fluid is whatever i could get from repco in my mad rush to get he car back on teh road. i should probably get some differnet stuff. castrol i think. suggestions?
pads are QFM (?) hpx pads. the ones that are about $90. they are damn grippy once you get a bit of heat into them (and feel not that great first thing in the morning..). but yer last mt nebo drive,on the downhill sections (hairpin after hairpin) lost them towards the end. was probably after 3 or 4 hard stops less than 10secs appart. so i think they did alright..they are only 234mm afterall.
im considering building some brake ducts (using the speed holes in my kamaii lip) dunno how much difference they will make though.
Last edited by ke70dave; 3rd September 2010 at 09:58 PM.
In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't.
- Blaise Pascal
run TRW 600 fluid or similar, then try again.
Otherwise A1rm.
I really push my car and i find the brakes never really fade
But at the end of a long tight downhill section you need a bit more pedal pressure (lifting off the seat) but the same retardation is there.
Car: RA65
Car use (e.g grip/drift): Street
Front Struts: Stock, shortened 40mm, weld on sleeve kit
Spring Rate/ Free Height: 8kg/mm, 200mm free height
Inserts (brand/model): KYB Excel-G SW20 rear inserts
LCA's: Stock unmodified
RCA's (size if you have them): N/A
Strut Tops: Cusco camber adjustable pillow ball tops to suit xA6x Celica
Front Sway Bar: Stock
Castor Arms: Stock
Rear Springs: Falcon springs, cut to 280mm free height
Rear Shocks: Stock
Bracing: None, but will be making a strut brace in future
Pro's: Goes alright for how it is at the moment. Much better than the standard setup, anyway.
Con's: Excel-G inserts are rather under-damped for 8kg/mm springs in the front. Back end needs bushes replaced and an alignment as it gets a bit floaty at speed.
Extra Comments: I still need to get a decent wheel alignment, as the "by the eye" alignment I did isn't the best. I will also be replacing/upgrading all of the bushes, swaybars, shocks all around and rear springs when funds permit.
car: Ke70 full stock but in process of modding
use: daily/ want to set up to start drifting
I'm sorting out my suspension set up at the moment, I got a free pair of EL falcon rears and I guess I'll match up to the commadore excel g's.
for the front i got a coil over kit and 86 struts that needs to be cut and welded, the springs with the coil over kit are 8kg/mm so I'm wondering are the excel G's able to handle that well? Just asking because I read somewhere along this thread they can't keep springs captive and couldn't figure out if they can work well with the spring rate. if so which are preferred, ST185 or SW20 excel g's?
was looking at the sw20's AGX rears but they are pretty $$$ for me at the moment so deciding if i should hold out and get those or if the excel g's will be fine.
how important is getting RCA's and how much can i chop off the fal#### springs to still keep it at a 'legal' ride height?
If your coilover kit has helper springs, spring captivity will be ok. Its worth spending a bit extra and getting RCAs, you dont really want your car to be bumpsteering after you've gone to the trouble of coilovers, shocks etc. For shocks I know there pretty pricey but Bilsteins will be the last shock you'll buy.
Last edited by Dylan; 7th September 2010 at 08:18 PM.
yeah i saw the bilstein price but as a uni student at the moment i just can't justify that price...
I really just want to know if a set of excel g's can work with 8kg front rates so that i can do it on the cheap for now. Then I can take my time and save some cash and get a decent set up in a year or so.
ecel g's won't really be in their working range with a 8kg spring run a 6kg front spring and reap the rewards, excel g's still probably don't have enough damping forces but it'll feel a shit load better than 8's
i just got this kit sitting around already with 8kg springs, so i'd rather pay a little extra then for the better shocks than go buy softer springs if im only using them for a short while.
refer to my setup (just before your post) regarding shock inserts.
Excel-G are indeed well underdamped for 8kg springs, but they aren't appalling so to speak (like running with blown shocks). they would be alright for around 4-5kg springs in my opinion, but i'd go for AGX or bilsteins if you can save enough for them. the only reason i got Excel-G inserts was because it was all i could afford at the time and i needed the car back on the road ASAP. it's probably worth mentioning that the front end on an RA65 is a bit heavier than a KE70, which does affect damping characteristics.
also, i run without helper springs and i have about 1" of travel where the springs aren't captive on full droop. i use the standard bump stop as a handy locator for the spring to pop straight back into the upper seat. it's no major concern if the spring seats properly without assistance, but it's still technically defectable and not ideal. also, helper springs aren't cheap :\
Car: AE86
Car use: Night drives/ Hillclimb/ time attack
Front Struts: AE86 cut 40mm shorter, coilover sleave welded
Spring Rate/ Free Height: 6.8kg/mm, 250mm
Inserts (brand/model): KYB AGX, position 1. (AJPS)
LCA's: KE55 (10mm longer than AE86)
RCA's: 30mm?
Strut Tops: Cusco, max setting for neg camber
Steering: P/S knuckles, extra-lock rack ends I make myself
Bump stop: none
Rear Springs: KING 4.8kg/mm
Rear Shocks: Koni Sport, 1/2 turn from hard (for Starlet/Paseo)
Trailing arms: stock
Lateral rod: Cusco race (solid bearings)
Other: AJPS traction brackets, using top position
Bump stop: cut a segment off
Ride height: higher than 100mm. More like 160mm at rear.
Alignment: 4 deg caster, zero toe.
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