Struts

[Hex3]

Ok, I am going to get hell for this but here we go anyway.<p>I have been looking at getting the zx2 sturts but I have read some people's posts, how have ha alot of problems with them!!!! Now i checked the search section and some people say thay are fine others say not to get them, becasue there are alot of mod. that have to be done to make them fit. I did search but there are alot of people with mixed opinions. <p>I was wondering who has those struts and what springs u are using with what tire size?? Another thing did u have to use the camber bolt to get a good alignment????? Thanx

[zytariuk]

Alright, here goes...try and follow me here lol.<p>
My Info
I have ZX2 Struts /w Suspension Techniques running on 205/40/17 205/40/17 80H Bridestone Potenza RE950 /w UNI-T AQII tires (retail at C$315.00/ea). I live in Barrie, Ontario Canada...<p>
Modification Required
The ONLY modification I ran into was that the front upper spring mount perches were only 20mm in diameter (I needed em' to be 22mm). So I just simply enlarged the hole with a dremel and viola .<p>Camber Issue
Alright, this is gonna be you're biggest problem (at least in my opinion). If you lower you're car with ZX2 Struts, you're wheels WILL end up pointing inwards noticeably by the naked eye more than they were before you did the ZX2 conversation.<p>Therefore, you will need 4 camber bolts to adjust you're camber. However, chances are you will not be able to get your camber back to factory specs...which may i add, have something like -.8 factory specs.<p>I just got back from Harper Tire (local tire shop) and I had a huge discussion with the guys over there. They told me that the camber bolts will help a little, but they WON'T get the camber back to factory specs. He went on to tell me how ALL the Hondas out there have significant camber issues when they are lowered, even with their camber kits which do help a little.<p>
Lowering Springs
As far as lowering springs go, I recommend Suspension Techniques Lowering Springs OR EIBACH Pro Kit Lowering Springs OR H&R Lowering springs. They all pretty much give you approximately the same drop and I haven’t heard any complaints about any of em'. The best bang for you're buck are the Suspension Techniques though (I love em').<p>
ZX2 Strut Info
If you go with these struts, you will need to get the following parts on top of the actual struts.<p>(4) Dust Boots/Shields (This protects you're struts from external elements)
(2) ZX2 Front Upper Strut Bearings
(4) Camber Bolts (This adjusts you're camber so that you're tires wear evenly)<p>Final Note
Bascially it comes down too, you're gonna have to live with the camber issue if you go with the ZX2 struts. The guy at the shop told me that if i went with actual struts designed for the MX-3 (ex. Koni Inserts) with coilovers then i would not have this camber issue, cause it's a 'straight' drop he tells me. But then again, it's like 2x 3x the price for something like Koni inserts /w coilovers.<p>Personally, im gonna live with the camber issue and see how my tires wear. If after this summer the tires totally screwed from the negative camber, i'll look into a custom camber alignment kit AND/OR ZX2 Struts with CoilOvers. As far as the ride goes though, im totally happy with the ZX2 Struts. Im just concerned about my tires, which I certainly don't want to buy every summer (they ain't cheap). I could go on, but i've done an insane amount of research into this im giving myself a headache. Later :p <p>P.S. ProtegeSTS knows a LOT about this **** too, so you might want to get his input as well.<p>[ April 02, 2003: Message edited by: zytariuk ]</p>

[ProtegeSTS]

"Bascially it comes down too, you're gonna have to live with the camber issue if you go with the ZX2 struts. The guy at the shop told me that if i went with actual struts designed for the MX-3 (ex. Koni Inserts) with coilovers then i would not have this camber issue, cause it's a 'straight' drop he tells me. But then again, it's like 2x 3x the price for something like Koni inserts /w coilovers."<p>People at shops are stupid, MOST of the time. I've had mazda expert technicians tell me I had to TRAILER my car beacuse I had over 1 degree of negative camber. That is stupid. Completely stupid.<p>This guy you talked to is dumb as a brick. The strut has nothing to do with how much camber is gained. It's simply a matter of how much you lowered the car. Your car's suspension gains camber as it is compressed, so that it keeps more tire on the ground when the car is in a turn. When you lower it, your artificially making the suspension "think" its in a turn, its higher in its movement curve, and therefore, you have more negative camber. The only reason the struts would matter is if the spring perch is in a different place, which would affect ride height.<p>You dont have to live with the camber issue. If you want to spend the money, and get even better performance to boot, you can buy camber plates. These will work with regular springs, but work even better (larger range) if you have coilovers. These with definately get you within spec. However, "spec" is where the factory put it so that you have nice long lasting tires, and people don't complain. It's NOT where you get good performance.

[Hex3]

Thanx for the info it really helped me out. <p>I was wondering since there are different lowering springs out there wouldn't it help, if you got different springs one that gives you a drop of about 1.8 to 1.3, wouldnt that make the camber right. My theory behind this is, that if u get a spring that drops your car 1.8inch then the bottom of the wheel would be pulled outward, and if u got one that is 1.5inch then it would be pulled less and same if you got 1.3inch drop some where in between those drops and the camber bolts there should be a way to make the camber to factory specs... <p>I dont know what i am really going to go with, i was thinking of Kyb strurts(because of the price) and the zx2 because of the price and the way they ride..and there are also a better ride then KYB struts.. <p>If there is someone out there with KYb Strust i would like to know if u had a problem with camber.

[Talon_66]

This is positive camber / \?
This is negative camber \ /?<p>Cause my car is the first one show. I have KYB Struts with H&R springs, and its settled down nicely

[ProtegeSTS]

from the front of the car, /---\ is negative camber.

[zytariuk]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by ProtegeSTS:
"You dont have to live with the camber issue. If you want to spend the money, and get even better performance to boot, you can buy camber plates. These will work with regular springs, but work even better (larger range) if you have coilovers. These with definately get you within spec. However, "spec" is where the factory put it so that you have nice long lasting tires, and people don't complain. It's NOT where you get good performance.<hr></blockquote><p>Is the camber plate kit at CorkSport.com for just the two front perches? Would you need to buy two camber plate kits from them? Would they go on the rear perches too?<p>[ April 03, 2003: Message edited by: zytariuk ]</p>

[ProtegeSTS]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by zytariuk:
<p>Is the camber plate kit at CorkSport.com for just the two front perches? Would you need to buy two camber plate kits from them? Would they go on the rear perches too?<p>[ April 03, 2003: Message edited by: zytariuk ]<hr></blockquote><p>
Nobody builds a set of rear camber plates yet to my knowledge. And the camber plates sit right under/over the strut towers, not on the perches. You'd stil have to run some camber bolts in the back if its really out of spec. Rear tires on a FWD car don't wear that badly to begin with, so unless it's awful, I wouldn't worry too much about it, and just rotate your tires like you're supposed to.

[zytariuk]

Thanks , this thread cleared some a lot of **** for me actually.