luiml73

iTrader: (1)

I just finished ordering the following:

1. Rear Coilover kit
2. Fron Weld-on kit
3. Roll center Adjusters

My car is only a daily driver so after all the reading I did, I decided to go with Fr 200 / RR 150 spring rates.

Now I just need to find a pair of decent shocks for the front. Any recommendations?

zaridar

iTrader: (3)

I have a ground control kit on my car. Only front coil over weld on. KYBs check my build thread. I just need some rear now

PK_12A

iTrader: (3)

I took a look and they have added quite a bit more items for our cars ( front and rear adjustable control arms for example) and to fully upgrade all of the components for around $3500 to fully adjustable with hemi-joints. They even have a slick aluminum spare tire cover on the site! Here's to hoping for more from T3 for our cars.
Luiml73, I and probably quite a few others, look forward to hearing how they perform, please share your opinion and a few pics too after the install.

JSmall

^ I was messaging them on facebook a while ago and he said that they are working on a panhard conversion. I've also seen them comment on a big brake kit i believe!

Ive heard people saying that heim joints are really loud. Has anyone got any experience with them? If getting a loads of the T3 kit, would it be stupidly loud with all the heims?

MosesX605

Get some Koni Yellows. P/N: KONI-8641-1072Sport

You'll need to get the strut shafts machined if you're using the stock strut tops.

j9fd3s

iTrader: (3)

how loud they are depends on a couple of things.

the OEM's use rubber because it stops vibration, and can pivot in more than one axis at a time.

a heim joint will transmit vibration, so if you had a noisy diff or something, heim joints might transmit that noise.

the other thing is that the heim joints need to have some bushings to fit the chassis, the lower link space Mazda has is ~50mm and a 7/8" rod end is like ~22?mm wide. if the rod ends don't fit tightly in the bushings, there will be a clunking as its moving around.

the third is what the thing actually does, for instance the FC camber links are quiet, because they don't move and are always under tension, the lower arms on the FB need to move though, so they are going to be louder.

properly implemented, going full spherical, increases vibration a little, but not much.

it is also valid to have one end a rod end, and the other a bushing, if noise is a problem. Mazda's factory upper links kept the rubber bushings, and were just adjustable for length

j9fd3s

iTrader: (3)

oh and the other tradeoff you make with the rod end vs rubber, is that the rod end is solid, so when you hit stuff, it bends things.

vs rubber, where the rubber helps.

so on a street car, where you have big pot holes, and parking curbs and such...

luiml73

iTrader: (1)

Those are the ones that I ordered.

The camber plates, front weld-on coils and roll center adjusters should arrive on Wed. Tyler, from Technotoy says they're still working on the rears. Good communication so far.

sa7

iTrader: (13)

That's wrong. If you're using those front inserts with camber plates, they will work just fine.

If you're using them with the stock strut tops, you need a spacer/bushing. Since the hole in the stock upper mount is larger than the strut shaft on those strut inserts.

MosesX605

I always thought it was the opposite. Thanks!

Hyper4mance2k

iTrader: (40)

Just because no one has brought it up, yet. The reason no one has made rear coilovers for the FB in the last 35 years is because the stock shock mount on the chassis in not meant to hold the weight of the car. Any significant spring rate or load on that point and the chassis will flex and the mount might fail.

In regards to the hiem joint question. I ran heim jointed lower trailing arms and a panhard in my FB, and it is the loudest thing in the world. Every single bump in the road is translated into the chassis as a direct and jarring experience. Everyone who gets into your car will thing its falling apart because you will hear everything, and I mean everything that is translated thorough the road. Their Teflon lined joints are much quieter, but eventually the teflon will fain and you're left with a sloppy broken joint that needs to be replaced. I've never had of a metal on metal joint fail on me.

One last point, if you run heimjoints in both the upper and lower trailing arms, you will significantly increase the bind point for roll in the rear suspension. I don't think there will be more than 1* of roll before the suspension locks. Terrible Idea. The upper arms are out of alignment and already have a terrible problem with bind using the sloppy rubber bushings.

ioTus

iTrader: (5)

People have been tracking / racing with rear coils in the FB for many years now - the theory that the rear chassis mount can't support the weight of the car has been proven inaccurate.

