[konkey00]

You could always buy some center caps in the correct diameter and put stickers on them. I put these Toyota stickers on top of carbon fiber stickers a while back for my Supra’s Konig’s a while back.

 

[konkey00]

Recently installed super pro panhard, trailing arm bushings and RSB. What a world of difference, the ass just sits and does as its told through corners. Decided I'd pull the super pro bushings off of an old set of LCA's and retrofit the front, cant wait to have the front tightened up!

I’ve had the rear bushing sitting in a drawer the past half year, I just got around to watching a video tutorial for the trailing arm bushings. Are the panhard and RSB bushings about the same difficulty and process?
I just ordered 2JR’s lowering springs with the KYB struts so I may as well do a suspension refresh everywhere else when I get around to it.

 

[konkey00]

The trailing arms are cake its the pan hard thats a PITA. You will have to drop the entire beam axle to install the pan hard, there are no shortcuts here. But once its out and you have the later link and control rod in hand you can at least take them somewhere for the removal and install. I would HIGHLY recommend finding a shop to do this for you. If you are trying to do this as a home gamer and this is your daily driver, just remember, once you start burning out bushings you are committed. Set aside an entire saturday or sunday for this in case of unexpected snags.

I didnt find much in the way of instructional video pertaining to the pan hard kit to know what I was up against and ended up mackivering a tool-less solution for the bushing installation. I broke out my gopro and got some footage of whats involved with the removal and installation. Ive yet to cut any video together but considering theres not much in the way of walk throughs your post has me motivated to cut something together finally.

Im happy to answer any questions you have. I'll link the video once I get around to cutting and uploading.

Damn, I’m glad I asked now. I plan on doing all the work myself, and mine isn’t a daily driver so it’s not going to be a rush. I’m still not sure when I’m going to get around to this but now I know I should try to get a game plan before diving into it.

 

[konkey00]

Definitly take the time to make a plan of attack, its not just the bushing installation that can be difficult. I kinda had to fight with re-installation of the beam axle. You are going to have to align two fixed bolts on the beam with the lateral link and control rod at the same time. I had my beam balanced on a floor jack, its going to want to cant over to one side as you try to make the holes align. Its definitely doable as a one man band but for the love of your fingers and appendages try to have some cribbing in place.

You plan on doing the bushing installation at home as well?

Yes, that’s the plan. I’ve got harbor freight’s ball bushing tool which looks to be perfect for at least the trailing arm bushings. I’ve also got a 17 year old brother to help me with the rear assembly so that shouldn’t be too much of an issue to remove or install that hopefully.
I’ve done some ball bushings on my Mk3 Supra camber links before, and I had to get creative to get that job done so this isn’t my first rodeo. I essentially had to use long 10.9 bolts, large washers, and nuts to push bushings where I needed them with the harbor freight kit’s “cup” to create space for the bushing to go.

 

[konkey00]

I finished getting the rear end out today, so I’ll probably start trying to remove bushings tomorrow. It would’ve been so much easier to remove this thing if I had a shop lift so that I could get leverage on all those 17mm bolts, but I was able to manhandle everything on jack-stands.

There was another thread on here which mentioned a smell of gasoline when guys were starting their cars and a probable cause discussed was the evap canister. Well I got a good whiff of mine while working on the rear end and it was pretty strong despite the car sitting for about a week, and fuel pressure being relieved the past few days. Is this a sign that I should go ahead and replace it, and if so is it a good idea to replace all parts of it or is it good enough to simply replace the purge or vent valves? I’ll probably remove it from the car soon to get a better diagnosis and see if there’s anything wrong that’s glaringly obvious.

I also need to find a way to remove one of the rear strut bolts; one of mine was broken halfway by a previous owner so that it was lined up into the strut but there wasn’t enough thread to tight a nut onto it. I’m thinking about using a wheel grinder to knock out the thread and then drill a hole through the bolt head where it’s wielded to the body. Then I’ll just drop a new bolt through the hole and get my brother to hold a wrench on the bolt head when I go to tighten the strut in place.

 

[konkey00]

IIRC you can knock the stud out with a hammer, it's not welded in.

They all have two tap wields on the top of the rear strut bolts. I tried hitting it with a hammer and chisel for shits and giggles, but it didn’t do anything. I decided to just drill through it, and now I’ve got about a 10mm hole in the bolt head. I’ll just drop a new bolt in and call it a day.
I also started on the rear assembly bushings today and things went as expected. The trailing arm bushings came out fairly easily, but the cylinders that hold those bushings are pretty rusted. I’m gonna try to see if I can find replacements on a Nissan parts website, or maybe grab a set from the junkyard that don’t look too bad.

