Zanardi spring question

[jadkar]

I just installed Zanardi springs with Koni adjustables. In my haste I never put the stock springs next to the new ones to make sure they were different. Now when looking at photos of the car it seems as though the rear is sitting a little lower then the front. Keep in mind the Zaradis only lower the car half an inch. I'm hoping they didn't give me Zanardi rear springs, and stock fronts.

Does anyone have the Honda part numbers to these springs (maybe from an old reciept) The part numbers I have are:
52441-SL0-J01
51401-SL0-J02

Also, please take a look at the pictures below and tell me if I'm going crazy.

Thanks,
John

 

[NetViper]

The front does look high to me. I noticed that when I looked at your new wheel pics...

 

[heretic]

Yes, they seem to be the same #'s I found. What is the gap for the front tire\fender?

 

[docjohn]

John,is the ground level in those pics? if not take a look on level ground,I don't notice an imbalance in my fender-wheel gap.

 

[jadkar]

Hey guys,

Thanks for getting back to me

What is the gap for the front tire\fender?

Rear with 265/35-18 gap= 1 3/4"
Front with 215/40/17 gap= 2"
**note: add about 1/8" because I used a piece of cardboard on top of the tires to measure.

John,is the ground level in those pics? if not take a look on level ground,I don't notice an imbalance in my fender-wheel gap.

Yes, the ground was level.

What is your tire-to-fender clearance?

 

[Nimbus]

That doesn't look right. My Zanardi doesn't have that much gap in the front wheel well.

 

[jadkar]

I wonder if my shocks are wrong, maybe the spring perches are the problem? What do you think?

I may inquire with Dali Racing about the shocks and find out if there was a possibility wrong ones were sent.

Does anyone have a pic. of their NSX with Zanardi springs, that I can look at? I already have DocJohns, I want to compare multiple pics.

Thanks,
John

 

[jadkar]

anyone have any more ideas.....

Does anyone have any more ideas?????? I have been talking to Mark from Dali and he has been very helpfull, however we haven't been able to put a finger on mty strange ride height problem. If any one has any suggestions....Please post a reply.

In an attempt to make it simple, I have come to the conclusion that:
A) I have the wrong springs
b) The Konis are wrong (ie: mislabeled from Koni, manufactured incorrectly)

As far as the springs, I won't know until I tear the whole thing down (which I'm stalling to do). However, I was wondering if somebody has Koni adjustables if they would be able to get me a measurement from the bottom bolt hole to the spring perch. That way I can compare mine.

At this point any help would be appreciated, unfortunately I have to go to NC this weekend with the NSX, raised front end or not. This really pisses me off.

Below are some pictures of the install, maybe someone can pick up if I screwed up or not. Mark looked at them already and said everything looks OK, but more opinions wouldn't hurt.

Thanks,
John

 

[Larry Bastanza]

John,

When you tightened the lower shock bolts was the car on the ground and the body and suspension fully settled? I should have thought of this before, you MUST only tighten the lower shock bolts with the car fully on the ground. What may be happening is that the shocks were tightened with the suspension in full "droop", and they are binding on the a-arm now.

Worth a shot.

HTH,
LarryB

 

[jadkar]

Larry,

If I try to think of that logically, I can't see it happening. I did tighten the shock bolts (all 4 front and rear) with the car raised in the air, suspension in full droop. However, I would think that the 3000 lbs curb weight would over power the "pinching & binding" of the lower shock bracket. Plus, if that theory is correct wouldn't all the binding be going on in the lower shock bushing, since it is mated to the steel collar and the shock bottom. I would imagine before it stopped the car from traveling downward it would tear the bushing.

However, with all that said.......you definitely have more experience then me, and this is the best idea I have heard so far I can't wait to go home and try it!! I should be able to (very carefully) hit the bolt with a long extension and swivel socket while the car is on the ground. I guess I will tell right away if the car drops a bit. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Thanks,
John

 

[Larry Bastanza]

Hi John,

This has been an issue in the past, which is why I mentioned it. Loosen BOTH sides and move the car back and forth, you can even drive it up and down the driveway, then tighten them.

Good Luck,

Keep us posted.

LarryB

 

[NSXT]

Upper spring seat rubber looks questionable to me. Although I dont have the Zanardi setup (H&R + Bilstiens) mine dont have any rubber squishing out of the metal seat. Also, I don't see any cracks in the undercoating where the seat meets the fender...did you remove the entire strut assembly when you changed spring and shocks, or was just just the shock and spring removed while the upper mount stayed with the car?

 

[jadkar]

On the front, I left the upper seat in place, like you correctly observed. I thought long and hard about the spring not being seated correctly up there, however after carefully inspecting that area, it appears that the spring is seated very firmly in place. Also if it was a bit off I'm sure driving the car would have shifted the spring back in place. Awesome observation though and to tell you the truth, if I have to tear everything down again, the seat is definitely coming off with the shock this time.

John

 

[jadkar]

Well.......I loosened all the shock bolts and drove up and down my street, I even slammed on the brakes a few times to get the suspension moving. When I brought it back to the garage, it was at the same height I am going to tear the front down tonight and inspect the whole set-up. This time I will take the spring seat off the car for good measure. Also after thinking about it, I don't need someone’s Konis to compare the spring perch. It will be the same distance from shock bolt to spring perch on any shock. So I will measure it and compare it to my stock shocks. I will also put the Zaradi spring and my stock spring side by side and compare them. I'll post the results.

John

 

[d1 guy]

What was the solution to this problem? I am having the same problem. Any help would be great. Thanks

 

[jadkar]

What was the solution to this problem? I am having the same problem. Any help would be great. Thanks

Wow!! Holy grave digging'. Well at least you use the search I took the front end of my car apart about 3 times searching for something I did wrong. I found nothing, I even changed some stuff because I didn't like the way it looked. Regardless the fix to my problem was time!! It took MONTHS for my front to settle down (and I don't baby my cars) That seems unacceptable to me but that's my answer.

 

[goldNSX]

Does anyone have the Honda part numbers to these springs (maybe from an old reciept) The part numbers I have are:
52441-SL0-J01
51401-SL0-J02

These numbers are DEFINITLY Zanardi/Type-S springs. I have the same. :wink:

Have a look into this:
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71263

IMO your springs are correct, your shocks are correct, it's just the way Zanardi springs OEM height is.

 

[MJK]

These numbers are DEFINITLY Zanardi/Type-S springs. I have the same. :wink:

Have a look into this:
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71263

IMO your springs are correct, your shocks are correct, it's just the way Zanardi springs OEM height is.

I agree.

I think it is just a time to 'settle'. Mine looked noticeably high in the front when first done also (zanardi/koni). Now it does not seem so bad. This was about a year after I had them installed (I think).

 

[d1 guy]

Thanks for the help. I tightened it up while it was on the ground and it immediately dropped a half inch. After a few hours I saw it drop even more. It still needs to drop about a half inch, but thats a lot better than needing to drop 2 inches like before. Thanks for all the help.