DJpowerHaus Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 This is what I've been brewing up for the last year (arrgg.. its been a long time). http://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/rackOnRacecar.jpgStarion with 240SX crossmember and rack and pinion using the 240SX steering column. Did I mention the car is LOW. Bumpsteer doesnt seem to hurt 240s too bad so I'm not worried. I'll be using a skid plate though. http://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/camberPlate.jpgUsing Tein HA coilovers with custom tops. S14 5 lug hubs: http://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/zbrakesOnRacecar.jpgAnd 300ZX 4 piston brakes with some adapter fittings to -4 line (tested to 14,000psi (Thanks Matt)!). The interior isnt ready for pics yet, but I have non-power floor mount pedals sized for the 300ZX brakes, which required me to move the driver seat back almost a foot, and to make a 12" steering wheel spacer and way too many other little things. All covered in these funky 16x8 wheels. They need a 1/4" spacer to clear the brakes. Starion front 8s and rear 8s require a bolt on > 1" spacer to clear. Probably will end up just selling off my stock of 16" starion wheels one day if I find some 17 or 18" wheels that look good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mazarin Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 Pics!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artinist Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 hmm, is that the actual angle that the front control arm is going to be funtioning at? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted June 12, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 Sure is... welcome to 240SX world... strange, aint it? I'll have to live with it for now, see if it really causes any issues. I think rack and pinion trumps bumpsteer for what I'm doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artinist Posted June 12, 2006 Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 where the crossmember mounts to the chassis looks to be a lot lower than where it idealy should be. maybe that mating point was higher on the 240. that spacer is also lowering it even more i don't know why a 240 suspension would be an exemption to the rule. that setup looks to me like its going to have problems with bump steer and overall undesired angle changes with any up and down movement of the spindle. the idea of going with a twin A-arms like in the corvette is to eliminate those changes and make the tires go up and down relatively straight. this looks like its going to magnify that affect. i am not trying to talk smack about your setup. i am just trying to understand it. maybe i am missing something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted June 12, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2006 These are definatly good points, and we did spend a great deal of time thinking about and discussing them. We knew the adapter plates would lower it and I redesigned them 2 times to get them as thin as I could. I stopped worrying when I walked around the shop looking at all the 240s there (The shop currently has 4 Pro-Series drift cars in house) and to my suprise... this was the norm! I wondered how they could do that... then I realized that the suspension movement with these struts is minimal. The toe changes and scrub experienced with this amount of travel is small even less that sidewall flex under cornering. There is always the option for bump steer adjuster tie rod ends, but no one else seems to need them even with similar control arm angles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Al Posted June 13, 2006 Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 Definately an interesting conversion... Where's the write ups and the progress pics??? LOL Seriously I would like to see how this was pulled off though. Is it actually necessary to go with the different brake pedal? (I'm starting to look into different things and trying to learn what would be best for a drifting setup myself) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted June 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 If you came up with your own steering column setup, either by modifying the stock column, or designing one from scratch, you could definatly keep stock pedals. If I knew then what I knew now, I would have definatly modded the stock column. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Al Posted June 13, 2006 Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 Just curoius how the whole system works really... I'm guessing that you used the 240 SX's steering column thus the need for the mods? I dunno I'd have to see pics of the interior work... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted July 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2006 Yes, I did use the 240SX column with a bracket on the firewall to mount the far end of the column. I also had to drop it down about an inch with some spacers (big nuts) to get a decent angle. Here are some pics of this stuff. Hope you can see enough:http://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/driftCar/driftCar_floor_mount_pedals.jpghttp://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/driftCar/driftCar_cockpit.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig87 Posted July 5, 2006 Report Share Posted July 5, 2006 Interesting job, It would have been real sweet after all that work to have a RHD car. Now you have me thinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted July 5, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2006 After all the modifications I've already done, it would have been really really easy. I would have just had to make a bracket for the top of the steering column. There are enough RHD steering racks going in the trash with 240SX SR20 clips to snag one for free. I wanted to keep the stock dash though. That's the biggest holdup. If somebody could find me a RHD dash I'd do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heefner Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 Will you be able to shift gears sitting that far back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artinist Posted July 6, 2006 Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 Interesting job, It would have been real sweet after all that work to have a RHD car. Now you have me thinking. yea, it would go along very well with a service manual in japanese. