240Z Street Suspension Setups

[Woody928]

Hi All,

I'm sure this has been discussed to death by now, and I've been slowly trawling though all sorts of the previous existing threads however I want to hear some accounts about peoples suspension setups, and their opinions on them for road use.

I'm yet to drive my car however, from what I've been told having US suspension the car will be very soft and bouncy on the UK roads (compared to the European Spec suspension). We will wait and see in due course though. That being said long term I will be looking for suspension suitable for fast road use on UK roads, with this in mind I would much prefer to stray more towards comfort than to outright performance and a harsher ride being a road car. Realistically my car will be spending 95% of its time on the road, it is therefore important to me that it functions there best.

Looking at options that have been batted around and keeping cost in mind because unfortunately money is finite for me, I've come up with the following 3 options.

Tokico Illumina Struts with Eibach springs

http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/CTGY/classic20b03
http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PR...c20c01/23-4041

Gaz Gold Coilovers

http://www.larkspeed.com/index.pl?p=GGA240Z&a=i

BC Racing Coilovers

http://www.bc-racing.co.uk/catalogse.../?cat=0&q=240z

Straight away there is obviously a clear choice to make in terms of do I either go down the route of weld in coilovers (which obviously offer far more adjustability) or do I stick with a more traditional struts and springs option. From my limited understanding all of the above three options offer a reasonable package in their own right, and all have pro's and cons.

I really like the idea of driving on the roads all day with supple ride comfort, and then just being able to turn up to a track and dial in different settings to firm things up, or changing the dampening when the car goes to Europe and the roads are generally significantly better. This appears to be present in both options albeit the struts and springs option obviously has no where near the same adjustability in terms of ride height and camber etc.

So my question to you all is, given my above requirements what setup would you consider in my position? (Fast road oriented with a bias towards comfort)

I appreciate that the above will be subjective as a question, and that everyone answering has the potential to have extremely different wheel and tyre combos, stiffened cars with strut braces and roll bars, stock cars etc that will influence the overall package and their answer. However I'm just looking for general feedback and want to hear from those who have been there before and hear what they've done... 

Many thanks in advance

[zKars]

I think many of us have battled with this issue including myself. I've gone from bushing-less adjustable race suspension that handled incredibly well but shook my teeth out, back to pretty much stock rubber where I still like how the car handles.

the only mistake I made along the way was using shorter springs but not realizing how much shock travel you lose resulting in jarring bottoming out on not very big road bumps. I'm now a total fan of Weld on coil overs. 

Also watch where you put polyurethane. Just say no on the moustache bar, trans and engine mounts. These have nothing to do with suspension and everything to do with noise and vibration conduction to your arse and ears. 

I'm  also quite perturbed how modern cars manage to have the softest compliant rides but also out handle me with one finger on their power-assisted leather steering wheels.

[z boy mn]

I have your first option installed on my '71, and it works just fine. But, to be clear, with the progressive springs it's not like the ride is "soft" and luxurious. Even with the Tokiko shocks set at "1" (the softest setting), the car rides a LOT harder than my 1987 Toyota Camry! That said, when I move them to "5", it holds the track really well on those days I can take it out and really run it. Since you're going with MSA, I added the sway bar kit (front and rear) and even though the front bar is a lot larger than stock, somehow the ride with them on is better than not. Plus, a huge difference in the corners in terms of lifting and stability.

I can't speak to the coil-over option, but the welding was beyond what I could do on my own so I kept it simple. BTW, I also added the MSA camber bushings to help with alignment, and while the changes are minor, the flexibility to adjust those settings was significant for the time/money invested.

Finally, keep in mind that tires make a huge difference, too. I've got 225/45/16s on, and they work pretty well. When they're inflated to daily driving pressure (~38) the ride is pretty decent, but for the track the best setting (for me) is around 43-45, and that's pretty stiff on the roads. There are lots of tire options, just be sure to include this in your thinking as you make your plan. (Plus, what Zkars said.)

[Woody928]

Apologies for the belated response! This completely slipped my mind 

Thank you both for the responses  Sounds like rubber bushings should be favour in quite a few places... 

Really helpful to hear the feedback on the eibachs Z boy, sounds like your no better off comfort wise than coilovers overall. You just have the advantage that you can DIY this setup at home yourself rather than welding on coilovers (Unfortunately I also don't have the skills to weld).

At least the adjustability is available in both setups though. Good to know about the roll bars as well, these are on my to do list and sound well worth fitting. Any roll bar on the rear must be better than nothing! Have you had any experience with strut braces at the same time? 

