Suspension rides too high - What are my options? ('72 240Z)

[Tirnipgreen]

Quote

I will have to get a pic later...but I measured from the rear fenderwell to the tire and came up with 3.5"

 

[xs10shl]

Just my own opinion here on Eibach - I've recently installed 2 sets of Eibach springs on 2 cars- one new set and one used set - and to my eye, the nose of both cars still sits too high relative to the rear ride height.  I've heard that this happens to some folks and not to others.

Upon examining the coils under load, the top 3 turns are fully compressed against each other, so it's probably a simple matter of cutting off a full coil turn to lower the car an additional 1/2" (the width of the coil itself), which would be a noticeable stance improvement.  I'd venture to say that this shortening would likely yield minimal degradation of ride quality, given the full compression of the to 2-3 spring turns while under load already.

Edited April 10, 2023 by xs10shl

[87mj]

I'm old.  Probably older than everyone here.  But I never cared for the stance of the 240z compared to the 280.  The front always seemed to sit higher than the rear on a 240 and the rear had too much of a squat but the 280 had a mild rake to the rear which I liked.  I personally don't care for the look when people cut the springs. It looks like a tree got dropped on it to me.

I have a '71 and I kept my factory springs and installed zcar depot's 280z billet strut spacers in the rear along with factory 240z strut insulators.  Now it has factory height in the front and a mild rake in the rear.  To me it looks perfect.  So coming from a guy that likes a mild rake on the rear, I agree with you.  Your car looks like it sits too high. Front and rear both. I would agree with Jim. I'll bet you have springs from a car that is several hundred pounds heavier.

 

[Tirnipgreen]

Here are a few pics of my car with the Arizona Z Source "stock height" springs. AZS assured me that they were correct and tested for the 240-Z. I like the firm ride, but not the 4x4 look. I recently purchased a pair of NOS rear springs and will continue my search for NOS fronts. (The fronts carry two different part numbers BTW) I have also recently acquired a full set of springs from a 48,000 mile car and wonder if they are still, after 50 years bearing the weight of a '71 Z,  a viable (wise) option. Any thoughts...?

Edited June 6, 2023 by Tirnipgreen

[Marty Rogan]

What type of shocks are you using?   I put Nissan Euro-spec springs on my '70, which were supposed to lower the car 3/4".  I also put in Tokico gas shocks.  The result seemed to actually raise the car instead of lowering it.  Time did not make it settle either.  I think it is the gas shocks pushing up the car. I never got around to addressing the issue.

On my '71, I put in lowering springs and 5-way adjustable Tokico's and it did not raise the car at all.

 

[Tirnipgreen]

An interesting perspective, Marty. The struts are KYB Excel...Hmmmm...!

[Zed Head]

The Tokicos are gas shocks also.  There are some threads out there about how the gas shocks raise the car about 1/4 to 1/2".  It's not much.  You can push the shaft in easily by hand, it's probably only 20-30 lbs of lift.

Who is Arizona Z Source?  Did you mean Z Car Source?  Or Arizona Z Car?

13 hours ago, Tirnipgreen said:

Here are a few pics of my car with the Arizona Z Source "stock height" springs. AZS

http://www.zcarsource.com/

https://www.arizonazcar.com/

[Tirnipgreen]

58 minutes ago, Zed Head said:

The Tokicos are gas shocks also.  There are some threads out there about how the gas shocks raise the car about 1/4 to 1/2".  It's not much.  You can push the shaft in easily by hand, it's probably only 20-30 lbs of lift.

Who is Arizona Z Source?  Did you mean Z Car Source?  Or Arizona Z Car?

http://www.zcarsource.com/

https://www.arizonazcar.com/

Yes. Any or all of the above. Sorry if I stated their name in error. Not sure what kind of "testing" they did on these springs, but I am not the only one who got the "lifted" stance. I'll write it off as a mistake and move on...Ryals

[Zed Head]

12 minutes ago, Tirnipgreen said:

Yes. Any or all of the above. Sorry if I stated their name in error. Not sure what kind of "testing" they did on these springs, but I am not the only one who got the "lifted" stance.

Who is "they"?  "Any or all of the above" doesn't mean anything.  Z Car Source is out of business,  AZC is more of a performance shop.  

Did you get them from eBay?  Maybe you just bought from the wrong place.

[Tirnipgreen]

3 minutes ago, Zed Head said:

Who is "they"?  "Any or all of the above" doesn't mean anything.  Z Car Source is out of business,  AZC is more of a performance shop.  

Did you get them from eBay?  Maybe you just bought from the wrong place.

No...I bought them from Z Car Source of Arizona. Again, I apologize for mis-stating their name. I waited months for them to confirm their testing of what I was told were "stock ride height" springs. When I received the springs, they weren't marked as to front or rear (other than a purple marker slash). When I called to ask which were which, I distinctly remember the young man being short and condescending. This thread began based on the fact that ZCSA's springs are not right...I agreed based on my experience. I did not buy them on Ebay...I bought them from a company with whom I had spent over $5,000 that year and trusted their integrity. I was wrong.

[Zed Head]

They could be counterfeits, who knows.  Z Car Source is out of business now.  Maybe that's part of the reason.

 

[Tirnipgreen]

On 6/8/2023 at 12:28 PM, Zed Head said:

They could be counterfeits, who knows.  Z Car Source is out of business now.  Maybe that's part of the reason.

 

I get the feeling they didn't really enjoy having to deal with the general public as a retail entity. With respect to the springs...I think it's a case of bad engineering.