Suspension Upgrade

[Kassroth]

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Well I am quite new to the 240 world. I was wondering if anyone had some suggestions as to what products I should be looking for to upgrade my suspension on a '96 240sx. I would like to lower it and might be wanting to do some drifting with it ;) The car is stock right now, I plan on doing some other mods but i figure I will make it handle really well first.

[weirdstyles.net]

Handling is one thing the 240SX does very well. However you need to define the use of this vehicle. Sure you may drift with it, but will this be a daily driver as well? What kind of budget are you working with? How extreme are you going to go with this 240SX?

[Kassroth]

It will be my daily driver, at least for the summer anyways. I will have about $3000 CDN to play with so about $2400 US. I am not looking for anything too extreme I won't be doing any competitive racing. I really don't have an idea of how far money will go for doing a suspension.

[Yoshi]

IF you car will be mostly street, maybe with the occasional track day, I'd go with AGX-SS + Ground Control coilovers. This will cost you about $600 +/- $100 depending on the deal(s) you can find.

Why is this better than just lowering springs?
- AGX-SS are adjustable (8way rear, 4way front) dampers, specially designed for lowered vehicles... I could be wrong on the name... (SS = Short Stroke)... they're the purple anodized ones ;)
- AGX dampers are proven suspension parts that have been used on 240s for a looooong time now
- Ground control springs are linear (more predicable IMHO)
- GC springs are custom, you can ask GC for any tension and they can do it for you, they also use quality eibach springs
- GC coilover sleeves are height adjustable. Thus if you want a drift day, you can go lower, your camber will automatically follow suit (for drift)

Now, if you aren't much of a car guy and want a 1 time fix that you don't car much about for competition, your cheapest bet would probably be just getting some Eibach pro-kit springs and riding your stock dampers til the blow (could be a month, could be a year or more, depending on your roads and how you drive), after which you could get some decent dampers. AND if competition is more important, you could go with any number of full coilovers, maybe some entry stuff from Tein or FLT, they start typically around $1k, prolly $1400 avg for good full coilovers all around.

Stuff to ponder :)

[aznpoopy]

i have eibach springs with stock shocks on my car. mmm, it can get a little bouncy on rough roads. shocks are def on their way out. however i've driven it for almost 2 years and they were on the car when i bought it, so my guess is they'd last at least a year or two if your shocks aren't in bad shape. all u need are the springs ($200).

if ur not serious i would just leave the car stock. if u want to lower it a bit, any spring/shock combo would be fine. agx + eibach pros is just one of many that ppl have run successfully.

[pruto]

you can drift on stock suspension, a stock 240sx handles very well, a set of good tires is probably the best way to start off, no, seriously.

as for lowering, depends on how much you want to sacrifice in terms of streetability. springs and shocks might be good enough and probably what you're looking for, but lower end coilovers like HE is the best bang for the buck imo, any of the coilover systems around 1k is good enough for street and should be more than enough for what you need, if you're willing to sacrifice some ride quality. Also, the lower you go, the rougher the ride. at 1 or 2" lowering on my coilover system its pretty liveable, but now at the other end of the extremes, its starting to be a pain.

[atom]

I think a pretty basic setup would be :

shocks/springs or entry level coilovers like KTS or megan racing
tension rods
stock swaybars from a SE model if you have a base model

That should put you well under your $2400 US budget. Besides shock/spring, the tension rods made the most difference in my car.

[Zemus]

also dont forget aftermarket Tie rods, those help a BUNCH, cuz usualy your stock ones are dead

[aa87]

also dont forget aftermarket Tie rods, those help a BUNCH, cuz usualy your stock ones are dead


Would symptoms be very shaky steering? especially when braking? If so, i definately need to get me some.

[mr_240sx]

i have KYB AGX with ground control coil-overs and i completely dislike them!!!they bottom out all the time and they make a "cling" noise everytime i hit a bump! I would suggest that if you want a good quality suspension for the roads then use the super street or flex by TEIN!

[weirdstyles.net]

i have KYB AGX with ground control coil-overs and i completely dislike them!!!they bottom out all the time and they make a "cling" noise everytime i hit a bump! I would suggest that if you want a good quality suspension for the roads then use the super street or flex by TEIN!

If they bottom out, you probably didnt install the upper bump-stop... or your have them set on hella soft and hella low...

Cling noise? Did you wrap the lower coils? Didnt think so...

I have KYB AGX shocks and H&R Sport springs and I love the setup for street use. I enjoy the adjustability and the H&R springs arent that rough but provide a decent drop and better corner responce. If your in Canada be careful how stiff you go as ice/snow dont mix with stiff suspension!

[Yoshi]

i have KYB AGX with ground control coil-overs and i completely dislike them!!!they bottom out all the time and they make a "cling" noise everytime i hit a bump! I would suggest that if you want a good quality suspension for the roads then use the super street or flex by TEIN!

if your car is low enough to be bottoming out, and/or you have that little travel for whatever reason, you should've gotten the short stroke version.

Also, wierdstyles is right, did you follow the directions? There's a decent about of modification that needs to happen to the stock hardware.

I love my setup, with the exception of now I'm ready for stiffer springs :D

[BoroBoroS13]

I would go with a set of Tein HE's, Tein Tension Rods, Tein Tie Rods, a good set of tires, and a alignment. All this would be around $2,500 and you would have a S14 that handles very well.

[sil40sx]

a little drifting? do they drift in canada now too?

