Hey man - Exactly what I thought. I'm not a fan of the doubled approach. I reuse the OEM nut. It has a nylon washer so it helps to keep it tight, plus its flanged whereas the ones that come with the Illuminas are not.

 

I don't understand how coiloverss give better ride quality. Yes, they enable longer suspension travel, but the coilover springs themselves are very small, so they won't have a more flexible spring rate compared to OEM or H&Rs, both of which have very big front springs.

I have H&Rs and GR2s (professionally installed by frestyle by the way) and the ride is stiffer than an Maxima SE, but I have never bottomed. I drive NYC streets and upstate NY country roads. In NYC I actually have to drive a bit slower due to the stiffer ride and horrible roads. I get the feeling if I had coilovers in the city the ride would be even worse.


In the country the H&Rs make me feel like superman.....and perhaps maybe this is where coilover would excel. The H&Rs are a good compromise.

Basically I would conced to coilovers if I lived in an area where all the roads are good.

 

Better suspension performance != ride quality. In fact they are inversely related.

 

We tried that but it appears as if the thread pitch is not the same.. Finer pitch on the OEM.



The instructions I have call for only hand tightening of that middle nut...


On another note, I need the Nissan part number for that gasket thingy that's all torn to hell

 

Are you certain?

This is the first time I've EVER heard that the thread pitch on the Illumina is different than OEM. And I've probably installed a few hundred Illuminas. Also I usually go tighter than 'hand tightening' on that middle nut.

Don't worry about the gasket. No harm if you don't have it.

 

Ok we went more than hand tight...now gotta bend that damn brake line bracket thing for the front to get her to fit, other than that we're good

 

Cool, well done!

 

Thanks for your help!

Also,.had a clunk in the front, found that middle bolt not tight enough...tightened to spec now all is good

 

Happy to help as always.

 

I have so many clunks im scared ill still have them after my suspension overhaul.

 

It can only get better. If anything it will help to identify the other clunks that don't get fixed with the suspension.

 

Speaking of clunks, I just did the DIY SFC's and a cluck that I had before I thinks has been accentuated buy the stiffening of the sub-frame.

I, like most max owners have been battling different front end clunks for most of my ownership, sway bar links, a pass transverse mount etc. I feel like this one was kind of always there.

It's most noticeable now, going slowly over speed bumps/imperfections in the road and when I'm on and off the throttle, if not done smoothly.
I have done the one pass. transverse mount, but not the transmission side or torque mounts.

I suspect a motor mount(s), but also possibly an inner tie rod(s).
What do you think?
Symptom to possible cause?

 

Actually after a closer look, if I turn the wheel side to side while sitting still, theres a cluck sound that comes from the same area, and I can see play at what looks to be the inner tie rods.

I guess my question is, would tie rods show a symptom like what I explained above, and would the SFC's make it more predominant?
Cus I'm ordering some and hopefully they fix this.

 

I've never known ITR's/OTR's to clunk, but I suppose if they're worn badly enough you'll feel it when turning from side to side. Not when driving and going over bumps like a suspension or engine mount clunk.

 

I think my strut mount bearings are bad. Bought them as part of the moog front strut mount, but now after a week and a half, I get clicking sounds when turning the wheel NOT MOVING the car...I so wanted it to be that gasket thingy but doesn't appear to be the case the more I research.

Since I bought the bearings as part of the mounts, I can't return just the bearings to Amazon Should have just reused the OEM ones. Now I've gotta order new OEM bearings and find the time to re-install the damn things

Will it hurt anything to drive on them for awhile..like several weeks / month?

 

Doesn't hurt to drive on them. Just not smooth steering.

You have to remove the mounts to get to the bearings...why not just get a replacement from Amazon, swap, and return?

 

Amazon only shows one available...and besides, I already had to return one because it was the wrong thing in the box.

could the bearings not be completely seated properly? I did drive about two miles (albeit super slowly) with that middle nut not properly torqued.

 

I see 4 available -


Buy one, then return the existing one.

Possibly - but the nut would have to be SUPER loose to cause issues on the bearing.

