Suspension and Steering Help!

[HuskeRZ34]

I just picked up a slightly used 24’ MT performance about a week ago. I’m coming from a GR86 with the performance pack which I loved but had some short falls mainly in the power and creature comfort department that would take almost 50% of the MSRP to fix and make it way more unreliable. The Z definitely fixes that (except for the seats which are just okay, the GR’s are much better). However, the two things the GR excels at versus the Z is steering feel (not great but better but the Z is heavier which I like) and chassis/suspension. The GR is definitely a more playful car and I think a lot of it comes down to weight but the suspension out of the box on the performance pack also contributes to it. So how can I improve these few areas to capture part of what I love from my GR but have a much more powerful and nice car than that GR ever could be!?

So here are my thoughts. My daily is a newer Lexus IS350 F sport and there is a simple and pretty reasonable upgrade with swapping out the front lower control arm bushings with either the RC-F (which I did) or other aftermarket options. It’s not a night and day difference but the steering wheel is more talkative and a little heavier to turn. In turn with the GR you could put the STI steering rack bolts in which also helped in feel but not really in weighting. Is there something like one of these to do with the Z?

For suspension I’m thinking coilovers with either the HKS Hypermax S or Nismo option. Wildcards now are KW or if a Ohlins R&T option comes out very very soon! Then pair that with the NISMO stabilizer bars for front and rear or another reputable brand. I definitely favor going the OEM route with Nismo for obvious warranty reasons and ease of service if needed but not against a 3rd party if it will give a better outcome for the same money or much better for more. In doing this I want to keep the GT nature and road trip ability of the car but tighten and firm it up a bit versus stock so it’s more fun and planted in the twisties. For ride height I want to keep it pretty close to stock maybe .5 to .75 inches lower not slammed. Beside the shocks, springs and stabilizer bars are there any other components I should consider swapping as well while I’m in there? I’m not looking for any kind of crazy track alignment that greatly differs from stock so I don’t need a bunch more adjustability. Any thoughts on these choices with my goals in mind? Or would I pretty much accomplish my goals with just swift lowering springs and stabilizer bars and save a grand or more?! I’ve searched the forum and for every couple positive notes there is one word of caution!

My other planed mods are putting the AT exhaust on it, NISMO intakes, much better tires (not sure if I want to go the high performance all season or summer yet), and a upgraded steering wheel on order from JDMuscle. Other than that out of the box it’s a great car, it just needs help making the fun noises and being more playful! Thank you all for your wisdom!

 

[Bumflik]

They made the car soft suspension ride out of the factory. So yep addressing the suspension is a must. You are on point and have a good awareness for improving it to suit a better tuned ride for spirited and track driving. Stock sways, control arms ,springs have to be swapped for after market. Aftermarket Diff brace and strut bar helps too. I went as far to put a aero big ass wing 🪽 from Voltex Suzuka Racing out of Japan for more downforce to totally delete happy ass rear. Im so much in control and have maximum confidence on the curves with addressing the suspension, tires, Aero thus fsr.

 

[HuskeRZ34]

They made the car soft suspension ride out of the factory. So yep addressing the suspension is a must. You are on point and have a good awareness for improving it to suit a better tuned ride for spirited and track driving. Stock sways, control arms ,springs have to be swapped for after market. Aftermarket Diff brace and strut bar helps too. I went as far to put a aero big ass wing 🪽 from Voltex Suzuka Racing out of Japan for more downforce to totally delete happy ass rear. Im so much in control and have maximum confidence on the curves with addressing the suspension, tires, Aero thus fsr.

You notice a change swapping out the factory strut bar? What did you swap to? I know NISMO has a nice option but I figured it’s more cosmetic than improved function.

 

[Bumflik]

I am actually leaning on addressing the strut brace next actually. Looking at Z1s
https://www.z1motorsports.com/all-s...NWsLK_47fW87Q2NLkWj6_g0QwKxYp_AxoCofwQAvD_BwE

 

[FSUZ33]

Planning coilovers for my next buy. Leaning HKS Hipermax S but haven't decided. I would like the Ohlins/NISMO setup, but not sure if it's out or if I can get my hands on it.

Ohlins Europe is listing an R&T kit for Z34 and RZ34, and it's obtainable, but there are no options, and the spring rates appear to be for the Z34 (10.2K front, 7.13K rear). Not everyone advertises their spring rates (annoying!) but based on a post here the factory rates on the Sport and Perf are f10.2K/r8.13K and NISMO 10.8K on all 4 corners. Prefer not to roll the dice on that R&T kit only for the rear to feel like a '99 Grand Marquis.

Ohlins/NISMO is f12K/r13K. For comparison, the RZ34 Hipermax S is f12K/r11K.

