I got my Stage 1 Warpspeed SFCs installed today. I got a good deal and got them welded on for $60 at Midas. The guy was really cool about it, and I think he's going to be my local mechanic from now on, for things such as exhuast and custom welding.

Anyway, I took a trip down one of the main roads in town which is very harsh on lowerered cars. I've driven through this part of the city many times before, so it was a good test drive area with the SCFs.

All I can say is the car feels much more expensive, like others have said. The car feels more struturally solid, and it's not just in my head. The car simply glides over any minor road imperfection, and much of the interior rattling and harsh sounds (from large potholes, etc.) is gone. My car, which currently has Potenza RE730s (good handling, harsh ride) and 17s now rides better than my car with AGXs/stock springs and 15'' wheels.

Every twist and turn is even more of a cinch for me now. I tried swaying back and forth (when I had the road to myself for a bit) and the front and rear feel very braced together and move in perfect unison. I don't even have my Addco RSB on right now because there were fitment issues (ugh). I honestly feel that after I put the RSB on, I won't be able to improve the handling characteristics of the car without going lower(don't want to do).

I'll post again after more road experiences, but as of now, I am very satisfied with the SFCs and am very glad I bought them. I will install Stage 2 soon.

 

The SFC is worth every penny. They really stiffen up the chasis. The difference is more dramatic than the FSTB. The hardest part is finding someone willing to install them. I know a good shop in the DC metro area if anyone else is interested.

 

would i still notice a difference on cornering even with a FSTB,RSTB,RSB, lowering springs/struts and z-rated tires??

Ant

 

Do you guys think it's better I buy the RSTB or Stage 1 SFCs?
Thanks,
-Cyrus

 

Yes..i have pretty much everything except for RSTB and I could tell the differnce just pulling away from the parking lot of the shop.

 

RSTB hardly does anything at all. Reardeck does most of rear bracing. SFC's all the way!

 

RSTB is a waste of money.

 

Handling improves period, regardless of if you have springs, struts, FSTB, etc. They are worth every penny.


Dave

 

You would probably benefit the most. When you start adding things like springs/shocks/struts, more stress is placed on the chassis and other suspension components, which is why FSTB's and RSTB's help. But when you stiffen what you can with FSTB's and RSTB's, the next thing to be stressed is the chassis itself. And that's why the SFC will do wonders for someone that has already done everything else.

 

how $$?

 

does this interfere if lifts at shops or anything? I'm assumin no, since they jack the car up to do it

 

Dang, just when I think I had all of the handling toyz. what the heII is an SFC?

I think I need one... or some.... or them... or a pair of them...

 

Great post btw. Hilarious, and honest.

SFC, sub-frame connectors I believe. Basically additional metal welded to the chassis to increase strength, which in turn provides a better base for the suspension to work with.

 

Click on my sig below to see the pictures. Those red bars under my car are the stage 1 and stage 2.

 

dammit i hate yoU!!! stop making me spend money!!!

how much are they?

 

That awesome to hear that Chris. U have to give me a ride next time....

 

It's funny to see people NOT know about these things. They've been available for almost 6 months or so. I thought I would have problems with Warpspeed, but it took me only a week and a few days to get them. If you have problems contacting them via e-mail, just give them a call, they have great customer service.

I was so excited to get them, and even more excited to see them being installed.

I got my RSB on tonight (I used a round file to enlargen the hole on the stubborn Addco RSB brackets) and everything is so perfect. My car feels brand new. Now that I think about it, it resembles the ride of a modded car with independent rear suspension. I think that's a good way to put it. I'm so ecstatic about these things. I purposely tried to hit bumps just to see what kind of feedback I would get, and as expected, the suspension did its job and it felt great.

You will definately notice the difference. I have H&Rs (not cut like yours) and body roll on moderate speed turns is basically ZERO. I still want to install my Stage 2's just to see what will happen.

 

But the Maxima's achilles heel is the steering, much like a Corvette in the early 80's. Even a Jetta VR6's steering makes the Maxima feel very poor. Until somebody comes up with a steering fix, I don't see how the Max will feel "expensive." Again, as i said before, rent an olds alero for a day, then get back behind the wheel of a Max. You'll wonder wtf Nissan was thinking.

 

get all of the ES bushings, and your steering problems are gone. Significant weight is added to the wheel.

 

That's a lot of horizontal bars.

All this to handle like a stock bimmer?
Well, not bad for FWD.

 

When you say all bushings you mean - sway ends, control arms, and what else? Isn't it just those 2 available?

 

Your post didn't have a sig, but I checked the warpspeed website. Seems pretty cool. Sounds like the setup is a few hundo with the adaptor. Since I'm in Cali, a trip to Arkansas is out of the question. What do you think a good shop would charge for the instal?

 

Hey TurDz - Where did you pick up the Bushings from? Do you know if they make them for 5th gen? I must stiffen up the steering on this thing. Any help would be appreciated.