 

K9786 is the part for the strut mount for my 99, not K90655

 

Hey Dj, have a quick noobish question for you. The rear camber on my car after lowering is starting to bother me. I've done some searching around but wanted an experts advice on what to do to correct it. Should I look further into re-centering the rear beam (if that will even help)? Not having much help searching around. Here's some pics of what I'm dealing with:

 

Ah, I quoted the 5th gen part number - my bad.

 

Not terrible. I've seen much worse. What are you lowered on?

The rear beam is a solid axle. there isn't a lot you can do after the beam is centered - and even that doesn't make a hugely significant difference.

 

I just bought H&R springs off Ebay.

to clarify, in order to 'build up' a spring assembly, I need the spring, strut, and top mount right? Is there a spring isolator on the bottom between the spring and strut and what top mount should I get? KYB?

here is the front mount
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/more...877&cc=1431954

Do I need the coil spring seat? or reuse the stock one?
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/more...277&cc=1431954

front upper spring insulator
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/more...307&cc=1431954

front lower spring insulator
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/more...307&cc=1431954

I'd like to just build up each assembly before hand and just swap them in when I'm ready....if possible. BUT, if there are stock parts that I can/should reuse and don't have to replace, then I'm not spending money on them. I'll just take the longer time and tear apart the stock assembly and build up the new one as I go.


I've taken apart spring assemblies before on my old civic, Aurora, and my brothers Grand Prix. I know what those entail for parts...what do Maximas all need?

 

Not worth to buy new parts. Reuse old ones. It will more time on the install day but will save you some money.

The above method is a terrible way to identify parts.

Let's use this:



Part #3,5,6 - reuse from your old suspension
Part #2 and 4 is your strut mount/bearing respectively. Buy MOOG, NOT KYB. #4 comes included as a freebie when you buy #2
#1 is the orange paper gasket. If yours looks good, reuse it. If not, dont worry about it. Doesn't really do much.
#7 are dustboots. Replace all 4 of these with OEM only.
Part #9 on the spring should be transferred to your H&R spring.

Hope this helps!

 

Very well. Do dust boots 'really' need changed? Why OEM only and not moog/KYB/etc brand? Why moog and not kyb bearing?

What about the rears? Obviously no bearing there. Just a spring, strut, upper mount, and lower spring isolator right?

Now to just get a list together.

 

YES they need to be changed. You'll find out why when you remove the stock struts

Mine were torn to hell...they're there to protect the strut assembly from dust getting into the piston.

 

As mentioned above, YES.

Don't be surprised to see your dustboots shredded into a pile of rubber rings at the base of your strut.

OEM is the only one that fits. I have yet to find a properly fitting/working aftermarket boot. I've even seen KYB boots cause rubbing noises.

We are referring to mounts, not bearings. The bearings just happen to come with the mounts. KYB mounts are weak. The rubber they use is soft. Moog is superior and the same price.

Rears - the only parts you need to replace in the rear is the strut, spring, and boot. All the mount components can be reused. They don't deteriorate like the fronts do.

 

Great. With lowering the car a bit, will/should I cut the bump stops, if so equipped?

 

H and Rs are not that large of a drop..you don't need to cut them but you can if you want to

 

Hey, my question is one that I believe many owners have. Is there a way to fix the sag that many maximas have in the rear?

 

Thanks

 

Unfortunately no.

 

 

there is a local Nissan dealer I can get the dust boots at...I haven't called for prices, but they aren't called stealerships for not reason. Is there a reasonable place online to get dustboots? BTW, mine look pretty good still.

 

www.courtesyparts.com

or

www.nissanpartsasap.com

The latter is likely cheaper, however their online system is wacky and charges ridiculous numbers for shipping - so just call them and order by phone, shipping prices should be fair over the phone.

 

Called my local stealership. Rear dust covers are $41 per. Fronts are $18 per. WTF.

 

I know retarded price on the rears. I have kyb front dust boots and they suck but i guess it does the job. U do hear them crunching on speed bumps.

 

All 4 dust boots for my 99SE were shipped to me for 90 bucks from tri cities nissan (nissanpartsasap.com)

25 bucks per rear, 13 bucks per front

 

^^ that's a fair price.

5th gen should be similar.

 

I plan on doing it next weekend. Hopefully it isn't a HUGE pita....

I don't have a press...but I do have a vice, some C-clamps, and other tools. They worked fine when doing the ES Control arm bushings on my GP...