I was also able to get this small bushing out by pushing a 22mm socket straight through it. I’m going to have to get creative or find a shop for the last three bushings though, they’re a pain in the ass.

 

[konkey00]

I guess it would be easier off the car. Idk if those cylinders for the trailing arm would be available. Good luck on that, I see you removed them.

As far as fuel smell I do believe the vent valve is open when the car is off. Its probly just build up of fuel vapors over 15 years in the canister filter. Shouldnt be too strong if any tho. Replacing it wouldnt hurt.

Are you going poly bushings for the rear and qt link? Should be alittle easier to install than rubber.

Yep, polyethylene for everything in the rear.
Doesn’t look like Nissan or eBay sells those cylinders, so I’ll probably make a junkyard trip to find some in good shape.

 

[konkey00]

I got all but one bushing out so far.

I got the big bushing on the axel link off by pushing a 1/2” drive 27 mm kobalt socket through.

I got the little bushing out by pushing a 23mm Pittsburgh socket through. I used a digital caliper to measure the outer diameter of the bushings, then I found sockets that fit just inside.

The harbor freight ball bushing kit doesn’t come with a cylinder the right size for almost anything you’re working on, so I used the threaded fitting to push the bushings into.

 

[konkey00]

Any advice on this POS on the panhard rod would be greatly appreciated.

 

[konkey00]

Oh yea, I’m the man 😎. I tried a dremel but that took forever without much result. I used a jigsaw with a metal cutting blade and carefully cut just enough of the metal sleeve where I could manipulate it with my hammer and screwdriver. All bushings are out now and I’ll begin installing the new ones.

 

[konkey00]

I’m cleaning up all the holes with wire brushes, here’s the inside of the pivot arm bushing sleeves. I really wanna get the rear end back on the car sooner than later so I’m thinking about reusing these and maybe painting them to prevent future rust.

 

[konkey00]

I got excited and changed my mind on painting those sleeves. I’ve installed all but one bushing so far using 5/8” threaded rod and hardware to press the bushings in per SuperPro’s tutorial onYoutube. The only reason I’m not finished is because I froze all the bushings before install and the one got too warm and flexible to press in. I’m freezing it again and I’m expecting to have the whole rear end reinstalled tomorrow probably.

 

[konkey00]

I got another chunk done today. Rear end and rear struts/2JR lowering springs are now installed.

I also think I figured out what was going on with the fumes smell and the evap canister. I took a look at everything and found that one of the hoses that comes from it vents out behind the rear bumper right next to the vent for the trunk. I removed the rubber connecting hose in the next picture; the pipe goes straight behind the bumper into a little vent box thing.

I’m assuming that all the fuel vapor fumes are simply venting inside the bumper and making their way straight into the cabin (thanks Nissan). This explains why the fumes became way worse after I removed the the trunk interior. I decided to reroute the plumbing so that it can stay outside the bumper and vent straight to the atmosphere.

This white piece is attached to the end of the hose to prevent foreign objects from making their way into the evap canister. I decided it would be a good idea to reuse it in my new plumbing.

I drilled a hole in the bottom of the bumper for the white piece to clip into; this is where the fumes will exit now once the hoses are reconnected.

I also decided to reuse the little black box thing that the white piece was attached to so that the fumes would have a direction to exit.
Hopefully I won’t have any more fuel vapor fume issues once the car is back on the road.

 

[konkey00]

I’ve been trying to dig through old topics on superchargers lately. Are guys just making their own adapter plates to bolt Eaton M90’s to the lower runners or something? I got rid of the cast manifold in favor of a plastic Altima plenum so I guess superchargers are out of the question for me now?

 

[konkey00]

I believe you got the brand new race header.

They made a post about it fairly recently on Instagram. Either that’s it or you accidentally got shipped a Corolla header.

