Hey Clint its Arash, met you at Kawika's house last week. Like i said then and i will say it now. One of the cleansest sedans on this site.

How much did you get the clear bra for. Im in desperate need of one.

Nice car man. Let me know when you go to Willow Springs i will come with you.

2004 Diamond Graphite G35 Coupe 6MT, Premium Package, Aero Package, DVD Nav

2003 Brilliant Silver G35 Sedan Premium Package, Aero Package, DVD Nav

 

Thanks Arash!

Ahh yes, clear bra's one of the best things I've added to my car. I had it applied just a few days after receiving the car and the darn thing literally paid itself off on the drive back from the shop (counted at least 4 'would of been' paint chips)

Just last week, I hit a huge tire tread on the freeway at 65 mph. The lady in front of me didn't even flinch ... sigh ... 'it' just appeared to have materialized out of her tail pipe and there was no time to react. Luckily the *urethane* Nismo front bumper took the blow well with only a slight dent at one spot. The clear bra took all of the superficial abrasions, which covered the entire front end. Virtually all of the black marks were buffed out leaving only a slight battle scar and discoloration. It could have been a lot worse.

I was 'hooked up' for the install from a friend of my cousin's for $500, which covered the entire front-end, side mirrors and the area under the door handles. I would not recommend them however. I'd rate the quality of their installed a 7/10 at best. I have seen reports of people having similar yet quality jobs performed for ~$650. You might want to make an inquiry in the SoCal area.

Track event at 'Big' Willow Springs will be June 4th just a couple of months away. Yayyy! I will post more info under the 'West Forum' to keep everyone posted. I'd love to see more Gs come out and play




Clint (THX723)

 

Hey ... just happened to come across this thread. You may find it useful.



Clint (THX723)

 

HA HA thanks

Yea so that day in the canyons, you literally blew me away since your suspension is redone. But i think i will take you next time. Im getting my stuff put on on Friday. So will be ready for you this time LOL.

2004 Diamond Graphite G35 Coupe 6MT, Premium Package, Aero Package, DVD Nav

2003 Brilliant Silver G35 Sedan Premium Package, Aero Package, DVD Nav

 

Just curious, which coilover system are you going with? JIC I presume?

Remember, my current setting's actually handicapped with excessive understeer. Once dialed out properly it will be pure bliss to tear through the canyons (or tracks) the proper way

I acutally think the stock Coupe's suspension pretty decent. It's leagues ahead of the sedan's for elevated duty.



Clint (THX723)<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small"><EM>Edited by THX723 on 04/07/04 01:20 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

Yea i got the JIC coilovers and also got the hotchiks sways. I spelled that wrong but who care LOL.

Maybe you can help me get the correct setting on the car when its all done.


2004 Diamond Graphite G35 Coupe 6MT, Premium Package, Aero Package, DVD Nav

2003 Brilliant Silver G35 Sedan Premium Package, Aero Package, DVD Nav

 

Arash,
FLTA2s correct? You may or may not be aware of the 10 kg/mm spring rates used for both front and rear. That is exactly what I've got (for my Tein Flex) at the moment and promotes quite a bit of understeer. Your'll experience less of that since you're less 'staggered' than I am.

Clint (THX723)

 

Clint PLEASE help me!!!!!
Did you have the 12kg Flex and swap and just swap the springs?
If so, did you revalve the shocks as well?
And, if so, PLEASE explain in detail the difference it made.

I have the 12kg Flex and I need (for my pregnant wife, argh) to eliminate the harshness. As you know, even on the softest setting they are NOT soft. PLEASE help, I also PMed you.
Thanks man.

On the understeer note. It is definetly your wider rear than front that is promoting that. I use Hotchkis sways and run both sways and Flex on the same setting. Result: nuetral bordering on oversteer. I use the same width tires F+R.

Chris Ressler
PasSport Infiniti - Quality Control Manager
Capital G club - President
** Your friend on the inside **

 

I would like to know about the 10kg springs also. I have a set of springs coming but want to go to a full coilover set eventually. If I could get the basics (9 kg) with the EDFC, I'd be all over it. The CS are probably too soft at 7kg and I'm afraid of the 12 kg Flex for everyday driving.

