It's about time, gutting the Nismo suspension.

Ape Factory · 10-31-2016, 11:36 PM

Bumping this thread...I keep on going over the rear damper "preload" in my head due to the springs being separate from the damper body. The Aragostas have a blueprint included with the toolkit and they show the damper length, from the center of the bottom mounting eye to the top of the threaded body to be 356mm. I didn't notice this in the diagram and added about 10mm length to the damper body with the suspension pushed all the way down (lower mount still bolted up). If you just let it droop on it's own, there's still room for the suspension to move downward with a bit of force. I think ultimately, the sways/links limit the travel.

My main concern is the suspension going into full droop with the damper length being too short and having the piston bottom out. Conversely, if the shock body is too long, the damping is in the wrong part of the stroke and one could top out and hit the bump stops.

Either way, as it sits now, the rear suspension "feels" firmer than the front. I run more clicks up front than I do in the rear by quite a bit Backing the damping off the rears, I can get them pretty compliant whereas the fronts always seem to be pretty firm but compliant over the rough stuff with much firmer damper settings. I'm not sure what the end wheel frequencies are with 12K/10K front rear spring rates but they really react quickly to road imperfections. So I'm wondering if I'm setting the damper length correctly on the rears.

Spooler · 11-01-2016, 11:31 AM

Still sitting in the boxes at the moment. My neck is still giving me crap. My left arm strength is still not back to normal. I want to put it on but 2 weeks ago I needed to do a tranny service on my truck. Long story short, the wife had to help me hold the pan up to get a bolt started. I also paid for it for a week waking up every morning hurting.

Ape Factory · 11-01-2016, 10:49 PM

Ah sorry to hear that...If you lived a whole lot closer I'd come over and help!

Anyway, I think I answered my own question. The rear ride is much improved and I plan on changing the damper length to spec tomorrow after work. I think I have it pretty close now but want to obviously double check everything.

Spooler · 11-02-2016, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ape Factory

Ah sorry to hear that...If you lived a whole lot closer I'd come over and help!

Anyway, I think I answered my own question. The rear ride is much improved and I plan on changing the damper length to spec tomorrow after work. I think I have it pretty close now but want to obviously double check everything.

Can you post a link or something to the instructions. I did not have any since I bought these 2nd hand with only 5k miles on them. Any tips you can give would help me. I am getting ready to bite the bullet and do mine. The ride into work with the stock Nismo suspension is killing me. The stock dampers just suck.

Ape Factory · 11-05-2016, 08:13 PM

The instructions are all in Japanese but here's a good video that'll walk you through most of the basics:
https://youtu.be/nlmDYah5UsU

The online FSM will have all the torque specs, just scroll down and pick your year:
Nissan 370Z Factory Service Manuals

Lastly, here's the blueprint that came with the kit. Notice the 80mm height measurement for the rear spring adapter. You'll use the factory rubber upper/lower if your kit is the same as mine. At first I thought it would be way high and lowered the collar substantially. Big mistake. I didn't realize the lower rubber OEM isolator rotates and sits in a "groove" so to speak. So it was sitting far higher than it should. The measurements there are correct for their recommended height and it takes the worry out of trying to figure out the right height for everything:

The specs for the 370Z kit are slightly different from the G37 kit but I'd imagine the rear shock free length and spring height are identical. Same for the front. If you notice, they even says Z34 near the rear spring perch diagram.

Everything came assembled, and the fronts came assembled with the proper preload and everything. Springs have not sagged a mm since installation.

Ape Factory · 11-05-2016, 08:25 PM

All the other instructions are in Japanese and aren't actually specific to the G/Z.

Here's the chart w/specs off of Aragosta's page. Note the Z34 (370Z) recommended height is different so you may have to mess with rear shock length a bit unless yours is true-type in the rear and not OEM/seperate spring style. The front spring rate is also listed at 14K vs 12 for the G37 (CKV36 chassis designation on that chart). I know you can get them with true-type coilers in the rear as well as a either a solid pillow ball or rubber upper mount. I have the rubber uppers but the steering response is still as sharp as a high-powered laser. Turn-in is pretty instant.

Ape Factory · 11-05-2016, 08:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spooler

Can you post a link or something to the instructions. I did not have any since I bought these 2nd hand with only 5k miles on them. Any tips you can give would help me. I am getting ready to bite the bullet and do mine. The ride into work with the stock Nismo suspension is killing me. The stock dampers just suck.

I'm seriously going to test drive a Nismo to see how bad the ride is! I've heard the IPL dampers are not nearly as firm as the Nismos. I always assumed, given everything else is the same, that both dampers were identical.

