wheel rubbing

[Zedyone_kenobi]

Okay, my front end conversion has been well documented, and I really love the looks of it. I get far more compliments now than I ever have.

However, ever since I installed the new front valance and the stock body work, I have had an issue. When I turn the wheel left a certain amount the right front tire rubs the stock body work. If I turn past it, I am fine, and if I turn less sharp I am fine. And it was only in reverse it happened.

That led me to believe that perhaps my Tension rod bushings were worn as that would allow fore aft movement of the front control arm. So I replaced that with a poly set (the steering feel is great now by the way). However, rather than help the problem, it seems now the car rubs when turning left forward OR backward.. hahaha. What fun. I have thought about rolling the inside of the new body pieces, but it seems like such a shame to mess up OEM parts.

The next piece of info you guys would need is my suspension set up.

I am running Tokiko springs and struts (not illuminas, the basic tokiko), and I have a 15x7 panasport with 205/60/15 yokohama A509's that are who knows how old.

Is this too much tire for a lowered car, I would not think so, but maybe?

Perhaps the offset of the panasport combined with the tire width is an issue?

Perhaps something in my suspension is off...possible, I guess, but my gosh she drives straight and with no pull in either direction or vibration at any time even under braking.

Just wondered what to do. I was planning on going to shorter tire perhaps in a 195 series. Besides any modern 195 is probably worlds better than my ancient A509's.

[jmortensen]

A509's were a GREAT tire. Granted, 10 year old A509's probably aren't that great, but man I remember being PISSED when Yokohama stopped making that one, and the AVS Intermediate too. GREAT tires.

I think the problem is that you have a large diameter wheel and probably a little more caster than you had previously with the poly TC bushings. I think the best solution is to either roll the fender in front or cut the lip of the fender where the tire hits it. You could go with wheels that have less offset, but Panasports really don't have that much to begin with.

[Zedyone_kenobi]

I hear ya Jon, I know how good the 509's use to be. I remember shopping for them ages ago. But old rubber no matter the pedigree is not good.

I have no plan on ridding myself of my panasports. I will look into rolling the inner lower valance, but I hate to mess up such nice pieces.

[Zedyone_kenobi]

UPDATE: I took my car in to the local shop after hearing they had a special on all Bridgestone tires. I have always liked Bridgestone as i used them exclusively on my STI and they were amazing. What I ended up with is a great tire, but I think I gave up some ultimate performance from the old 509's because I bought an all season tire.

I bought Bridgestone G019 Grip's in 195/60/15. I LOVE the look of this size tire. The 205's always looked a bit big on this old car to me. I know it sounds weird saying a wider tire did not look right, but I always thought it was a bit much for a small car with only 150 HP.

What can I say about the G019. The ride is alarmingly smooth compared to my 509's, but that may be partially due to the low 32 psi air pressure. I usually run around 38 psi in my cars to give the steering a tad more feel. I will play with the pressures. But going over bumps and up my driveway, the car is jarred less and feels very much more refined. The steering is a tad lighter, probably due to the lighter tire and smaller contact patch. The 195's are 10mm shorter in width, but the tire is a bit more rounded than the 509's. The car feels like it has all seasons on there. I have not bought all seasons for any car I have ever owned in 9 years. But for this old Z, I think I like the softer sidewalls and improved ride. The car seems to like it as well, as the amount of jarring is gone and the occasional squeak I had here and there was reduced. The 509's were a better performance tire even as old as they were, but the refinement my Z picked up due to the newer Bridgestones is a surprising and welcome change.

Oh and most importantly, no rubbing!