 

ProDrift,
Indeed I had the 12-kg/mm springs swapped out for the 10s. I'm glad I'm not the only one that felt the 12s in combination with Tein's valve settings was simply too much for most of us on a daily driving basis. God, I couldn't imagine you w. the Hotchkis sway bars in addition to the equation, as the ride would have been far worse. I was sway bar less when I had the 12s and that was plenty! I didn't feel sway bars were necessary for further roll control other than for use in massaging the understeer out.

After less than 2-weeks of ownership, I had enough. I sought to sell them then to order another set with custom spring and valve rates from Tein. I spoke with Tein at length, but they unfortunately do not offer 'custom' orders The only option was to have them retro-fitted at the rate of $100 per shock and $50 per front spring and $75 per rear spring. A grand total of $650 ... OUCH!

I was then fortunate enough to have someone local who was interested in swapping his *older* version of the 10 kg/mm Flex w. mine; a younger lad to whom ride quality was of no concern. I'm forever grateful ... lots of stress and money saved There is one little hitch, however. I swapped everything with the exception of the rear damper section. I experienced the well documented 'clacking' noise from the rear upper mounts during the test drive; something that has been address with the newer 12 kg/mm versions. There was no way I could have bared that in my car.

All Tein dampers have a +/- 2 kg/mm adjustment range. For example, the 12 kg/mm shocks you currently have will match well with springs rated from 10k to 14k. You lose the luxury to either under damp (more comfort) or over damp (more control) at either end of the spectrum.

To quickly sum it up, if I was to give my *stock* components (sports suspension + 215/55 Eagle F1-GSD) a rating of 10 out of 10 in ride quality, after the Tein Type Flex 12 kg/mm upgrade would have resulted in a 5. Swapping the 12 kg/mm for the 10 kg/mm springs saw an improvement to 7. Then the addition of the Eibach sway bars knocked it back down to a 6. Now with the 19-inch low aspect tire setup the ride quality really took a hit ... back down to say a 5 or even 4!

al503 I hope that helps you too And yes, if you even enterained the thought of "will it be too stiff for me?", then it will likely be way too stiff for you.


Clint (THX723)<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small"><EM>Edited by THX723 on 04/08/04 11:45 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

Thanks Clint,
I'm got my Hotchkis sways in yesterday and will be putting them on hopefully this weekend along with my RSR Ti Springs.

I thinking more and more that the CS (w/ 7 kg springs) would be the way to go for me. The spring rates are about 25% stiffer in the front and about 15% stiffer in the rear. With the EDFC to full soft, I think that I could get as soft as the stock (if not slightly softer) and at full stiff, something appropirate for autocross purposes.

Thanks for the scale example. That helped mucho.

 

Forget me asking if you were local Clint, I just saw your locale.
I too spoke with Tein at length and finally got confirmation that a 9kg spring is also possible if you maintain the soft setting. A revelation, though they must be imported from Japan for a total cost of $450. Another ouch.

Important Questions:
How much better is the ride in the rear with the same damper?
And, you traded the front damper, right? (damper being the shock, that is what you mean, correct?)

I'm considering getting the 10kg springs only, before I give up on the Tein Flex.

Chris Ressler
PasSport Infiniti - Quality Control Manager
Capital G club - President
** Your friend on the inside **

 

Yes. Damper is another name for shocks.

The ride quality improved significantly after the 10k swap (minus the rear damper). While it's definitely more livable compared to the 12k, it still makes its presence know when going over large humps at speed.

A complete set of 10 kg/mm replacement springs will likely run you approx. $250. But if you're going to swap them at all, you might as well get 9-front and 10-rear. That'll allow you to tune down your rear sway bar setting (to gain back a little more ride comfort) while maintaining the neutral handling balance.

Let me know how it works out for you.

Clint (THX723)<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small"><EM>Edited by THX723 on 04/09/04 12:11 AM.</EM></FONT></P>