Mounts Version 2

I was bored the other day and remembered back in 2002 that I wanted an Ultimate Racing turbo kit for my S. I don't see much of their stuff anymore so I went to their website and scored this find - Engine mount rings. Then a few nights ago, I came across the Spoon engine rings and were interested in them. I'm done trying the ETD engine torque dampeners and Innovative Mounts and their techs and this woman that answers the phone fails at life, but I think the white car needs a little improvement, because mounts do make a difference, as far as handling and feel. So the Spoon's are about $185 or so and these are $125, so not a huge difference but definitely worth giving a shot. Other than that, I know nothing about these or know anyone that runs or has talked about these. If you do give me some input!

Heres the link to Ultimate Racing where I came across these http://www.ultimate-racing.com/Products2/S2K/S2K_EngineMountRing.shtml

And of course the Spoon engine mount rings http://www.spoon.jp/eng/details.php?id=669&md=s2000&cid=1

Sway Bars or Anti Roll Bars

Recently I have been in a few discussions involving sway bar combos. One should know that it's always not necessarily the best solution to run giant sway bars. There is a lot to consider such as tire sizes, width combos, suspension stiffness, and general driving characteristics. Another thing to consider is the price, such as using a combo using an array of OEM bars vs aftermarket. Also, another thing to make sure to check is the condition of bushings for the bar as well as the end-links and proper torque. Recently Eibach has released some sway bars for a great price, and some other brands have developed bars with adjustable end-links so you can really dial in your liking. If you didn't already know a sway bar connects one side of the suspension to the other and sends force from one side to another, the larger the bar, the stiffer the roll will be in a turn making it more difficult for the tire to roll over on its contact path. Changing this will affect over and understeer conditions. Ill try to update this as the thread grows or I find more.

The List (From S2KI The Great Sway Bar Thread http://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/351694-the-great-swaybar-thread/page__hl__sway+bar+sizes)


OEM Sway Bars
AP1 2000-2001
F: 28.2x5.0mm (P/N: 51300-S2A-003)
R: 27.2x5.3mm (P/N: 52300-S2A-013)

AP1 2002-2003
F: 26.5x4.5mm (P/N: 51300-S2A-013)
R: 27.2x4.5mm (P/N: 52300-S2A-J01)

AP2 2004-2007
F: 26.5x4.5mm (P/N: 51300-S2A-023)
R: 25.4x4.5mm (P/N: 52300-S2A-J02)


AP2 2008-
F: 27.2mm 
R: 25.4mm 


AP2 CR
F: 28.6mm
R: 26.5mm

Aftermarket
Alex
F: 32.0mm
R: 24.5mm
R: 30.0mm
ASM:
F: 25.4x4.0mm
F: 31.8x3.7mm
R: 25.4x3.0mm
R: 30.2x3.5mm
Comptech:
F: 31.75mm
R: 31.75mm
Cusco:
F: 32mm
R: 30mm
Gendron:
F: 31.75x4.76mm
F:31.75x6.35mm
F: 31.75mm
Mugen:
F: 25.4mm
F: 31.8mm
R: 25.4mm
R: 30.0mm
Saner:
F: 31.75mm 3 position adjustable
Spoon:
F: 27x4.8mm
R: 27x4.3mm
SWIFT:
F: 87% stiffer
R: 116% stiffer
*compared to Early AP1 ('00-'01)
Tanabe:
F: 30.4mm
R: 30.4mm
Whiteline:
F: 30.0mm 
R: 30mm
STsuspensions
F: 28.2mm
R: 27.2mm 
Eibach
F: 32mm
R: 29mm




Stole this photo from MAXREV, But he also has a nice thread here and a review of the Eibach http://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/822700-eibach-sway-bars-review/