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted September 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 I have the RX7 transmission which sits back about 6" farther than stock. That and a long bent shifter puts the shifter within comfortable reach. Recently I have pulled the crossmember, and removed 2.5" off of the top of the brackets. This was done by removing the adapter plates and cutting away most of the stock bracket. I then welded on my own bracket directly to the crossmember. This should really improve the lower control arm angles. I previously had moved the crossmember forward an inch to gain some caster. I've moved it back to the stock centerline again. Now I can use the stock (and Suspension Techniques) sway bar again. The downside of this is that now the engine mounts, intercooler pipes, oil pan, water pipes and maybe even hood will need to be altered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Funky Phil Posted September 4, 2006 Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 Yes, I did use the 240SX column with a bracket on the firewall to mount the far end of the column. I also had to drop it down about an inch with some spacers (big nuts) to get a decent angle. Here are some pics of this stuff. Hope you can see enough: http://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/driftCar/driftCar_cockpit.jpg That looks like it would be hard to get in and out of. Its all great work and no offense meant but thats alot of work to just keep the SQ body. Either way though Im in aww at the effort and thought put into your car.phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted September 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 This is the easiet racecar to get out of ever. The steering wheel still has the tilt function (that's the extended adjuster handle is for). You can raise the steering wheel so that it almost touches the windshield. Tons of room to get in and out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utpoorboy Posted September 27, 2006 Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 Ok, I'm not too knowlagable about suspension setups, I find suspension somewhat intimidating. But your conversion has caused me to spend alot of time online lately doing some research. So I have a few questions for you (and anyone else); Now, would a negative camber (unequal) A-arm setup be possible with the 240 rack & pinion on the Conquest? If so, would it have to be custom made, or would it be possible to use a unequal A-arm setup for a 240?If it did need to be custom made, what are the variables that need to be considered? I figure unequal A-arms are the best suspension tech. to date, so for the serious performer, why not? Especially since:"Most factory vehicles have compromised suspension geometry and several problems can occur when a car heels way over in a turn. First, the suspension can gain positive camber. This is worse in cars with McPherson strut suspensions. With strut-type suspensions, the car rolls, but the tires don't. This forces the tire to roll onto its outside edge and reduves its contact patch - clearly not the best way to use a tire."(http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26050) *I'm not trying to hijack the thread, if needed I can post this seperately* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted September 27, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 Adapting the steering and front suspension on my car was not at all a bolt on affair. There is lots and lots of mocking up and fabricating. I didnt use it because it was "close"; it was not close at all. I used it because it was a way to upgrade brakes (OEM quality off the shelf rotors and 4 piston calipers), suspension (real coilovers with springs and camber plates) and steering (2.6 turn rack with Tein tie rods if I need more angle than that) at the same time without having to modify the chassis in any way other than the firewall for the steering column. Since the 240SX didnt come with double A-arm front suspension, I wouldnt even consider taking the time to adapt that to double A-arm as well as adapt it to a Starion. That'd just be silly. You might be able to find parts to work with it from a 300ZX or Skyline, but I doubt it will be easy. Starting from scratch would be the best method. If you really want double A-arm, find a model that has that that already as well as other benefits or its not going to be worth it. You'll likely need to totally reinvent the front sheet metal or at least put in some sturdy reinforcements. McPhearson struts are some of the simplest and compact suspension setups out there. Strut top, tension rod and lower control arm... 3 points to worry about. I would not have been able to swap the front suspension if that hadn't been true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utpoorboy Posted September 27, 2006 Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 DJ, just to clarify I am Not making light of all your hard work. You did a great job and I understand it did take a lot of time and effort, and was most definately not bolt on. The a-arm idea popped into my head while reading what you had done. And I was just curious if you had thought about it and if so what your opinion was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted September 27, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 I didnt take it that way so dont worry about it. I just dont want to have people limit their choices becuase I just happened to use a certain rack. I also dont like to see people get in way over their heads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eeaston Posted October 24, 2006 Report Share Posted October 24, 2006 Very interesting project. What is the width (inner ball joint to inner ball joint) of the rack? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted October 27, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2006 26.25" I measured a rack I had laying around with no boots on it. The Starion is around 20" from inner balljoint to inner ball joint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJpowerHaus Posted November 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 Here are the pictures of the control arm angles with the raised crossmember: http://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/rackOnRacecar_better_angles.jpg much better than: http://projectzerog.com/drifting/images/rackOnRacecar.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
putz2point6 Posted November 30, 2006 Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 that colum looks like it came off a pickup truck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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