Working with Rust on Coilovers :'(

I mean, it is a blog, why not talk about everything?

Part of the reason why I was not able to complete the work for the track day was that I lost about 20hrs fooling with this....

Yup, a bit of rust can go a long way when it comes to removing parts from coilovers.

Took quite some time and work to get it off as detailed in the videos below:

After I broke it loose a bit I moved forward without the hammer and used leverage to turn the coilover instead of impact force as detailed below:

And the final results!

Don't worry there is sunlight at the end of the tunnel, I used one of my struts from my 4th gen for the time being (using the 5th gen lower mount) and I ordered replacement collars (WHICH TOOK FOREVER TO ARRIVE) to replace the ones I chewed up during this process.

Anywho, the videos should have covered everything you would need to know, and as usual if you have any questions just drop a comment!

Braking Test Results

Just posting some numbers of our little experiment.
70mph to 0 mph braking distances*:

2012 Kia Sorento sx 143 ft

2003 Infiniti I35 6mt 147 ft

1995 Nissan Maxima gxe 169 ft

Each car was in average shape for their age and mileage.

I will come back with the upgraded dual piston brake caliper #'s soon.

Well.... Sigh

I failed to get the car ready in time for MSR, it was just too many problems...

On top of trying to finish all of the modding, it was just a bit much for 24hrs....

On the other note, I have finished a lot of things I've always wanted to, yet I still have more to go!

(Excuse the dirtiness)

But in the end, I definitely enjoy the experience of a 5.5 gen on coilovers, which is oddly.... Different from a 4th gen. For the millionth time this week working on this car I have to say.... "This ain't no 4th gen." The chassis of this car is noticeably stiffer than the A32 but also noticeably heavier, but with the rigidity of this chassis, it does not feel as big as a difference as it seems on paper.

Also on another note, I have scrapped the "IPL" ideas, I now want to go a 100% stealth modding approach on this vehicle, while reading this blog you'd think, "wtf?" But in reality, no one knows what the hell this car is stock to even compare with, so I can fool literally everyone that right now as it sits... That the car is 100% stock.

I'm going fully committed to this route, buying an OEM Infiniti Sport "S" (To keep things subtle) and the JX35 engine cover (Ugly, but it's not expensive, it's worth a shot).

Less than 24hrs till launch....

I have a track day at Houston MSR tomorrow morning and I have yet to finish working on the following.....

G35 brake caliper upgrade.
BC racing coilover install
Replacing the many stripped\crossthreaded lugs
Obx header install

I have successfully installed the following though....

Energy suspension control arm bushings
Moog ball joints
Moog end links
10k / 8k spring upgrades on the coilovers

Seems like a small list but I have been wasting time on a rusted coilover mount which I should have worked on ahead of time.... But I purchased them from what I thought was a salt free environment and under proper care but i was wrong.

Anywho y'all are like kids and only look at the pictures anyways so here....

To see more info on these and what I used to remove em... Click here.

The typical moog vs OEM end link photo.

Bleh, back to work for me

Review: 350z / G35 Dual Piston Upgrade

Ok, been gone for awhile but now i'm back in the game.

I have posted about this mod before as seen here and moved the How-To to this blog to be updated. But i have never put it to the test up until now.

Just like the other informative post, i will update this as i go along.

So for now just a teaser shot of what i received in the mail today.

Used Dual Piston Rotors from a 2007 350z
Duralast c-max ceramic pads.
Duralast rotors (for a g35 but autozone and nissan all agree that the 12.6 inch rotor is the same across the whole board)

To be continued with lulz. Stay tuned.

3/26 update: The before data has been collected.

3/30 update: The brakes are on!! More grinding of the brackets are needed, but man is it nice having new brakes!! I haven't started doing nose diving braking yet but once I have 0 noises coming from the brakes I'll give them a real test

How To: Upgrading to G35/350z Dual Piston Brakes and 12.6" Rotors

How To: G35/350z Dual Piston Brake Calipers (And 12.6" Rotor upgrade for some models)

Caliper Models: G35 Coupe and Sedan 2005, 2006, 2007 (Coupe only for '07) and Non Brembo Equipped 350z 2006, 2007 and 2008 models.

How to Applies to the following Vehicles:

-J30 (89-94) Maxima

-A32 (95-99) Maxima

-A33 / A33B (2000-2003) Maxima

-A34 (2004-2008) Maxima

-L31 (2002-2006) Altima

Maybe more, the above vehicles are the ones I'm familiar with and I know for sure will work with the below directions.

To see my review click here.

As usual with anything on the internet... Proceed at your own risk....

This will work easily for 89-08 Maximas. Not sure on any other years, I will find out on other years some other time. This is a work in progress, should be finalized soon.

If you have a 89-01 Maxima Please follow these directions first:

http://forums.maxima.org/4th-generation-maxima-1995-1999/568098-how-5-5-gen-front-brakes-4th-gen.html

Then goto step 2.

Needed Equipment:
-05-06 350z / 05-06 G35 Sedan Dual Piston Brake Caliper, Bracket and Rotor (Rotor NOT needed on a 04-08 Maxima).
-02-08? Maxima Caliper Bolts
-Brake Fluid.
-Aviation Snips (Some type of sheers for cutting metal).

I'm not going to hold your hand through this one, just make it to the point where your car is safely on jack stands and you're looking at this....

(02-03 Brakes on a 4th gen 99 Maxima)

Step 1: Remove the unnecessary components. (If you're a 89-01 skip to step 2)

-Disconnect your brake line

-Caliper

-Bracket

-Rotor (6th genners keep this on!!)

