Firstly before I ask my questions, I want to say that I have done a search on the forum and spent hours with no luck with my specific questions so I hope not to be flammed or told to search the forum. I know that this topic has been widely discussed. I tried to pm Gsedan35 but it looks like I don't have enough posts.

I want to know if anyone has lowered the the 6MT Sedan with 350Z revised suspension with stock coupe 18's wheel/tires. Being the 6MT, the stock suspension should be the sport version. There are many people on the forum with 350Z springs but most have aftermarket shocks/struts most likely due to better performance over just 350Z full suspension.

I am interested in the 350Z full suspension due to economic reasons and don't want to spend a lot on camber kits, new shocks, etc. I am mainly interested in better handling and less body lean/roll without compromising much on ride. I have read the threads which mostly seem to indicate a great improvement over the stock sport sedan suspension which is what I'm after.

My questions are:

1) If I change out the stock sedan sport suspension to the 350Z full suspension, will I have any issues with rubbing (during cornering or loaded down) due to the wider 18" coupe rim/tire setup?

2) How badly will the camber/toe and other alignment issue be out by given the coupe rim/tire setup?

3) Are there any handling issues at the limit as experienced with the pre-04 350Z suspension (porpoising, bounce etc.)?

4) How much increased tire wear or uneven tire wear would there be? Important as where I'm located, 18" tires still cost a fortune to the tune of C$400 each for the oem Pilot Sport 18's. Even aftermarket 18's are still expensive.

Any advice, comments, opinions and obviously experiences with this setup would be greatly appreciated. The biggest concern is rubbing as a result of lowering with wider than stock tires. I know there are some with lowered sedans running 20" rims with no rubbing but if I'm not mistaken, the alignments are greatly different than factory.

Bottom line is that I'm looking for a low cost solution for a bit better handling taking into account the increased wheel sizing.

 

Quamby88...

As with "most" ( I didn't want to offend anyone by saying 'all' ) lowering, whether w/ 350Z setup or aftermarket...you should experience some decrease in comfort. Just how "bad" it really is depends on the individual. For example, I've had many fixed-up cars in the past (yes - including a slammed Integra...LOL)...so, I'm used the harsher-riding setups. For more conservative (usually older) drivers, my setup "sucks & specs are all out of whack".

That said, my G-sedan 6MT is also quite low, utilizing aftermarket springs for 350Z on factory Sport Suspension struts. When I hit sizeable bumps and/or dips in the road, you can totally feel it. And yes, I know my struts will probably need replacing within the year.

Camber is totally negative...but that's the way I like it. I've noticed much improved, faster turning. Again, the conservative among us will say that its bad 'cause it will wear your tires out unevenly & faster. I am well aware of that, but thats a price I'm willing to pay.

The factory Sport Suspension setup is quite stiff & handles great the way it is. If your main objective w/ lowering is simply for the looks, get something conservative like Tein S-Tech springs or something. You can run them w/ your factory struts & the ride should be relatively unchanged. Also, since they don't lower that much, your camber will only be affected slightly & thus tire wear shouldn't be too big of an issue.

However, if you're lowering it for performance reasons, then just keep in mind that the harder you drive, the faster your tires will wear...and so on, and so on. And that is regardless of your camber, etc.

As for the Coupe wheel/tire setup...that should fit your Sedan with absolutely no problems whatsoever. The only concern some may have being tire SIZE. Sedans should use a slightly wider tread & higher sidewall tire than the Coupe (front). But, you should still be fine regardless if you just keep the tires that come w/ the Coupe wheels. But once its time to replace, replace w/ the same size (as that of the Coupe rears) all the way around.

Hope that helps a little...good luck! ^-^

 

Thanks for your input Jimmy. Actually, if I could achieve better handling without lowering, it wouldn't bother me so the main purpose is not to obtain a lowered look, but will admit it does look much better lowered. I pretty sure that my 6mt should have the sport suspension but to me, it doesn't really feel all that firm and hence I'm looking for some improvement.

I had a '93 RX-7 TT and the reviews from others who owned one said the ride was bone jarring but I thought it was ok. Yes, you did feel all the road imperfections but not that bad. I would suspect that going with the 350Z full suspension would not even be as firm as that of the RX-7 or at least no worse. I kinda miss the road feel actually.

 

Quamby...

Another thing that might give you back some road feel is bigger wheels & lower profile tires.

Even though our 6MT comes w/ 18" wheels...the tires are really tall. Hence, they tend to flex quite a bit during hard cornering. If you went up to 19" and had thinner sidewall'd tires...you should like the handling alot more.

FD RX7, huh? NICE...!!!

 

SO if i get S-techs how uneven will my drop be? Will there be anyway i can even it out? and how necessary would it be to get a camber?

ive read something about "Z/coupe combo Coupe/Sports Sedan"<--- wtf does this mean? can you clarify this for me PLEASE! i would really love to know bc i have no clue what it means or how to look for them. how much are they?