Alright since there is random threads here and there talking about what steering angle kits members just installed, or what knuckles they just bought, I figured I would start a new thread with everybody dropping their current set up for a steering angle kit (everything included) or if theyre just running cut or aftermarket knuckles for a little more angle.
I know there a tons of angle kits out there for our chassis and I would love to see everybodys opinion on all of them out there and who has what!
Some of the ones I know of off the top of my head are;
Figs Engineering: If im not mistaken they make a few different kits with options of adding outer tie rods for more camber as well. Seems to be a little more expensive than some of the others out
Ez Knuckles: Same thing here with piecing together what parts of the kit you want.
Xcessive Manufacturing: This is a piece together kit as well.
Minty Fresh Moose Knuckle: These are extremely rare if Im not mistaken, and you must run the gs300 outer tie rods like most kits.
Animal Style Heat Makers Knuckle: These are pretty knew for our chassis but are for super low style cars and I guess you dont have to run longer outer tie rods with these
If you do have any of the above kits or knuckles let me know! Like I said would love to hear your opinion. And if you have something custom drop some details as well!
Looking forward to everybodys responses!
PS. I am still trying to figure out which kit I want to go with so Im hoping this thread will give me a better idea and which one to pull the trigger on.
I got Kazama-Drift short knuckle last year, one side failed after two months (DD street legal not competition) they didn't express slightest responsibility to honor any warranty, verdict: stay away from them, I had to use Lexus GS outer tie rods.
now I bought Xcessive Manufacturing adapters (I feel comfortable dealing with steal rather than aluminium) will fit them this week once I pass the annual registration inspection.
I even swapped my steering rack from 2001 to 2004 to get quicker turns (3 vs 3.25) which didn't make tangible difference but little heavier steering! (could be pseudo effect!)
are those the spacer type dealios that are machined out of aluminum? i cant find their site. i remember seeing a company that was making the spacers, similar to the KFD spacers. although they were making them out of aluminum instead of steal. im not an an engineer by any means, but there's a reason why no one else makes spacers/knuckles out of aluminum.
if you are still within the time to file a claim with your bank credit card company, id do it.
i didnt realize different year IS300s had different rack ratios. do you have that info? would probably be best if the OP puts that info in the first post (or atleast posted in this thread somewhere).
the minty fresh knuckles are not rare by any means. they just do batch mfg, so they only are in stock when they make a batch.
figs has 2 options, the 'cheaper' option which is just the knuckle assembly in its entirety (couple different versions i believe). and then they have the pro angle kit, which is a complete kit for the front end. i believe they are the only ones making an out right 'aftermarket knuckle', everyone else just utilizes a spacer or just cuts/rewelds or mods a stock knuckle.
KFD also makes a spacer/kit. i dont remember exactly what it was, i havent looked in a while.
figs has 2 options, the 'cheaper' option which is just the knuckle assembly in its entirety (couple different versions i believe). and then they have the pro angle kit, which is a complete kit for the front end. i believe they are the only ones making an out right 'aftermarket knuckle', everyone else just utilizes a spacer or just cuts/rewelds or mods a stock knuckle.
Yeeh the pro option is inane. Just like wisefab.
But Xcessive makes a zero ackerman knuckle and a standard one which both seem to an 'aftermarket knuckle'. I could be wrong though thats just what it looks like. As well as EZ knuckle. Theres have a built in roll center adjuster with how the knuckle is designed.
i didnt realize different year IS300s had different rack ratios. do you have that info? would probably be best if the OP puts that info in the first post (or atleast posted in this thread somewhere).
I had figs pro angle. I reverted back to stock angle. Unless your willing to remove the front sway bar for max angle then the sway bar will limit the angle you can run using FIGS Pro Angle. Youll also need an after market triangle brace for the figs which only ones or 2 companies sell now. ive reverted back to stock steering to learn to drive faster and handle the drift at faster speed then rely on the angle to save my ass now. Unless your doing pro comps/tandems I dont think steering angle is needed.
Mike from figs is very helpful and worked with me on everything I did so im not trying to bash the company they are good quality parts from most of what I saw/had just simply didnt do what I thought it would do. My Car is still on stock power, but all suspension parts were bought to support the angle kit including 18/16k bc coilovers, wheels within spec, I removed the sway bar to see how that would feel. Honestly up to the driver to get a feel and see what they actually react to during drifts and what they like to react to during drift.