OptionZero · 11-05-2016, 10:42 PM

I haven't sat in a pre 2015 nismo but the 2015+ has a revised suspension that was reportedly less jarring

I don't know if they changed the spring rate or just improved the damping

Also, are you planning to get the SPL rear midlinks? If so you will need swift springs

Spooler · 11-06-2016, 11:46 AM

The factory dampers leave something to be desired. Yes, they can be bone jarring at times on a bumpy road. With all the nannies turned off the car is very neutral. I wouldn't even be considering this if it wasn't for the bone jarring ride on rough roads. The factory VLSD is terrible. Replacing this may create some issues. Not sure. I am changing out the springs to Swift's, 12k front and 11k rears. I have the pillow ball top mounts with the rear shock adjusters mounted on the side. No need for drilling any wholes in the car. It is not a true type either.

Spooler · 11-06-2016, 11:49 AM

Thanks Ape Factory, this helps me out big time.

Ape Factory · 11-10-2016, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OptionZero

I haven't sat in a pre 2015 nismo but the 2015+ has a revised suspension that was reportedly less jarring

I don't know if they changed the spring rate or just improved the damping

Also, are you planning to get the SPL rear midlinks? If so you will need swift springs

I am not planning on the SPL mid links. If I make any changes in the future, I'll send the rears to AST for a true-type conversion and move the spring onto the shock. It seems to be too much trouble to try and get the components from Aragosta. They don't respond to my emails unfortunately. Maybe I just need to be more consistent, LOL.

And glad that stuff helped!

Spooler · 11-26-2016, 10:28 PM

Not doing the suspension this weekend. Not physically happening.

Rusty · 11-26-2016, 10:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spooler

Not doing the suspension this weekend. Not physically happening.

Still under the weather? It may be awhile.

Spooler · 11-27-2016, 04:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rusty

Still under the weather? It may be awhile.

Yes, I did something to piss it off this weekend. Oh well, I will try again another weekend.

ban25 · 11-27-2016, 11:21 PM

I was just browsing the SPL site and noticed they've updated the design of their midlinks: "Now with adjustable top hats to reduce spring misalignment!"

Rear Adjustable Toe Midlinks for the 370Z and G37 | SPL Parts

10-31-2016, 11:36 PM	#76 (permalink)
Ape Factory Base Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: San Antonio Posts: 210 Drives: Audi RS5/QX70S Rep Power: 9	Bumping this thread...I keep on going over the rear damper "preload" in my head due to the springs being separate from the damper body. The Aragostas have a blueprint included with the toolkit and they show the damper length, from the center of the bottom mounting eye to the top of the threaded body to be 356mm. I didn't notice this in the diagram and added about 10mm length to the damper body with the suspension pushed all the way down (lower mount still bolted up). If you just let it droop on it's own, there's still room for the suspension to move downward with a bit of force. I think ultimately, the sways/links limit the travel. My main concern is the suspension going into full droop with the damper length being too short and having the piston bottom out. Conversely, if the shock body is too long, the damping is in the wrong part of the stroke and one could top out and hit the bump stops. Either way, as it sits now, the rear suspension "feels" firmer than the front. I run more clicks up front than I do in the rear by quite a bit Backing the damping off the rears, I can get them pretty compliant whereas the fronts always seem to be pretty firm but compliant over the rough stuff with much firmer damper settings. I'm not sure what the end wheel frequencies are with 12K/10K front rear spring rates but they really react quickly to road imperfections. So I'm wondering if I'm setting the damper length correctly on the rears. __________________ '13 Audi RS5 Misano w/mods-The Red Mist '13 G37 IPL-SOLD

11-01-2016, 10:49 PM	#78 (permalink)
Ape Factory Base Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: San Antonio Posts: 210 Drives: Audi RS5/QX70S Rep Power: 9	Ah sorry to hear that...If you lived a whole lot closer I'd come over and help! Anyway, I think I answered my own question. The rear ride is much improved and I plan on changing the damper length to spec tomorrow after work. I think I have it pretty close now but want to obviously double check everything. __________________ '13 Audi RS5 Misano w/mods-The Red Mist '13 G37 IPL-SOLD

