NEWBIE: First mod for '24 RZ34: Struts/coils or sway bars?

[Thefunk]

I'm trying to decide which to upgrade first. The car has a lot of body roll and I'm scheduled for a track day on June 18th. I'm pretty much convinced to buy the Silver Neomax Coilover kit with swift coils and Z1 Performance Sway Bar set. with the endlinks. I'm a little torn between either getting the coils first, the sway bars, or both at the same time. Does it make more sense to do both? Another couple of items that caught my attention are the Front Chassis Subframe Brace and the Rear Subframe Tie Bar from Z1. I'd like to tighten up the handling of the car quite a bit.

 

[MacCool]

Everybody needs a hobby, and if you can afford it and enjoy the modding, I'd go for the whole package. I was planning on coilovers and sway bars but elected to stage it and started with the Z1 swaybars. Now, having done that, I don't believe that the coilovers would do anything further to enhance my enjoyment of the car. Likewise, in my use, now with the swaybars, I don't feel enough body flexing to make chassis braces a worthwhile expenditure. But....I don't track the car, and although I do drive in a..."spirited"....fashion, I don't push it hard enough that coilovers or chassis stiffening make sense for me relative to my driving enjoyment. I do agree that the Z platform has always had more body roll than it should, however, and I believe that sway bars are a mandatory addition.

I'm confident that you need swaybars, and I'd recommend that you start there. Add the other stuff if you still find the car wanting in the handling department.

 

[Thefunk]

Well, I won't be installing any of this stuff since 1. I'm not a gearhead (yet) and 2. My garage is too small and my driveway is not good for jacking up a car since it is very uneven. I have a trusted family mechanic shop I've been going to for years, and yes I can afford it.

So after you installed the sway bars did you notice a substantial decrease in body roll and better overall handling? I do spirited driving a lot and I think after my first track day I will be hooked and tracking will become a part of my life.

 

[MacCool]

Well, I won't be installing any of this stuff since 1. I'm not a gearhead (yet) and 2. My garage is too small and my driveway is not good for jacking up a car since it is very uneven. I have a trusted family mechanic shop I've been going to for years, and yes I can afford it.

So after you installed the sway bars did you notice a substantial decrease in body roll and better overall handling? I do spirited driving a lot and I think after my first track day I will be hooked and tracking will become a part of my life.

The Z1 swaybars that I installed made a huge difference in body roll. Body roll, to me, is the single biggest handling detractor so that's where I started. I put coilovers on my first 370Z in addition to Eibach sway bars, and it did stiffen the ride, but way too much for me and IMHO did little to affect body roll any more than a good set of sway bars. Those coilovers went beyond stiff and went to full-on harsh. I took them off and sold them. I don't care about ride height...in stock form I scrape the front lip a little on some driveways. I don't want it any lower, and certainly not higher.

The Z1 swaybars are fine, but I doubt that they're any better than any of the others that are out there. I set mine on the stiffest hole, but I've found that to be too stiff for my comfort (harsh ride) and plan on going to the middle hole when I get a chance. I'm kind of waiting to see how the roads shape up as we transition into summer. The roads here in Minnesota are always bumpy as the frost comes out of the ground and April-May is about when the roads get smoother.

 

[jc604]

I did swift springs and cusco sways rear and front. So far the really softness of the z from stock has changed, i can feel the bumps from the road much more but on flat roads it is still very nice. From the steering it feels a bit heavier and turning is much more tight and very noticeable from stock

 

[Thefunk]

Body roll is a huge factor but so too is stability on turns. In my test runs at high speed (+90mph) on turns, at stock, the car is not very stable. Downforce could also be a factor in that. But understeer and the floaty behavior of the car bother me.

If I do decide to change to coilovers and upgrade the sway bars (and endlinks), other than alignment, is there anything else that I have to do or replace/upgrade along with the suspension system? I don't want to make the car faster (yet ) as it has plenty of power as it is. Somewhere down the line I will want a tune to at the very least remove the 80% throttle limit.

 

[Brock]

I did the Z1 Sway bars, top brace, all bottom bracing, and adjustable Down links. I also swapped out the plastic Oil pan, and bottom radiator hose outlet. The bracing, and Sway bars removed all body roll, without sacrificing comfortable long drives. I would not recommend coilovers unless you’re taking your Z to the track.

