted May 25, 2008 Apparently LSD was optional on those vehicles though, so you should look for one if yours is not equipped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonus079 Posted May 26, 2008 Author Share Posted May 26, 2008 Thanks for the positive feedback! unfortunately this rear end doesn't have an lsd diff but at $260 for the entire setup, i can hardly complain. It looks like there are a few after market company's that make lsd's for around $700-$1200. I dont know much about the front suspension on the is300. The one i pulled the rear out of had the front pretty much cut off from an accident so i couldn't really get a good look at it. BRAAP: I didn't realize the 300zx also had a cradle. I never really looked into it. I'm glad to hear someone agrees with me about the rear end especially with all the diagrams, observations, and facts you illustrated. Up until now it was pretty much theories in my head. I'm hoping to get a lot more work done Tuesday and Wednesday. I will post more pictures with the car flipped over so you can better see how im connecting it to the unibody. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators BRAAP Posted May 26, 2008 Administrators Share Posted May 26, 2008 What ratios were available? Any tall ratios such as 3.15 or any 2.xx:1 ratios? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evan Purple240zt Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 Looks great! I can't wait to see how it works out for you. Very cool. Nice to see something different. Evan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonus079 Posted May 26, 2008 Author Share Posted May 26, 2008 here are a few better pictures. still waiting for argon to weld. if you would like to see larger pictures click on the link in my sig. the shock should fit with no problems Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z-Gad Posted May 27, 2008 Share Posted May 27, 2008 What ratios were available? Any tall ratios such as 3.15 or any 2.xx:1 ratios? Unfortunately, I believe the automatic IS300 has a 4.09 rear ratio (atleast mine does) ... The manual version is slightly taller maybe a 3.90... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonus079 Posted May 28, 2008 Author Share Posted May 28, 2008 from what ive seen the automatics have 3.909. ill open my differential some time and check. ether way since im running a t56, i should be doing 80mph at about 2.2k rpm in top gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube80z Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 Outside of those conditions, my opinion is that even semi trailing arm would be an upgrade over the Nissan Multilink for a truly performance oriented sports car. This Lexus set up looks like it behaves like a double A-arm set up and should compliment your Lexus front suspension, not only in name sake, but in performance as well. I'm sorry for the sideways hijack but I have to say I don't agree with the above statement. I've had the opportunity to drive a 240SX all last year with slicks and R-compound radials and I found the car to work extremely well. It was better balanced than any Z I've driven. The car was very easy for many to drive and ended up being used as a spare over the year by a lot of people. Back to thread. The Lexus stuff looks cool. I'm really liking the front stuff from these cars too. Cary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators BRAAP Posted May 30, 2008 Administrators Share Posted May 30, 2008 I'm sorry for the sideways hijack but I have to say I don't agree with the above statement. I've had the opportunity to drive a 240SX all last year with slicks and R-compound radials and I found the car to work extremely well. It was better balanced than any Z I've driven. The car was very easy for many to drive and ended up being used as a spare over the year by a lot of people. Back to thread. The Lexus stuff looks cool. I'm really liking the front stuff from these cars too. Cary Cary, Coming from you, I don't doubt it for a second. Thank you for the heads up.My only experince is from the multi-link cars I own and have owned, all of which had/have the stock rubber bushings, current car also has Illumina struts, Kumho 711 tires. I've also taken the lack of multilink suspended Nissans in the Solo nats results as an indicator as well. Sorry for the thread jack. Cary I'll PM you as I am very interested in carrying on this conversation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinOlson Posted September 24, 2008 Share Posted September 24, 2008 Any more progress on this? Has me really interested! Justin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WizardBlack Posted September 24, 2008 Share Posted September 24, 2008 Very cool. More pics! Updates? How close was the rear two mounting points for the Lex Subframe to lining up with the two on the original car? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v8dats Posted September 25, 2008 Share Posted September 25, 2008 nice work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonus079 Posted September 27, 2008 Author Share Posted September 27, 2008 funny you ask because after not so much as going in my garage for the past three months, just 4 days ago i started working on it again. here some pictures i took today. now that summer is over ill be doing alot more work on the car in the coming months. ill keep you guys posted. here are the rear supports firmly welded to the cars frame and the overall cradle mounted to the car im hoping to finish up the welding the rear before the end of the week. i have alot of work still to do to the front. id like to have the car right side up in another couple weeks so i can start the body work. -Marcus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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