 

[HuskeRZ34]

Planning coilovers for my next buy. Leaning HKS Hipermax S but haven't decided. I would like the Ohlins/NISMO setup, but not sure if it's out or if I can get my hands on it.

Ohlins Europe is listing an R&T kit for Z34 and RZ34, and it's obtainable, but there are no options, and the spring rates appear to be for the Z34 (10.2K front, 7.13K rear). Not everyone advertises their spring rates (annoying!) but based on a post here the factory rates on the Sport and Perf are f10.2K/r8.13K and NISMO 10.8K on all 4 corners. Prefer not to roll the dice on that R&T kit only for the rear to feel like a '99 Grand Marquis.

Ohlins/NISMO is f12K/r13K. For comparison, the RZ34 Hipermax S is f12K/r11K.

Really good to know! Do you happen to know the spring rates for the NISMO coilover set they sell now in the states? I’d be curious too on who makes them as they can’t be super high end since they can be bought around $1500.

 

[FSUZ33]

Haven’t seen the spring rates for the NISMO coilover kit listed anywhere.

 

[OptionZero]

I just picked up a slightly used 24’ MT performance about a week ago. I’m coming from a GR86 with the performance pack which I loved but had some short falls mainly in the power and creature comfort department that would take almost 50% of the MSRP to fix and make it way more unreliable. The Z definitely fixes that (except for the seats which are just okay, the GR’s are much better). However, the two things the GR excels at versus the Z is steering feel (not great but better but the Z is heavier which I like) and chassis/suspension. The GR is definitely a more playful car and I think a lot of it comes down to weight but the suspension out of the box on the performance pack also contributes to it. So how can I improve these few areas to capture part of what I love from my GR but have a much more powerful and nice car than that GR ever could be!?

So here are my thoughts. My daily is a newer Lexus IS350 F sport and there is a simple and pretty reasonable upgrade with swapping out the front lower control arm bushings with either the RC-F (which I did) or other aftermarket options. It’s not a night and day difference but the steering wheel is more talkative and a little heavier to turn. In turn with the GR you could put the STI steering rack bolts in which also helped in feel but not really in weighting. Is there something like one of these to do with the Z?

For suspension I’m thinking coilovers with either the HKS Hypermax S or Nismo option. Wildcards now are KW or if a Ohlins R&T option comes out very very soon! Then pair that with the NISMO stabilizer bars for front and rear or another reputable brand. I definitely favor going the OEM route with Nismo for obvious warranty reasons and ease of service if needed but not against a 3rd party if it will give a better outcome for the same money or much better for more. In doing this I want to keep the GT nature and road trip ability of the car but tighten and firm it up a bit versus stock so it’s more fun and planted in the twisties. For ride height I want to keep it pretty close to stock maybe .5 to .75 inches lower not slammed. Beside the shocks, springs and stabilizer bars are there any other components I should consider swapping as well while I’m in there? I’m not looking for any kind of crazy track alignment that greatly differs from stock so I don’t need a bunch more adjustability. Any thoughts on these choices with my goals in mind? Or would I pretty much accomplish my goals with just swift lowering springs and stabilizer bars and save a grand or more?! I’ve searched the forum and for every couple positive notes there is one word of caution!

My other planed mods are putting the AT exhaust on it, NISMO intakes, much better tires (not sure if I want to go the high performance all season or summer yet), and a upgraded steering wheel on order from JDMuscle. Other than that out of the box it’s a great car, it just needs help making the fun noises and being more playful! Thank you all for your wisdom!

OEM alignment is incredibly conservative; the Z34 chassis understeers out of the box.

You want SPL Parts /Nismo (rebranded SPL's) Front Upper Control Arms to dial in more caster and negative camber

You want the rear arms for the same
See this post to explain which arms and why:
https://www.nissanzclub.com/forum/t...-suspension-questions.5995/page-6#post-149962

The Z34 will never feel like the GR86 due to . . . physics.

Trading OEM arms for adjustable ones, and also ones with spherical joints, will increase the feeling of connectedness.

I have yet to hear anything bad about Ohlins, as they've been in the game forever at a high level.
You are looking for something rebulidable/serviceable stateside, and doesn't require mailing parts overaseas.

I am highly satisfied with my Topline Aragosta coilovers but JDM coolness requires JDM service which is incredibly expensive. Used to think AST could service them but AST USA says they won't, so i was SOL.

Anyways, I would also recommend trying to link up with members with other suspension mods and testing how they feel.

 

[FSUZ33]

I emailed Ohlins USA this morning. Probably won’t get a reply. But if so, and it has helpful info, I’ll post.

 

[HuskeRZ34]

OEM alignment is incredibly conservative; the Z34 chassis understeers out of the box.