 

dblrr900,

Go to suspension.com they carry the full line of ES bushings. Plus they have great prices and great service.

 

Wow those are damn good prices! $35 for the whole set?!
-Cyrus

 

mmm...can't wait til I move ... more money ... for car mods. Okay okay, I'll also be saving up for a condo, but whatever! SFC's are my next mod.

 

good choice

I got the front sway bar bushings, the control arm ones (very big and fat) and a set of univeral endlinks for the front and rear.

 

BTW, other than the cost, is the performance difference noticeable?

 

I thought the guys at Warpspeed said stage one & two had to be installed together, did they change this?

I look forward to your comparison of stage one and two, I am almost ready to order, I just can't decide if I want just stage one or one and two.

 

You will have even bigger clearance issues if you get stage 2. Both stages lower your car by a bit more than a half inch.

Dave B. told me that he's talked to people with Stage 1, 2, and 3, and they've all said that Stage 1 made the biggest difference.

 

I'm interested...where?

 

I've got stage I and II on my car and recently took it to Auto X. Of course I was stuck in STX because of the SFCs. (WARNING! If you're considering seriously Auto-X'ing in your Max, the SFCs will stick you in prepared classes because of the rules)..

They went easy on me since it was my first auto X and stuck me in STX, against a Subaru WRX driven by a national champ. DOH! Anyway, I was out for fun. here's what I have to add to the thread:


I made my first 4 runs with the stage I and II SFCs on the car.
I still had tons of understeer, mainly due to my huge front brakes and poor driving. BUT, there was very minimal body roll. no 3-wheeled corners here. Other drivers were very impressed about the car, until I told them I had SFCs, Sway bars, FSTB, Springs, and struts. (blah blah blah).

After the first heat, I was very dissappointed in my running and had to do something to change things. only thing I could think of was that the car wasn't rolling enough to stick the tires on the ground and carve the corners, sooo I pulled the stage II section off- now only running stage I.
I ran the next heat and noticed a huge increase in body roll, but my times didn't drop and overall handling ability didn't seem to change much. The car felt more "mushy" in the corners and the slaloms were a little more vague. turn the steering wheel and the car didn't snap to attention like it did with the stage II. Not great there, but I did increase chassis flex, so it's understandable.

Lap times between both heats were a wash. best time on each heat was within 0.3sec from stage I to stage II SFCs. My times weren't consistent enough to say anything about whether the removal of the stage II SFCs helped or hurt my time (remember, it was my first time out there and I had HUGE problems with my brakes.)

Overall, I wouldn't say the stage II hurt anything, but it certainly didn't help me on the small auto X tracks.


Now for my $1.02 on open-road driving.
the stage I and II system is MUCH better than jsut the stage I.
As we all know, the max won't corner like a Neon in a parking lot, but it loooves long sweeping curves. This is where the SFCs shine. I can take highway curves much faster than before.
i.e. there's an on-ramp cloverleaf near my house. sign says 25.
Stock Max could take it at 35.
Max w/ sway bars, FSTB, 225/50/16 tires, Tokicos, eibachs... 45mph before the back end broke loose.
Stage I and II SFCs in addition: 72mph- top of 2nd gear. I hit the rev limiter before I exited the corner!

 

Matt that was a nice post. Should I install Stage 2 myself or have a shop lift the car up again and drill for me?

Thanks

 

you can do it yourself, given you've got the tools and can get the car off the ground enough to see what you're doing.

Also be careful not to puncture the brake lines on the left side. on my car, the holes to drill were directly beneath the brake lines, so we simply put another small metal plate behind the hole in case the drill broke through too fast. no worries.

 

Would a 4th gen have similer results? Hopefully someone will do something like this in a 4th gen.

I am leaning towards the stage one and two, the cost is only a little more. The only other disadvantages I can think of are weight (stage two can't weight much more than stage one) and ground clearence.

 

Do you think the SFC's could have in any way diminished the negative NVH effects of the control arm bushings? I've got some in my garage that I don't want to install because of increased vibration, but if the SFC's fix that some...

 

Possibly. I can't really say from experience though. After a few more days of reviewing the SFCs, I can positively say that these reduce vibrations, mostly because I feel the chassis is stiller and parts of the car don't twist, turn, and creak independently anymore.

If you have some in the trash, and don't want em, man, just give em to ericdwong.

 

is it easier if i drill the holes for teh stage two now? or do hafta drill it after i weld the sfc's on?

 

You're going to have to drill the holes after they're welded on, or else you might have some fitment problems. Since the install will not always be exact (the welds might be a tiny bit to the left, right, etc) you must wait after the install of Stage 1 to install stage 2. That's why on the WSP website, they say to use a spraycan to mark the holes to be drilled.

 

Hmmm...altered unibody. Forget about trading that sucker in at a dealership...