 

[Thefunk]

I did the Z1 Sway bars, top brace, all bottom bracing, and adjustable Down links. I also swapped out the plastic Oil pan, and bottom radiator hose outlet. The bracing, and Sway bars removed all body roll, without sacrificing comfortable long drives. I would not recommend coilovers unless you’re taking your Z to the track.

Pardon my newbness but what are down links and why did you upgrade/replace them from stock? Did you adjust them and why? How do they affect handling?

A friend of mine who also has an RZ34 mentioned he wants to replace the oil pan. I guess that and the bottom rad hose outlet are susceptible to touching the ground?

Did you replace the sway bars and the braces at the same time?

I do plan on taking the car to track actually. But I won't do coilovers just yet. I want to feel the difference first after upgrading the sway bars and possibly the braces. I'm going to Lime Rock in a few weeks so hopefully by then I will have the sway bars installed.

 

[Brock]

Yes I replaced sway bars, adjustable down links, and installed bracing at the same time. I was told that just even tightening the drain plug on the oil pan with a properly adjusted torque wrench, could potentially crack the plastic oil pan. So to avoid that, I replaced it. I sent an image regarding down links!

 

[MacCool]

Pardon my newbness but what are down links and why did you upgrade/replace them from stock? Did you adjust them and why? How do they affect handling?

A friend of mine who also has an RZ34 mentioned he wants to replace the oil pan. I guess that and the bottom rad hose outlet are susceptible to touching the ground?

If you're talking about 90+ mph turns on the street-not-track, well...it's sounding to me like maybe you should have bought a Nismo because it's a little closer to being the race car that seems to be your preference. I'm a "spirited" driver (or so my wife says) but I have no need for that kind of handling on regular streets because I just don't consider is reasonable (for me) to push it that hard on the highway rather than the more controlled environment of the track. Nor do I want to sacrifice everyday drivability for such a small part of my driving needs.

As to downlinks...you'd want the actual links to be robust enough to minimize flex, but probably more important is the nature of the bushings where the bar bolts up. It's a little counterproductive to buy a heavier sway bar to elimate flex/body roll but still allow flex from soft bushings.

 

[ec15]

Body roll is a huge factor but so too is stability on turns. In my test runs at high speed (+90mph) on turns, at stock, the car is not very stable. Downforce could also be a factor in that. But understeer and the floaty behavior of the car bother me.

If I do decide to change to coilovers and upgrade the sway bars (and endlinks), other than alignment, is there anything else that I have to do or replace/upgrade along with the suspension system? I don't want to make the car faster (yet ) as it has plenty of power as it is. Somewhere down the line I will want a tune to at the very least remove the 80% throttle limit.

Feel the car on the track first.
What's good on the track can make a horrible street car and possibly dangerous.

To answer your question, it depends if you will lower your car or not. If you lower it, you will need adjustable suspension arms to get the car back into alignment. Also, the soft bushings is where you are feeling the float.

Where are you taking 90mph turns on long Island?
Save it for the track.

 

[Brock]

Yes I replaced sway bars, adjustable down links, and installed bracing at the same time. I was told that just even tightening the drain plug on the oil pan with a properly adjusted torque wrench, could potentially crack the plastic oil pan. So to avoid that, I replaced it. I sent an image regarding down links!

 

[Brock]

The car is very low to the ground as it is. If you’re using it primarily for street use, I recommend not lowering it further. The Sway bars that come from Z1 come with nylon bushings. If you do get them, I recommend using the proper adhesive to secure them in place. If you don’t, they have tendency to move around. You don’t want to hear squeaking when driving. ?

 

[Thefunk]

Yes I replaced sway bars, adjustable down links, and installed bracing at the same time. I was told that just even tightening the drain plug on the oil pan with a properly adjusted torque wrench, could potentially crack the plastic oil pan. So to avoid that, I replaced it. I sent an image regarding down links!

I ended up ordering Stillen sway bars, they told me I can use the stock end links. Should I also order adjustable end links?

 

[Brock]

I would