JSmall

Ah nice to know about the heim joints there. So pretty much for a road car you want to try and keep the bushings then :P. Their kit looks so nice though! Hahaha

Hyper4mance2k

iTrader: (40)

Proven by whom? Not by anyone who is winning races. If it worked, people would be doing it in racing classes that allowed it. The spring rates it takes to be competitive would rip right through that 18g 35 year old steel. You can feel the chassis flex when you run rear springs over 200lbs in the stock location. Most people run 500llb in the rear on race cars.

You can run the lowers, just expect to replace the heims after a few years.

PK_12A

iTrader: (3)

The main reason for me to even try the rear coilovers on a 1st gen is the use of the same set up on pony cars, specifically Mustangs. The 'stang has basically the same axle, shock, and suspension setup in fox trim, it's also uni-body. The way I figure it worst possibility is the need to reinforce the rear shock mounts and build a frame brace, then again I'm not trying to set it up for a specific racing class either so bear that in mind. My point is that there are other cars with similar rear suspension like ours on other cars using the same or at least very similar shock mounting and frame construction, that run rear coilovers just like these and do win races. as for the link bars, good bushings are better on a road car no doubt, would be nice if they'd make adujstables with the bushing mounts instead of hemis. What interested me most, other than coilovers was the front LCA's, adjustable, replaceable ball-joints, only downside are the hemi's in place of bushings. Not sure weather the adjustable tension-rods would be of use on a mostly street driven car.

luiml73

iTrader: (1)

They forgot to send me the front springs lol. I spoke to them and they shipped them right away. He said the rears will be shipped next week

screen cap

ioTus

iTrader: (5)

Here's a bit of info on people running rear coils:
https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generati...ssible-975939/


I'm not building a track car, though I do intend to track it at open race days, otherwise will be street and show. 175-250lb rear would be my range, 250 at the absolute highest.

82FanTC

iTrader: (9)

I have both the front and rear coil overs, although I have not installed them yet. They came up with a drop mount bracket at the rear at the axle to provide more travel. I really hope it isn't true that running a true coil over in the rear is going to rip out at the top mount. I am starting with 200 pound springs in the rear.

Here is a picture of the new drop mount.

ioTus

iTrader: (5)

Thats gotta be one of the sexiest photos of an FB I've ever seen.

mazda6guy

iTrader: (1)

That is a nice set-up!! Have you ran any track or autocross events with the drop mount bracket setup?

mustanghammer

iTrader: (3)

I like everything in that picture except the hiems on the upper link. Especially like the lower control arm mount.

As others have mentioned, spherical bearings in all of the links in an RX7 suspension will bind. The suspension's natural tendency is to go into bind. But, unlike the rubber bushings in the stock suspension or a suspension with poly bushings the spherical bearings have no way to flex and so the upper arms eventually fail.

Saw this first hand on a road race RX7 in which all of the stock arms had spherical bearings installed in them. He started snaping upper arms like twigs. That was with near stock HP and 13" DOT racing tires.

A G-Force or KCRaceware Tri-Link is a better solution. Fits under the car and eliminates bind.

As far as coilovers are concerned. The upper shock mount is pretty good but Mazda put allot more structure over the stock spring location. I would want to weld in some structure to the shock mount and tie them together side to side.

Just because they make it and you can buy it doesn't mean that it works.

82FanTC

iTrader: (9)

The picture is not of my car. It is one T3 sent me as a reference for how it fits together. I will not be using hiems on the upper or lower. I have poly bushings.

I will also be tying the top of the rear struts together with a homemade strut brace. I don't even know how I will know if the rear mounts are flexing unless I put a gopro back there to watch. I will post the results when I finally have time to put everything together and race.

82FanTC

iTrader: (9)

No. Not even installed yet. First track event is May 31st. First auto-X is sooner but don't remember when exactly.

I will post results when I get everything installed.

Josh.272

Mate sounds like you will have a awesome handling car.
Post some pictures up of the shocks and stuff installed. It will be interesting to see how they all fit in and work together.
With the front struts, you said you brought the weld on kit, correct me if i'm wrong, how did they work out and come together? If i order a set for my car, i already have a set of struts to use and i am not bad on a welder so if the kit isnt to much work i can potentially save some cash.
Keep us updated on how they come together because i know i am certainly interested to see how this car will turn out.

Whizbang

i am using the upper camber plants for my bilstein coilover. Frankly, the bearing is grossly undersized and it is not designed for any true "misalignment". Wish they would use like a 7/8", closer to what my HKS used