Keep track of your two caliper bracket to spindle bolts, YOU WILL NEED THIS! You can NOT use the bolts off of the G/Z they are tooooo long. If you're swapping from a stock 4th gen setup, I suggest ordering these from Nissan. If not then goto your local hardware store and purchase replacement bolts (Will update with the correct size).


Step 2: Install Dual Piston Glory

-There has been confirmed fitment issues, I am working on a easy sure fire way around this. It looks like grinding down the calipers are needed to clear the rotors because of the bracket not moving it out far enough from the center of the hub. I will get around to putting this on a running car to see what is needed to get these on a Maxima, I really think not much is grinding is needed.

-Install rotor
This is where you need your handy dandy shears for 4th/5th gens... Start snippin away at what comes close to contact with the rotor or control arm (have both wheels in the air and the steering wheel unlocked so you can check the clearance while turning the wheels). I have yet to fully test on a 6th gen spindle and their dust shield, I will on Monday. 6th gens and L31 Altimas shouldn't need to modify their dust shield because they accommodate larger 12.6" rotors already.

-Install bracket
You may still need to continue to hack away at your dust shield. During this step it'd be wise to give the disc a good ol whirl around to check for any rubbing.

-Install Brake Pads

-Install the Dual Piston Caliper

-Re-install your brake lines

Make sure to check the rotation of the disc again. And you have to use the bolts for the 02-08 Maxima. The 3rd/4th Gen bolts will NOT work and the 350z/G35 bolts will NOT work.

After your done it should look like this:

Then proceed to step 3.

Step 3: Prepare for WAR!

-Bleed brakes

-Bed in pads (you should be using new pads and rotors :squint:)

-Troll Q45/Z32 front brake owners :cool:

Quick Facts:
-350z/G35 brembo's will go on following the same procedure it takes to install them on non brembo 350z/g35s (Just replace the bracket/caliper/rotor!). If you're a real baller you can get the Akibono (spelling?) Brakes and relocation kit for the 350z and do the same thing..... Remember, this is a game for ballers and only ballers can participate.

-I have yet to test this mod on the street!

-The dual piston pads use more sweeping area than the 300zx pads.

-It BARELY! Clears AE wheels on my 4th gen if you're running the stock wheels I suggest getting a 5mm
spacer for safety sake.

-Rotor Comparison:

-Caliper Comparison (4th gen and G35/350z, the 5.5 gen on my car looks just like the 4th gen, who cares)

-4th top, 5.5 Gen middle, G35/350z/6th Gen on the bottom.

-4th, 5.5 gen, g35/350z/6th gen.

Review of the Braking will be posted on this blog at the link below:
http://aackshunsgarage.blogspot.com/2014/02/350z-g35-dual-piston-brake-upgrade.html

Before One More Person Asks.....

235whp and 195 ft/lbs

This is the official mod list of my 2003 I35 for the dynosheet posted above
2010 Altima Motor w/ less than 3k miles
2009 Maxima Intake Manifold and Throttle Body
Stock 2003 Infiniti I35 ECU
2004 Nissan Sentra SE-R 6MT Transmission w/ less than 100k miles and a bearing and seal replacement and VQ bellhousing swap
2003-2006 Nissan 350 Clutch Disk, brand new OEM at install
2002-2006 Nissan Altima 5mt/6mt pressure plate w/ less than 40k miles,
1995-99 Nissan Maxima Front and Rear exhaust manifolds
1995-01 Nissan Maxima/I30 Stillen Y-Pipe (Set up for fed spec manifolds.... Which in lamens deletes the stock pre-cats for the 2003 I35 they are installed on).
Stock secondary cartyltic converter
Stock catback exhaust
255/45/18 Continental tires on 18x8.5 350z Track Wheels + 215/60/15 tires on Maxima GXE 15s (89-93)
Morimito 5000K D2R Headlight Bulbs
Nyoka 2500K H3 Foglight Bulbs
2002-2003 Maxima Front Sway Bar
Energy Suspension Front Sway bar bushings
Energy Suspension Front/Rear/Pass Side Moor Mounts
Energy Suspenion Crossmember O-Rings/Bushings
Ghetto rigged eBay 3" intake setup (Not the best for power making, but best for the budget of building a sub $30 intake setup)

Shot from the rear (Better vid)

Why So Low #'s Batman?
This was done on a Mustang dyno, need I say any more?

Sounds Like You're Butthurt...
No not really.... 03-06 Z's put down 218 and 220 whp before me, hell a bolt on and tuned 3-valve mustang did 250, I'm very happy with the #'s compared against the rest of the dynos that day.

Immediate Future Mods:
Based on the dynos and street pulls I definitely need to wire up the primary (or secondary depending on how you look at it) VIAS assembly on the intake manifold, this dyno curve was extremely un-VQ like in every way imaginable.

EDIT:
After further discussion, I either need to gain the ability to tune the VTC's OR set the signal plates back a few degrees as required by swapping in a 2nd generation 3.5 and using the stock ECU. It could explain the total lack of low end, the cams are too advanced by the stock ECU.

Why?
-No usable low end tq
-a narrow power-band

But what i was feeling on the but dyno was very accurate, this car has some screaming top end, just the whole shabang of getting to it is not where it should be, after getting the other VIAS to work and a tune (Either fix my UTEC... ew..... or do an 04 Maxima ECU swap + Osiris tune).