Springs/shocks combo.

[mrdatto]

Hi All,

Im re-doing the entire suspension on my '72 240z and am looking for an opinion from someone who has a similar set up to what I am after. I have already purchased a set of lowered king springs and am looking for a set of shocks to go with them.

I didnt want to spend a whole bucket on the shocks and am looking at KYB at this stage at about $400 for all four.

Has anyone got this setup, or can anyone foresee any problems using standard shocks with lowered springs. In an extreme case, I guess the spring could dislodge when the shocks are at full travel.

Any ideas of an alternate set-up and price would be great. It doesnt seem real easy to source shocks for a 240 in oz.

Thanks

[Murph]

You're in luck, that's exactly the same setup as my 260 (it's an early 260, so the suspension is still 240 spec). I have the kings lowered springs with the KYB shocks.

Springs: Not particularly hard, will give a smooth ride. I've found they've sagged a little in the ~9 months they've been in, but not much. It's a good ride height too being only a bit lower than stock, looks good without making the car annoyingly low.

KYBs: Not too happy with them. They aren't bad, but not as good as I had expected. My main problem is that they're quite harsh on smaller high frequency bumps.....rather "crashy" I suppose. However, they're underdamped on the big stuff, especially in the rear. I find that on any larger bumps (not even that big) it'll blow fairly deep into the travel, which can be a bit disconcerting.

I suppose the real catch here is, what options are there at a similar price point to the KYBs? Tokicos are supposed to be quite good, but are more expensive and AFAIK there's no distributor is australia. Next step up from there is the Konis, at which stage you're paying more than twice the price of the KYBs.

If I could do it again, I would have gone for the Konis if I had the money available. If you can't stretch the budget to the Konis, the KYBs aren't a bad thing, certainly ten fold better than shagged 30 year old shocks....they're just not a great thing.

Edit: Check out my gallery if you want an idea of how it will sit.

[240Zdragon72]

If you can spend the extra money, I'm going to go with Tokico springs and Illumina shocks w/ 16" wheels in front and 17" wheels in back. The car will look something like my Avater I drew. I also heared that Koni and Eibatch(?) springs are good.

Good luck with the set-up.

[260DET]

Koni's are worth it if the budget will stretch that far, good shocks make a huge difference. Don't know that you can get them specifically for the Zed though.

[Murph]

When I enquired about a year ago, they didn't have one specifically for the zeds. Here's what they did recommend though.

Part # Description Price Quantity Total

DC45008 Dobinsons h/duty coil springs-pair - Front low $117.27 1 $117.27

DC45019 Dobinsons h/duty coil springs-pair - Rear low $117.27 1 $117.27

K861811 Koni Shock Absorber - Classic $236.40 2 $472.80

K861812 Koni Shock Absorber - Classic $236.40 2 $472.80

BDF7Z H/duty swaybar-front Blade adjust. - $204.55 1 $204.55

BDR7Z H/duty swaybar-rear Blade adjust. - $204.55 1 $204.55

SPF104K SuperPro - Front bump stop strut $26.62 2 $53.24

SPF1215K SuperPro - Front Control arm lower inner bush $45.01 1 $45.01

SPF034K SuperPro - Rack mount bush - manual steering $22.83 1 $22.83

SPF050K SuperPro - Steering coupling $11.85 1 $11.85

SPF927K SuperPro - Strut bar to chassis mount $31.56 1 $31.56

SPF246K SuperPro - Diff to cross member to chassis bush $50.13 1 $50.13

Subtotal: $1,803.86

Shipping to: Australia, SA, Qld, Vic. - via Courier: $37.00

Australian GST: $184.09

Total Order: AU$2,024.95

[drunkenmaster]

www.toperformance.com.au will be able to set you straight with some koni's, they are a koni distibutor and also have a 240z targa race car

[Tommo560]

howdy MrDatto,

i have adjustable koni shocks and king springs in my car and they give they car a nice lowered look eithoiut being to low and are a very comfortable ride. it is a racing set-up but it still quite a nice ride around town.

Tom.

[mrdatto]

Thanks all for your replies. I have gone with a set of Tokico's from shox.com. Will be delivered to my door for less than what I can get KYB's for here in Aust.

[Murph]

Nice buy! Do let us know what you think of them once you get them in.