[North240]

i run a very basic setup of tein stech springs and agx's. Its an overall mild setup, i would also look into the Tein Basic coilovers for another faily mild setup. I would recomend some new brake pads and a quiet exhaust while your at it.

[007jpang]

i would highly recommend

SUBFRAME BUSHINGS!!!!!!! best $100 that will make your car drift as flat as a pan cake.

Subframe bushings


Subframe bushing collars takes up slop developed by old rubber or urethane subframe bushings, to yield a more responsive suspension and reduced wheel hop. These 8 piece aluminum collars install above and below the bushings which retains the stock anti-squat geometry, vs. 4 piece spacers that just install on the bottom which slightly increases anti-squat.




www.splparts.com

great products, bestest customer service ever.

john

[mr_240sx]

well i followed the instructions!! its weird because when i turn and hit a bump, the is a bottoming out sound that seems to hit the strut tower in the passenger rear! :mad:

PS: could it be because the ground control coil-overs are set at the lowest possible setting?

[Yoshi]

well i followed the instructions!! its weird because when i turn and hit a bump, the is a bottoming out sound that seems to hit the strut tower in the passenger rear! :mad:

PS: could it be because the ground control coil-overs are set at the lowest possible setting?

I dunno if you're s13 or s14, but were I to lower my coils all the way (and remove my bump stops) then my chassis would touch the ground. I know cuz I tried it and scratched up my frame rails a little.

On the rattling, there are several write-ups on how to fix that... coil silencers like styles said, but if you get a rattling/banging noise, it may be because you coned out one of your main collar washers. I did that once when I hit really deep pothole I couldn't see in the dark. GC was cool and sent me a set of 4 new washers for free! I love those guys, great customer service. I also reinforced the sleeve with the duct tape/silicon bead setup. once I get stiffer springs for track days, I'll be totally happy with my setup :)

sidenote: the guy said he just wants to lower, and the car will not see the track at all. Full coils, even tein SS is really overkill. Suspension isn't as big of a thing on his priority list, so that $ would prolly be better spent elsewhere (bling, ice, et al). The guys are right on about bushings tho. I'd at least get new rod ends and poly bushings for your TCs.

[Var]

go with tein HA's. You can get them for 1100 shipped and they can be soft enough to drive on the streets with excellent performance. The rest of the money should be spent towards a used lsd 2-300, and the rest for maintenance like brakes, bushings, fluids, tires, etc etc.

[sykikchimp]

I would do maintenance first. replace/upgrade any blown bushings, or shot rod ends. Buy a nice set of summer tires. Throw on a set of Suspension Techniques anti-roll bars, and some KYB-AGX short strokes, and some prokits, or H&R's. (There are tons of springs to choose from. check the Spring Rate Archive (http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=7590) )

and your done. And you'll still have ~$1000 to do whatever else you might like..

[mr_240sx]

well i have an s13 chassis and when the ground-control coil-overs and at the lowest setting with kyb agx, my 17inch rims are not even tucked! And my frame is nowhere near the ground, the only thing that comes close to bottoming out is my apex'i N1 which sits 1 inch from the ground. Does that sound normal for GC's with kyb agx?

[Shin_Kudo]

Forget Tein, the only thing they're good at is marketing. I'd go for the GC setup myself, if you'll be ok with that, or, if you want a better setup, I'd look at the recently released Buddy Club coilovers, which can be had for about 1300, and are very nicely made.

[Var]

well i have an s13 chassis and when the ground-control coil-overs and at the lowest setting with kyb agx, my 17inch rims are not even tucked! And my frame is nowhere near the ground, the only thing that comes close to bottoming out is my apex'i N1 which sits 1 inch from the ground. Does that sound normal for GC's with kyb agx?


Ground control is smart enough to send you springs that wont destroy your shocks. You can custom order anything you want but your agx arent built to handle a lower drop. Ground Control is very versatile as far as providing their customers with many different setups. You can get spring heights and rates altered. You can ask for aluminum or steel hardware. The thing is that they have different types of customers. If you are running agx shocks they probably think you're gonna use it for street and they wont bother to offer you anything but the default setup.

[Var]

Forget Tein, the only thing they're good at is marketing. .


I've got to say that's really ignorant. I've been studying shock valving for the past few months. I've been uber critical when i sit in my friends' cars and i study how the car reacts to bumps and turns. Whether they be modified tuner cars or high end sportscars like the E46 M3 or the Z06. Tein shocks have excellent valving. I love how my HA's feel and they are the bottom of the barrel crap. My other car has AGX/GC and they feel harsher even with softer spring rates and they dont do a good job of absorbing the road even with an inch more of travel than my Teins. If you want to get something better than TEIN you'd have to go with GC and custom valved Koni's or if you have the money, Advanced Design.

[ucfz31s13]

Forget Tein, the only thing they're good at is marketing.

:blah:

Let me guess, someone else who talks shit about a company that has never actually used any of their products.

[Shin_Kudo]

I've been running HEs on my car since March. I don't like the valving at all, it feels like too much fluid being forced through an undersized valve, not predictable or smooth enough. Additionally, they're not adjustable enough. 16 levels seems nice, but there's really not enough difference between 1~16. The range of ride height also isn't what I wish it was.

In addition to being unimpressed with their quality and performance, I also do not at all like their salespeople. They seem to insist that anything other than the SS and the FLEX aren't streetable.

The Advanced Design setups look awesome, I considered them for my next setup. However, I do want something a bit more street-oriented, leading me to lean toward a set of Cusco Zero-2.