Couldn't agree more with tyres as well, will definitely be putting some performance rubber on as soon as I can. Will hold off slightly though as the plan is to fit 15x8 Watanabes long term so will hold off slightly until I can justify purchasing a set of those. Will probally fit some 225/50's on them though. 

I'm definitely looking at building the overall package, I just want to make sure we do it right along the way. 

Does anyone else have any input on any of the above options? 

[madkaw]

Running ST lowering springs ( 1.5") and KYB struts. Running big tires - 225/45/17's. Whole suspension is urethane . With stock sway bar I thought the ride was very manageable . Not too harsh , definitely handled well. Tires are cheap, so things could be better. 

I just went with bigger sway bar up front and rear bar. I don't think change was dramatic for me for handling and it does seem to make ride over bumps more harsh. 

I can survive a long day of driving because I have upgraded my seats with helps soften things. 

Dont know if I would give up my rubber hat insolators for any shock system. 

I do not have any experience with coil overs on ball mounts , so my perception is narrow on this .

 

[grannyknot]

Woody, I've had the Illumia shocks/Eibach springs for a few years now and really like them, like Zboy says #1 isn't all that soft. The car handles well, a better seat and tall tires would help if more comfort was wanted. I also added the sway bar pair and triangulated brace bars, you have probably read about combo a few times in your research, it works.

[gnosez]

Those tire pressures seem very high, like 10-12psi too high. I run Potenzas 245/45/16 all around on my 240 at 32 psi. Very good street tires but not so great track tires. Track tires will give you better traction but at the cost of stress throughout the suspension and body. Be warned.

[Woody928]

On 9/22/2016 at 11:36 PM, madkaw said:

Running ST lowering springs ( 1.5") and KYB struts. Running big tires - 225/45/17's. Whole suspension is urethane . With stock sway bar I thought the ride was very manageable . Not too harsh , definitely handled well. Tires are cheap, so things could be better. 

I just went with bigger sway bar up front and rear bar. I don't think change was dramatic for me for handling and it does seem to make ride over bumps more harsh. 

I can survive a long day of driving because I have upgraded my seats with helps soften things. 

Dont know if I would give up my rubber hat insolators for any shock system. 

I do not have any experience with coil overs on ball mounts , so my perception is narrow on this .

 

Thanks for sharing dude, useful input to have, particularly concerning the arb's. Rubber bushings certainly seem to be the advice for a road car which is good to know. 

On 9/22/2016 at 11:51 PM, grannyknot said:

Woody, I've had the Illumia shocks/Eibach springs for a few years now and really like them, like Zboy says #1 isn't all that soft. The car handles well, a better seat and tall tires would help if more comfort was wanted. I also added the sway bar pair and triangulated brace bars, you have probably read about combo a few times in your research, it works.

Very helpful input thanks, is the ride just a bit firm or generally harsh would you say? (again all subjective, would be curious to know tyre specs though?). Sounds like there's no doubt that the setup works from a handling perspective just ride as always is hard to balance out. I've seen photos of those here and there in my research your correct, are they worth while adding? does the car feel stiffer as a result? 

 

Would love to hear from anyone else who's got anything to add, particularly people with BC coilover setups if anyone is floating around just for comparison. 

Edited September 26, 2016 by Woody928

[grannyknot]

The #1 setting on the Illuminas is just a bit firm, but good, IMHO the brace bars do make the car feel stiffer and using a triangulated bar in the back helped a lot with the squeaking interior plastic panels.

[Woody928]

Anyone else got anything further to add? Really interested to hear from those with coilovers for comparison...

I thought there were quite a few people running BC coilovers in particular? 

[cbuczesk]

I have Illuminas and a coil over setup on my race car. It's very stiff, as it should be. I have some brand of performance/lowering springs on my street Zs. If I were you I'd go with your first choice. It's going to take a chunk of time, money and effort to convert to coil overs. I'd do it for a race car but not a street car.

Chuck

 

[Zealous]

I have Illumina and Suspension Technique lowering springs. I went with the 280z springs for a stiffer spring and had to cut a little to get the right heights. I do think I lost travel though and a big bump can definitely be felt. I am looking at coil overs as you can get all the suspension travel and change the ride height. There are many debates on the coil overs about which is better. You can buy some where they have done all the welding for you. I'd say take a step approach. Buy some better shocks drive it and see how you like it. If it is too floaty for your liking get some lowering/stiffer springs. Then if you don't like that spend the $$$s for coil overs. Unless you have ridden in a car with coil overs and you know that ride feel you want, I wouldn't invest the $$$ yet since it sounds like you don't want a harsh ride.