Dowsett Posted January 4, 2012 Report Share Posted January 4, 2012 even buying proper lowering springs they are shorter than standard will stock shocks hold them in? if not whats the difference between cutting them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ella Posted January 4, 2012 Report Share Posted January 4, 2012 it depends how low you go, generally someone with half a brain upgrades the shocks at the same time, stock shocks don't cope with upgraded springs anyways Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jrad Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 (edited) I'm not advising you do what I've done in regards to suspension, but I'll tell you my setup. Rear: Short stroke shocks out of a VL Commodore wagon. They're short stroke from factory and bolt straight in, no mods needed. But make sure they're WAGON. They'll work from stock height and squash down to about a foot long. They work perfect - although mine are sports ones so they're stiffer. I have stock springs in the rear, cut about 2.5 - 3 coils off. I'm about 10mm off the bump stops, but the shocks don't bottom out and are pretty hard. I don't often get bump steer. BUUUTTT, in regards to holding springs captive, I've got two cable ties per spring so that they don't fall out. Many people say AU Falcon springs.. but they're rock hard. Terrible ride. At least the stock springs give some movement. You can also use Suzuki sierra front shocks in the rear. They're short stroke. Front: Cut springs... I've probably cut too much off. You can get away with 1.5-2 coils and it still rides okay. Once you take any more off, the stock suspension bottoms out. Mine's stuffed at the moment and rides rock hard. I may as well not even have springs. I'll definitely look at putting in different struts, as it doesn't handle that well in the front. As I said, mine isn't set up for racing, and mine isn't a daily driver. But if all you care about is getting it low for dirt cheap... that's what I did. I suggest to cut off coils in .5 increments until you're happy. You can always take away, but not add. As I said, not advising you to do this, it's 100% illegal but I don't drive mine daily. Obviously, once I add a bit more power I'll look at coilovers/AE86 front struts and some proper springs for the rear. It's just good to have perspective from both ends of the spectrum. Edited January 5, 2012 by Jrad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisfindlay Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 You sir, I like :thumbsup: ^ Good to see you have done your home work, any ways it all comes down to the owners choice and what you say in the matter of your own car goes, so do what ever works for you I say.. (With in reason that is - don't want to see none of you idiots with slinkys sitting where your springs used to be :no: ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeph_KE70 Posted January 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 For the past 2 days, me and dad have been making the brackets for our strut brace, its taken ages, but we have to get it perfect. Ofcourse its not done yet, this is just what we've done so far. It fits! Now just to carve a bit more metal out, so the bolts have more thread and don't get loose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeph_KE70 Posted January 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 (edited) Oh, and picked this bad-boy up :cool: Damn farenheit ahah Edited January 7, 2012 by zeph_KE70 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.L.Z.BUB Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Good to see your trying to fab your own shit and not resorting to just buying bolt ons. Doesnt matter if the gauge is in F, it'll still let you know if its getting too hot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeph_KE70 Posted January 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Good to see your trying to fab your own shit and not resorting to just buying bolt ons. Doesnt matter if the gauge is in F, it'll still let you know if its getting too hot. Thanks, You wouldnt happen to know the max celcuis temp. the water should be? Like, would 100 C be alright, or vice-versa, because i wouldnt be able to tell if its overheating, since i don't know the average temp in Celcius... :bash: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.L.Z.BUB Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 I think I was running around 80-90C when I had my gauge in. (176-194F) I never really took notice of the actual temp, just noted where it sat under normal operating temps and made sure it didnt go higher. Really, it could have gibberish for numbers on the dial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeph_KE70 Posted January 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 I think I was running around 80-90C when I had my gauge in. (176-194F) I never really took notice of the actual temp, just noted where it sat under normal operating temps and made sure it didnt go higher. Really, it could have gibberish for numbers on the dial. Sweet, cheers for that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.L.Z.BUB Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Having a temp gauge is pretty redundant in a stock ksev (they have one stock :P) but it'll come in handy if you decide to run a thermo fan. Plus they are good as a back up I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeph_KE70 Posted January 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Having a temp gauge is pretty redundant in a stock ksev (they have one stock :P) but it'll come in handy if you decide to run a thermo fan. Plus they are good as a back up I suppose. Yeah i've already put a thermo on it, thats why i need the precise temperature, because last time, i was getting false readings and it nearly overheated :\ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.L.Z.BUB Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 A 4k thermostat opens at 82 degrees C (180F) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeph_KE70 Posted January 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 A 4k thermostat opens at 82 degrees C (180F) Thanks :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
altezzaclub Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Are you going to have an adjustable or a preloaded strut brace? We ran an adjustable on the rally car, the pipe across the car was cut in half & had a left-hand & a right hand thread cut in the ends. We turned a nut on a shaft in the middle and it tried to push the struts apart & then we clamped it up. We could've threaded pipes on the towers and cut threads on the ends of the bar and turned the whole bar, same principle. A nice one for the Altezza has a slightly flexible square bar across the endgine that attaches to the towers with Allen screws. When you do the screws up they flex the bar and pre-load the towers outwards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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