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I like a firm ride! I did like the Tein Street Basis Z and the Enduro Pro Plus set to full stiff. But they did not last long at all. I hear that's a common issue with Tein shocks. That could because of my IPL springs though.
Disappointing to hear. Seems that Konis are all that's left for us lowered RWD sport model types.
Although, with that said, the original Tokicos are still working well. I've found the bump stops a few times while trying to avoid crevasses in the pavement.
KYB used to make more options than just the gas-a-just version - I can remember the KYB AGX was the bomb for FC3S combined with Ground Control coilover kit. Or Tokiko whites with GC coilovers for the FB3S.
I am surprised the Tein's have such a short lifespan. I've always heard good stuff about them.
Did rear diff bushing today. I cant even remember why I first ground this sawzall blade into this shape. But it is my go-to blade for everything. Worked beautifully on this after drilling a few holes though the bushing. Also did front and rear sways. I went with Z1. The front was stupid easy to replace after spending several hours on the rear end.
Last edited by Rochester; May 25, 2025 at 07:26 AM.
Reason: Fixed tags
KYB used to make more options than just the gas-a-just version - I can remember the KYB AGX was the bomb for FC3S combined with Ground Control coilover kit. Or Tokico whites with GC coilovers for the FB3S.
I am surprised the Tein's have such a short lifespan. I've always heard good stuff about them.
Outside of the Tesla guys and a few Toyota Truck installations, I cannot find anything online. Anything posted about them on our platform goes straight to a coilover discussion. At this point, I am leaning towards replacement OEM struts/shocks from Amayama. I love how my car rides and handles now, so I don't want to screw anything up and make it excessively uncomfortable as I often need to drive customers and distributors around. I'm already a tad self conscious when I need to ease over speed bumps one wheel at a time.I always hear my wife in the back of my head saying "you paid money to break your car?"
After slowly accumulating all of the parts, I’m finally ready to take the plunge into the Z1 big brake kit and new wheel hubs at the same time to just get this out of the way since labor will be better this way. Got the dust shields from Amayama and the NVA wheel hubs and bolts from Z1. I couldn’t bring myself to spend double on the true oem hubs, hopefully the NVA will be good enough, Now, just need to pray that the Z1 calipers fit on the oem wheels. They say they have the “same limitations” as the oem Akebonos which leads me to believe they designed them with the same clearances. BUT, the front calipers are HUGE, If they do fit, it’s going to be by a hair I feel.
I know there is a post on this site showing clearly that the Akebonos work with stock 18 x 7.5” rims, so if what Z1 says is true, then they should work, but still nervous by the sheer size of the front calipers. They are certainly going to fill up the wheels!
Oh, and since this is “my son’s car”, he got excited and ordered these 😁. I think they were like 24$ on Amazon for FOUR lights! I also swapped out the reverse lights for white leds to match everything else and did the aluminum radio and hvac controls and did the Geyon ceramic coating for all of the glass.
Looking to at least get the front half of the car paint corrected and ceramic coated on Monday without sucking up my whole day,
Got the dust shields from Amayama and the NVA wheel hubs and bolts from Z1. I couldn’t bring myself to spend double on the true oem hubs, hopefully the NVA will be good enough
I would recommend the oem hubs. Read stories about vibrations with the NVA hubs. I know it hurts but you won't be replacing them for years. I got a Dorman hub trying to save $$$ and I felt vibrations and could still hear some noise. So I went oem. If you search around you can find them for around $215 from dealers online stores, unless prices have gone up in a couple of years.
I would recommend the oem hubs. Read stories about vibrations with the NVA hubs. I know it hurts but you won't be replacing them for years. I got a Dorman hub trying to save $$$ and I felt vibrations and could still hear some noise. So I went oem. If you search around you can find them for around $215 from dealers online stores, unless prices have gone up in a couple of years.
Damn. I should’ve done more research on these. I almost always go oem but I figured maybe just this one instance I could get away with a half priced alternative instead. Figures. I’m sure shipping them back won’t be cheap either. Guess I’ll just do it right like I should have in the first place…
I imagine your ride must have felt night and day difference???
It's interesting. The sway bars definitely made a big difference and I was expecting that. I was not expecting the diff bushing to make such a difference. Just getting it moving from zero is so much smoother. Before the clutch felt like skippy? stuttery? Not sure how to describe it but engaging from zero had to be either very gentle, or full blast. Now I can just drive like a normal person if I want to. I always attributed that to the clutch material or springs or something. But I guess it must have been wobble in the diff. Seriously, I think made more of an improvement than the rjm pedal.
It's interesting. The sway bars definitely made a big difference and I was expecting that. I was not expecting the diff bushing to make such a difference. Just getting it moving from zero is so much smoother. Before the clutch felt like skippy? stuttery? Not sure how to describe it but engaging from zero had to be either very gentle, or full blast. Now I can just drive like a normal person if I want to. I always attributed that to the clutch material or springs or something. But I guess it must have been wobble in the diff. Seriously, I think made more of an improvement than the rjm pedal.
Diff bushings and front/rear power bars (bracing) made a noticeable difference for me. These upgrades combined with lowering, spacing, coupe alignment specs and mad sticky tires makes my car feel very neutral, and I am trying to find body roll and cannot detect any.
The one think I do notice is when I am driving around 70mphish on flat, yet uneven road, there are times when the rebound feels like it wants to pull me in another direction like the toe is changing. I think this is referred to as "Bump Steer"
AI provided description:
"Bump steer is an undesirable condition where the wheels of a vehicle steer themselves in response to bumps in the road, without any input from the driver. It occurs when the suspension geometry interacts with the steering linkage, causing the wheels to change toe (the angle of the tires relative to each other) as the suspension compresses and extends. This can result in the steering wheel changing direction unexpectedly, making the car feel unstable or darting on uneven surfaces."
How does one resolve this issue? Buy dampers that are adjustable on the rebound side?
Diff bushings and front/rear power bars (bracing) made a noticeable difference for me. These upgrades combined with lowering, spacing, coupe alignment specs and mad sticky tires makes my car feel very neutral, and I am trying to find body roll and cannot detect any.
The one think I do notice is when I am driving around 70mphish on flat, yet uneven road, there are times when the rebound feels like it wants to pull me in another direction like the toe is changing. I think this is referred to as "Bump Steer"
AI provided description:
"Bump steer is an undesirable condition where the wheels of a vehicle steer themselves in response to bumps in the road, without any input from the driver. It occurs when the suspension geometry interacts with the steering linkage, causing the wheels to change toe (the angle of the tires relative to each other) as the suspension compresses and extends. This can result in the steering wheel changing direction unexpectedly, making the car feel unstable or darting on uneven surfaces."
How does one resolve this issue? Buy dampers that are adjustable on the rebound side?