Good to know about the sway bar. Also those are some stuff coils. I need those... haha. But you needed a little more power than stock to take full advantage of the pro angle huh?
I've been using Xcessive's "standard" knuckles for over two years. The standard kit actually does offer approximately a lot more angle - see their website for more info, plus the effect of a RCA being 1/2" or 12mm thick (plus the fact that you aren't using the stock drop tie rod attachment).
I don't drift that often but it helped immensely for holding angle. I love how much faster the steering is now, it's only two turns lock to lock. It does create heavier steering effort since they do remove some ackerman compared to stock steering arms.
For what I wanted they were perfect, since I drive my car on the street as well (only in the summer).
IMO, run some diff mounts/coilovers/steering arms and you have a solid car for drifting as well as driving on the street.
This is awesome to hear! I was leaning more towards the Xcessive kit anyways. Mostly because theyre steel over aluminum and Xcessive's shop is 20 minutes from me.
But I am confusing when your talking about RCA's. Are you referring to how the knuckle is designed or the fact that it comes with lower ball joints too?
I guess Im confusing I never saw their kit mentioning anything about roll center adjusters. I get they come with gs300 outer tie rods which are a little longer, just not the RCA part.
The "RCA effect" is because it fits between the stock steering knuckle and the spindle, so it effectively is a 1/2" or 12mm RCA. Plus, the fact that you're cutting off the stock tie rod attachment of the stock steering knuckle and it's all on one plane then you get even more than 12mm of RCA effect with your tie rod attachment. See what I mean in the pictures on their site (compare the 3rd pic with a picture of a IS300 spindle in Google Images).
I probably can't explain for shit but you get my point.
I bought a set of these knuckles from LexiBreak but haven't installed them yet. They took awhile to come, but they look AMAZING and they are THICK! I don't think they're going to break. Supposedly they can use all of the stock pieces and just require the LBJ to be cut like all other knuckles do.
I bought a set of these knuckles from LexiBreak but haven't installed them yet. They took awhile to come, but they look AMAZING and they are THICK! I don't think they're going to break. Supposedly they can use all of the stock pieces and just require the LBJ to be cut like all other knuckles do.
newer generations of Nissans and Infiniti plus other manufacturers have their spindles in cast aluminium at least with Toyota we are lucky that ball joint and steering lever are integrated as one part unlike Nissan which is integrated into the spindle! strength-wise I assume it holds enough, the thing is those aluminium steering shortening levers are thicker leading to more RCA plus personal preference of steel over aluminium, it was in the old days when ae86 owners would swap-in the power assisted steering ball joint to gain the same effect we are talking about here
probably it's different naming causing confusion, 1st picture is MK1 IS300 spindle (could be named as axle or hub-carrier etc)
the second is the ball joint with -lets call it steering lever- where the outer tie rod is linked to
the 3rd is Nissan 370Z spindle where it's made from aluminium with steel inserts, lower ball joint sits on the lower arm now the steering lever is integrated into the spindle, so if we wanted higher steering and quicker steering angle we would need a custom made spindle or if some one is mad enough he would cut and weld!
I'm confident that you already know this mesoo and I never wanted to drift the subject away, it could be just different naming!
Cheers
Just ordered coils yesterday. They should be here mid next week. Tomorrow I am going down to Xcessive to put up an angle kit. Will post pictures when I get it all installed. Should be all together once my coils arrive. Going with the standard knuckles, gs300 tie rod ends, and lower ball joints. Im so stoked it get it all on!
I’m back almost 3 years later, realized I never updated y’all.☠
Here is the whole set up I ended up going with for suspension. Still running this exact set up and it’s been great.👌🏼
Border Racing Coilovers 20k front 18k rear
Front set up:
Jzx100 uppers
Xcessive standard knuckles
Gs outer tie rods
30mm shorten spindles
No arms or mods in the rear other than coils
The Xcessive angle kit added TONS of angle compared to stock. And the jzx uppers added -7 camber. Just under -4 for the rear of natural camber.
Here’s how it looked during and after install. At the time I was running 18x9.5 +20 work vs-kf’s. 15mm spacer up front made for perfect fitment and no spacer was needed in the rear.
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