11-05-2016, 08:13 PM	#80 (permalink)
Ape Factory Base Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: San Antonio Posts: 210 Drives: Audi RS5/QX70S Rep Power: 9	The instructions are all in Japanese but here's a good video that'll walk you through most of the basics: https://youtu.be/nlmDYah5UsU The online FSM will have all the torque specs, just scroll down and pick your year: Nissan 370Z Factory Service Manuals Lastly, here's the blueprint that came with the kit. Notice the 80mm height measurement for the rear spring adapter. You'll use the factory rubber upper/lower if your kit is the same as mine. At first I thought it would be way high and lowered the collar substantially. Big mistake. I didn't realize the lower rubber OEM isolator rotates and sits in a "groove" so to speak. So it was sitting far higher than it should. The measurements there are correct for their recommended height and it takes the worry out of trying to figure out the right height for everything: The specs for the 370Z kit are slightly different from the G37 kit but I'd imagine the rear shock free length and spring height are identical. Same for the front. If you notice, they even says Z34 near the rear spring perch diagram. Everything came assembled, and the fronts came assembled with the proper preload and everything. Springs have not sagged a mm since installation. __________________ '13 Audi RS5 Misano w/mods-The Red Mist '13 G37 IPL-SOLD Last edited by Ape Factory; 11-05-2016 at 08:30 PM.

11-05-2016, 08:25 PM	#81 (permalink)
Ape Factory Base Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: San Antonio Posts: 210 Drives: Audi RS5/QX70S Rep Power: 9	All the other instructions are in Japanese and aren't actually specific to the G/Z. Here's the chart w/specs off of Aragosta's page. Note the Z34 (370Z) recommended height is different so you may have to mess with rear shock length a bit unless yours is true-type in the rear and not OEM/seperate spring style. The front spring rate is also listed at 14K vs 12 for the G37 (CKV36 chassis designation on that chart). I know you can get them with true-type coilers in the rear as well as a either a solid pillow ball or rubber upper mount. I have the rubber uppers but the steering response is still as sharp as a high-powered laser. Turn-in is pretty instant. __________________ '13 Audi RS5 Misano w/mods-The Red Mist '13 G37 IPL-SOLD Last edited by Ape Factory; 11-05-2016 at 08:28 PM.

11-05-2016, 10:42 PM	#83 (permalink)
OptionZero A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Sacramento Posts: 3,225 Drives: 15 370Z Nismo 6MT Rep Power: 214100	I haven't sat in a pre 2015 nismo but the 2015+ has a revised suspension that was reportedly less jarring I don't know if they changed the spring rate or just improved the damping Also, are you planning to get the SPL rear midlinks? If so you will need swift springs Last edited by OptionZero; 11-05-2016 at 10:45 PM.

11-01-2016, 11:31 AM	#77 (permalink)
Spooler A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Ga Posts: 13,800 Drives: 2013 Nismo 370z Rep Power: 2684392	Still sitting in the boxes at the moment. My neck is still giving me crap. My left arm strength is still not back to normal. I want to put it on but 2 weeks ago I needed to do a tranny service on my truck. Long story short, the wife had to help me hold the pan up to get a bolt started. I also paid for it for a week waking up every morning hurting.

11-06-2016, 11:46 AM	#84 (permalink)
Spooler A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Ga Posts: 13,800 Drives: 2013 Nismo 370z Rep Power: 2684392	The factory dampers leave something to be desired. Yes, they can be bone jarring at times on a bumpy road. With all the nannies turned off the car is very neutral. I wouldn't even be considering this if it wasn't for the bone jarring ride on rough roads. The factory VLSD is terrible. Replacing this may create some issues. Not sure. I am changing out the springs to Swift's, 12k front and 11k rears. I have the pillow ball top mounts with the rear shock adjusters mounted on the side. No need for drilling any wholes in the car. It is not a true type either.

11-06-2016, 11:49 AM	#85 (permalink)
Spooler A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Ga Posts: 13,800 Drives: 2013 Nismo 370z Rep Power: 2684392	Thanks Ape Factory, this helps me out big time. MCLOVIN likes this.

11-26-2016, 10:28 PM	#87 (permalink)
Spooler A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Ga Posts: 13,800 Drives: 2013 Nismo 370z Rep Power: 2684392	Not doing the suspension this weekend. Not physically happening.

11-27-2016, 11:21 PM	#90 (permalink)
ban25 Enthusiast Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: SF, CA Posts: 339 Drives: 17 C7 Z06 M7 Rep Power: 66	I was just browsing the SPL site and noticed they've updated the design of their midlinks: "Now with adjustable top hats to reduce spring misalignment!" Rear Adjustable Toe Midlinks for the 370Z and G37 \| SPL Parts Hotrodz likes this. __________________ 2017 Corvette Z06 7MT \| 1LE \| Stage 3 \| DSCSport

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