LeonV

What the manual recommends is equivalent to today's 87 octane. I use 89 octane in my L24, with as much timing as I want. I suppose I could use 87, but I tuned my timing curve on 89.

As far as new goes, I've logged a little bit of seat time in the Scion FRS. I really liked its tossability and think of it as a Miata 1.5. It's bigger, looks better (IMO), more powerful, and way more comfortable than a Miata, but it still maintains that agile feel. I've got an S2000 as well, and liken the FRS to an S2000 0.75. The FRS is not as razor sharp, good looking (again, IMO!), powerful, or raw like the S, but instead it is much roomier, more comfortable and way more liveable day-to-day. The FRS/BRZ bridges the gap between a Miata and S2000. If you expand your search to older cars, the possibilities are endless! You're easily within budget for a used Porsche Cayman S and a used Boxter S goes for way less. Those are fantastic driver's cars. Maintenance is a bigger pain though. I'd consider getting a $25k Cayman S and keeping the rest of your budget for future maintenance. The list can go on and on...

Excellent, thanks!

Interesting, I'm curious as to how it's going to work out for you.

Just buy the stainless kit for the non-critical parts and buy the critical fasteners according to the spreadsheets that are out there. I believe Lazeum compiled a pretty good list.

JC, do you know what spring rates the 36mm shocks are valved for, or are they custom valved on an individual basis? JM, regarding the funky valving on your shocks, I believe compression damping is usually valved taking UNsprung mass into account and rebound damping is valved for the sprung mass. Are yours valved differently? I'm hoping the Bilsteins are better too, the Tokicos are definitely too stiff in compression.

Are you familiar enough with Tokicos (HP or Illumina) to compare them (ride and road-holding) to the P30?

Cool, thanks John! Great info. Sounds like the P30-0032 works with sectioned struts. Digressive valving is something that the Tokicos are sorely lacking. If the Tokicos actually do have digressive valving, then their compression damping is just way too damn stiff. The P30 Bilsteins are sounding like the ones to get for me, as I'm looking for the car to ride better but not be severely underdamped for autoX and the track.

Nice buy! That car looks pretty clean, besides the tattered paint, and you got some nice goodies to go along with it.

Wow, those look fantastic, Jerry!

I've been looking forward to getting some Bilsteins or Konis, as their valving seems to be "better" than Tokico's. However, I haven't done enough research as to which ones work for Zs and what's out there. I know John C. is involved in getting some Bilstein's that could be used for Zs but not a lot of news on that front.

That must be because you bought DIN spec bolts. JIS bolts will have the same hex head size as the original.

Most definitely, Julio! Ride quality depends on how the damper matches the spring. If you think back to your mechanical vibrations class (I know, I know ), the important bit here is the damping ratio (critical damping constant / damping coefficient). Generally, as the damping ratio approaches critical, you get better handling because of quicker response times, but ride quality goes down the drain since transmissibility goes up. There's a small sweet spot where handling and ride quality can co-exist, and that's where properly-matched dampers put you. Multi-adjustable, multi-circuit dampers make it easier and/or possible to get there.

Oooh, shiny!

Thanks Steve. I think so and it's for the better, I just had no time to work on it. Still, it's a little upsetting that I wasn't able to put this one back on the road. Hope to see it rolling again, but she's left the Bay Area for LA. Oh well, now I have a bunch of parts to sell!

Now that the 240Z shell is gone:

Finally waved goodbye to my rust-free 240Z shell...

The ride may be a bit more "pitchy" for lack of a better term. In passenger cars, spring rates are typically chosen for ride quality. A stiffer rear spring makes the rear end settle quicker than the front, after a road disturbance. This decreases pitching motion felt by passengers and makes the ride more comfortable. With that said, I think you'll notice the added stiffness much more than you do the differences in front and rear rate, as the Z has a relatively short wheelbase. Handling-wise, if you notice anything at all, stiffer front springs (all else constant) will make it tend to understeer more. This can be easily alleviated though.

Except considerably cheaper! Buy Chevette springs, paint them red, and they are now Tokicos. No more problems with the Z-police.

Nothing wrong with using non-Z specific parts, I'll second JC. A spring is a spring, sounds like the Chevette ones might do the trick for you. EDIT: Wow, those springs are stiffer than I expected! Looks like a nice solution for those looking for a stock-ish ride height, but stiffer springs.

I don't think my 225s "bow out" and I've got no performance issues to complain about (besides them being old and not as grippy as I'd like). Now when I ran 225s on 6" wide slotted mags, there was some noticeable buldging but nothing to complain about. When talking strictly about looks, I prefer a little too wide vs. a little too narrow anyway. Your opinion may vary. It's not about putting down power, at least in my case. Oversteer can be induced without breaking tires free, in fact that's desired. That has more to do with weight transfer and roll stiffness distribution. If your goal is fast laps, you shouldn't be losing traction at any point. A 225mm section width tire is recommended for a 7" rim, there is no reason to cry foul on fit and performance. A wider tire (on a properly sized rim) will stop better and turn better than a narrower one.

There is a recommended rim width range for each tire size. Using Tirerack.com as a source, a 225/50-16 is good for a 6-8" wide rim. A 7" wide rim should be perfect for that size. I've had no rubbing problems running 225/50-16 on my Z, however the same spec tires from various manufacturers may still differ slightly in size. Wheel offset is also very important, as it laterally locates the wheel/tire combo in the car. Again, my 16X7 Panasports with the current tires on them do not rub at all. FWIW, 225/60-14 did not rub either, when I ran 14X6 slotted mags. I believe the mags had a zero offset and the Panasports are close to zero, if not zero. Also, tire diameter between a 225/50-16 and 205/55-16 is essentially equal.

Can't go wrong with Panasports, however, they're more expensive than Konigs or Rotas. Finding them second-hand is the trick but you'll have to be patient, unless you're lucky. 16X7 with 225/50-16 does the job nicely. If you're set on the Konigs, why go with 215s if you were wanting 225s? Tire selection in 225/50-16 sizes is way better.

Nope, but it's definitely down...

I didn't even end up staying up until 12 last night. Got up early today and finally diagnosed why the speedo doesn't work. I ended up replacing the speedo cable (had one laying around). Now it's clear I need a different speedo gear!