 

[konkey00]

I finally finished the engine swap, got the car running, and dropped it off at Firestone for a wheel alignment and brake inspection since the the brakes felt spongy on the way there and probably need bled out again.
List of mods I’ve been mixing up since I started working on it this year:
JWT Balance shaft delete kit
Brian Crower valve springs and titanium retainers
Altima Intake Plenum with 2JR adapter kit and gold reflective wrapped cold air intake
Routed PCV and Vent from valve cover to oil catch can
2JR Stage 1 clutch kit and lightweight flywheel
Lightweight crank and PS pulley
Polyurethane motor mount inserts
2JR crossmember bushings
2JR shifter bushings
2JR short shifter
Vision One Racing shift selector springs and HD detent kit
Stainless steel clutch line
KYB shocks w/ 2JR lowering springs
Polyurethane rear axel bushings
Polyurethane steering rack bushing
2JR 10mm traction spacers
Drilled/slotted front rotors w/ Powerstop Z23 pads
Blank rear rotors w/ ceramic pads
2JR Stainless steel brake lines
Funk motorsports wrap over eBay exhaust header
2JR 2.5” mid pipe and side exit exhaust
SC Concepts alternator heat shield w/ gold reflective tape
Front bumper quick disconnect kit
Lots of rubber hoses replaced with silicone
Added ground jumpers I believe are 2/0 or 4/0 copper
Replaced brake calipers, outer tie rods, engine and transmission mounts, control arms, sway bar bushings, sway bar end links, drive axels, and wheel bearings.

The plan is to drive it on the street long enough to break in the clutch and brakes and make sure everything runs fine. Then I’d like to take it out to autocross events and see what it’s capable of. I’m super excited.

 

[konkey00]

Im curious how this spring and damper combo rides. Ive been running koni yellows with Eibach Sportlines for years and while the ride is nice and tight I donk know if want to go with the same when its time to refresh. Specs for comparison on the springs are 200F/333R with a 1.6" drop all around.

So you’ll probably get a more educated answer out of someone else, but I’ll give my best answer. I’ve only had the car for a little over a year, and I haven’t even put 5,000 miles on it yet but I can already tell that the combo I got is a huge improvement over what was most likely the original struts and springs. The old setup used to bottom out over potholes since the 17” wheel setup didn’t really have any tire profile to help the struts out. I was considering going to a small wheel/ larger tire setup to try and remedy this, but the new setup is already a huge improvement on its own. It’s still a stiff ride compared to my other vehicles (stock suspension BRZ, Mk3 Supra w/ Tein Flex Z’s, work truck), but I think that may also be largely due to the stiffer polyurethane bushings and delrin crossmember bushings. I’m still thinking about going to a 15” wheel just to add lightness to the drivetrain, and maybe some Toyo Proxy R888R’s to make it more prepared for autocross/track. I’m not sure if that tire would really add comfort with more tire profile since competition tires are supposed to have stiffer sidewalls, but I would consider it a bonus if it did.

Since I’m still trying to get the clutch and brakes broke in, I haven’t gotten a chance to “spiritually” drive the car yet, so I can’t give much input on performance yet.

The biggest reason I went with KYB’s over Koni’s or any other brand was mostly due to budget; I wanted to get the most affordable strut and spring package that would be easy to install without going to stupid eBay coilovers. 2JR installing the lowering springs onto the struts was really just icing on the cake to me because I had so many other installs to get done that I really didn’t want to deal with that assembly.

edit:
I guess the only thing I wish was different is the front strut mounting studs. It uses two studs with nuts, and they give you a short and long bolt for the third mounting hole to accommodate your strut bar if you have it. Since I swapped to the Altima plenum, I had to raise my strut bar with washers on the the studs, and I had to use the third mounting bolt with washers underneath the strut bar to give it enough clearance. The nuts only just barely have the stud sticking through them, but the bar is mounted solidly. If the struts had three longer studs, or if my bar would clear the plenum then this wouldn’t be an issue. Once I start taking the car to autocross, I’ll try driving it with and without the bar to see if I prefer it to be there.

 

[konkey00]

Im curious on how well those brakes will hold up at an autocross event. Ive seen those powerstop brake kits online for around 200 bucks.

I’m looking to spectate an event this year just to see what’s going on and then participate next year if I get the free time. At the moment I’m working on installing new seats and harnesses and fixing whatever new kinks pop up when I’m not traveling for work.
Mostly went with the Powerstop kit due to budget, I’m not ready to fork out the money for a nice big brake upgrade until I see a real need for it, so we’ll find out together eventually lol. I have no complaints so far just driving on the street other than the town I live in is just a little too busy to get the space I need to do a proper brake pad break in according to the instructions.

I wasn’t able to complete the first step until I drove a couple dozen miles and found a backroad, but I never got around to completing steps 2 or 3. I’m not that worried about it coming back to bite me.