[70 Cam Guy]

I have Grid's on my Civic coupe, though in a 16" variety. I didn't change the size on my car and it was a vast improvement in ride quality. Road noise was significantly reduced compared to the OEM Turanza's. Gas mileage went down a couple mpg, likely due to a stickier compound. I have been very happy with the cornering performance. With about 20K miles they are getting a little noisy. It has been 10k miles since my last rotation so it is definitely due. My gripe is they are directional and I can't get a true rotation, just front to back, back to front

I run mine at 32 psi, that is the stock pressure for the 07 coupe. With the weight of the Datsun, I wouldn't really run more than 32 psi. A trick some of the wheelers do with their tires is to use a chalk line across the tread. They're trying to get as even tread wear as possible with a 35+" tall tire on the trucks. Might not be pronounced enough on our cars but I don't know. They'll play with the pressures until they get an even scrub. You can try that if you're really bored

Edited October 17, 2009 by 70 Cam Guy

[Zedyone_kenobi]

I sort of do the same with this certain parking lot. It leaves slight dust on the tread from the lose dirt on the pavement. When I park, I can see how much tread is touching the ground... but chalk sounds more precise!

[70 Cam Guy]

I don't know how precise it is, but it does sound like it's easier to see than the dust

The rock crawler guys can really get into it. I remember reading one guy got different pressure settings for each of his 37" MTR's. Supposedly he daily drove on them and they wore evenly. He wrote the pressures down on a paper and put it in his glove box. I would too probably if I were paying the 270 ea for the tires :stupid: my 35s were under 200 ea, a little more manageable

[doradox]

The 509's were a better performance tire even as old as they were, but the refinement my Z picked up due to the newer Bridgestones is a surprising and welcome change.

Sounds like a good choice. Sometimes people lose sight of overall performance, or refinement, when choosing tires / wheels and suspension. A great combo will enhance the total driving experience. Of course many focus on one aspect of performance because it is their preference.

Those Bridgestones look like a good choice for my driver. I had to put my iPikes on a little early this season as I developed a tread separation in my all seasons. I didn't want to buy new tires and have them sit in the barn over what may turn out to be a long winter. I'll check them out in the spring.

Steve

[moritz55]

I also went with Bridgestone's, however the Pole Position - Potenza's 205/65/15, I just wanted a bit more tire to fill the wheel well. I brought my front end to Stock height with Arizona Z coils and wanted new tires for a better ride. I'm waiting for rear Coils from Arizona Z to finish the job as my rear is ~1/2 inch lower than it should be since it has original coils.

The Bridgestones were a great improvement over my BFG g-Force Sports. I keep my Bridgestone's at 29-30psi where as the recommended tire pressure for our 240z's is ~28psi.

Anyway I added some photos ... the ride is great.

btw ... If anyone is interested, I have a set of Five(5) BFG g-Force Sports .. size 205/60/15's ... I'm willing sell at a very reasonable price. They have less than 2000 miles on them at most and one tire is new (it was the spare and un-used).

Many thanks....

Edited October 24, 2009 by moritz55

[FastWoman]

Zedyone, I have EXACTLY the same problem you did, with a rub on the right front tire against the forward lip of the fender when backing (but not pulling forward). I have the same Panosport rims, with Goodrich Comp T/A radials -- 215/60R15. I have probably half the original tread on the tires. The previous owner confirms that he experienced rubbing on occasion.

I've been doing calculations, and I think I can pull in about another .3" of clearance with 205/60R15 tires -- approximately the same diameter as stock, but a bit more offset. Of course there's always the factor of the extra tread on a new tire.

I'm thinking the 195/60R15 would give me another .3" still, but it would be about .25" smaller dia than stock. I'm just wondering what that looks like. I'd love to see a few pics, if you're able.

[Zedyone_kenobi]

NO problem. I will snap some for you this evening. To be perfectly honest, I cannot tell the difference in size at all. It is so close to the naked eye, it looks identical. Let me snap some pics for you.

215's would have rubbed really bad for me as well. I like the looks of the 195's. I am loving the refinement of the Grips I bought, but I do wish they had a stiffer sidewall. I am still a corner carver at heart, and the Z is so much fun to drive into and out of the corners. If I had my choice again... I would definitely go with a 195/60/15 again, but I would probably go with a summer tire vs an all season. What I gained in ride quality, I lost in all out steering feel.

Edited October 28, 2009 by Zedyone_kenobi

[FastWoman]

Thanks, Zedyone!