You want SPL Parts /Nismo (rebranded SPL's) Front Upper Control Arms to dial in more caster and negative camber

You want the rear arms for the same
See this post to explain which arms and why:
https://www.nissanzclub.com/forum/t...-suspension-questions.5995/page-6#post-149962

The Z34 will never feel like the G36 due to . . . physics.

Trading OEM arms for adjustable ones, and also ones with spherical joints, will increase the feeling of connectedness.

I have yet to hear anything bad about Ohlins, as they've been in the game forever at a high level.
You are looking for something rebulidable/serviceable stateside, and doesn't require mailing parts overaseas.

I am highly satisfied with my Topline Aragosta coilovers but JDM coolness requires JDM service which is incredibly expensive. Used to think AST could service them but AST USA says they won't, so i was SOL.

Anyways, I would also recommend trying to link up with members with other suspension mods and testing how they feel.

Thanks! Great info!

 

[HuskeRZ34]

Update on the steering part, I see Z1 has solid steering rack bushings, anyone have any experience with these? I’m very tempted but worried about excessive NVH. I don’t mind getting a little bit more if it means a more talkative rack but don’t want to make it something I’ll dislike. Here is the link…

https://www.z1motorsports.com/all-s...san-solid-steering-rack-bushings-p-61283.html

 

[OptionZero]

Update on the steering part, I see Z1 has solid steering rack bushings, anyone have any experience with these? I’m very tempted but worried about excessive NVH. I don’t mind getting a little bit more if it means a more talkative rack but don’t want to make it something I’ll dislike. Here is the link…

https://www.z1motorsports.com/all-s...san-solid-steering-rack-bushings-p-61283.html

Overkill on a street car
Improve the alignment first

 

[HuskeRZ34]

Update…. A few weeks ago I put on the NISMO covers and stabilizer bars. Definitely helped in the handling feel department. Maybe slightly more steering feel but ever so slightly. I kept the factory control arms and maybe that is the next upgrade to make the suspension more adjustable to help with steering feel a little more. Also considering upgrading a lot of the bushings to help with chassis feel/playfulness. I don’t want to invite a lot of new NVH but okay with a little bit more in exchange for a very noticeable increase. Has anyone gone the bushing upgrade route and if so how did it turn out, what brand(s) did you use, and would you do it again?!

 

[Drago86]

Update on the steering part, I see Z1 has solid steering rack bushings, anyone have any experience with these? I’m very tempted but worried about excessive NVH. I don’t mind getting a little bit more if it means a more talkative rack but don’t want to make it something I’ll dislike. Here is the link…

https://www.z1motorsports.com/all-s...san-solid-steering-rack-bushings-p-61283.html

I JUST installed these last weekend, I havn't had time to make a post about it yet.

They do increase the steering feel a lot. The numb steering was a huge downside for me, and I saw that they increased these bushing's stiffness on the Nismo Z by 400% so figured it was a good place to start.

The install is a major PITA ,doing it without removing the rack, it legit took me 10+ hours including an 11pm trip to Walmart for a blow torch and 18mm wrench.... I'm not entirely sure Z1 tested the install on the new Z, all the pictures they show are from the 370 and the electric power steering motor prevents the rack from tipping enough to get a good grip on the stock bushing on one side so removal was pretty painful. I also think they took their measurements after flap wheeling the hell out of the stock bushings because installation was TIGHT and they kept wanting to go in crooked,.. hence the torch (I did freeze the bushings but didn't get a single one in while they were still frozen due to them seizing up/going cooked at some point during the install). GKtech also makes a set, I'm not sure if they are any easier though(or even if they fit because they are listed for the 370z only). It IS *TECHNICALLY* possible to install them with the rack in the car though.

But I LOVE how the car feels now. I can feel the road texture and what the front tires are doing through the wheel now, which is exactly what I wanted.

I did them at the same time as Hipermax S's, so NVH is up a bit in general but the rack bushing should only really effect what you feel through the wheel. I highly recommend them for feel if you can get them installed. I also don't think that the added NVH from he hipermax's is bad at all, the car feels all around better and more sporty to me.

The Hipermax S's are also great, HUGE HUGE improvement over stock suspension. No more floaty under dampened mess the stock suspension was. It truly feels like a sports car now, even if it is a 17 year old cut down sports sedan chassis, it at least looks and feels the part now.

I HIGHLY recommend both mods if you like your sports cars to feel sporty.

Id just like to add also that the stock bushing are a partially suspended type with large voids, hence the completely numb wheel. They were probably exactly what a G37 buyer was looking for 20 years ago.

 

[Thefunk]

If you want to make the Z "playful" like the GR86 (or a Miata), you'll need to stiffen the suspension, upgrade the brakes (rotors, pads, braided lines, fluid), better tires, and add a little more power.