Tein Flex/EDFC Another Chapter Closed

Ok, im going to start off with this, I like Tein (I pronounce it "Tane") products. Most people tend to talk shit about Tein for what ever reason rather it be not all their products  are made in Japan, or whatever..uneducated or rather JDM Fan Boy, I believe this should be summed up as ignorance, so I can't hold stupid against you, I digress. Anyway, I have had several Tein products and installed them always without a hitch, and never had a problem with technical support or having parts rebuilt. I also like how several installation instructions are available online, which is always handy because I never seem to be working on installations or trouble shooting during normal hours of business. For my ability I finally felt comfortable on the Flex's and believe I had them dialed in to the best of my skills, granted I am no professional. I was pleased with them overall, for the price $1439.00 not bad and the ride was good. Of course the quality was great as well, and I have always been attracted to the signature green color. You might be wondering if you could live with these on a daily basis, the answer is absolutely. These are 16 way adjustable dampening/rebound and include standard 10k springs (559lbs) front and 12k (671lbs) rear, and there is a huge difference in the way these handled from soft to firm. I ran mine on the stiffer side, but thats just what seemed to work for me, and I liked the feel of the ride and steering input/response. Another thing I need to add about Tein products, the jam nuts they use have a nice deep groove so the spanner wrenches slip less. Most of the time I used a wire brush on the threads then loosened the jam nut and was able to adjust with my hand, instead of have to crank the collars for height. Another nice thing for the wrenches when making adjustments that are tight, you can put a 1/2 inch drive ratchet/breaker bar on the spanner to get more leverage. Moving on to the EDFC, is it necessary? No. Is it handy? Yes it is. It's handy to be able to adjust on the fly. It's kind of a pain to install with all the additional wire length, however, it is universal and too much is better than not enough. There is another problem on S2000's with the EDFC, where the hell to mount the box. I believe I found the best place I could that worked for me. I took these photos while removing mine, so keep in mind I am trying my best to write this in reverse order but if you're removing your factory suspension, follow these steps.
Is this easy? Yes pretty much basic.
Do I need special tools? A pry bar is handy! I pried on the inside lip on the shock tower and on the upper control arm
Ratchet &14,17, 12mm
All the basic requirements jack, stands, lug socket, torque wrench.
Pocket flat head screw driver *If your installing EDFC
What will I need, Locktite *If you are installing EDFC

Here is the Flex setup with EDFC

Lets start off now by lifting the car up, remove all 4 wheels, open trunk and hood.
*Note that your jack height may limit you to using wood to lower your wheels onto once completed to roll the jack out
We can start on the front lower 17mm bolt from the control arm, then remove the 2 14mm shock tower nuts. Now you can use a pry bar and pry down like i did and then just slide the shock out.
*Note for the brake line make sure to remove the 10mm bolt holding to the shock first, you can reuse this on the Flex, however I used zip ties for whatever reason.

Moving on to the Rear suspension, you will have to work through the trunk, pull the spare tire out and pull back the rest of the paneling to reveal your space
Start off by removing the gray factory brace, it has two 12mm on each side, then the bar just lifts out of the way.

The left rear will be a task, while the right rear will be easy. Just follow the same steps as the front and the coilover should come right out, including the pry location I have photoed. The Left rear, I was able to get to both bolts with short extensions, if you can't, you can remove the nut inside the fuel door, it's either an 8mm or 10mm, I don't remember off hand and then push the filler pipe back into the car and you can get more room.

Make sure to to repeat all of these steps in reverse and torque to the specifications.

Adjusting dampening, I believe adjusting manual is clockwise is stiffen and counter clockwise is loosen. Adjusting the height loosen the lower lock ring and make sure the two upper lock rings are tight together and you should be able to spring the body up or down by hand, you may have to put a spanner on the two lock rings together to get leverage to turn. Adjusting the spring will change your preload. The springs will settle over night, so remember while adjusting height an inch change in distance between the upper 2 lock rings and lower lock ring, will be reflected in small adjustments I usually go just a 1/4 inch at a time and then lower and see how I liked it and if I could get my suspension geometry to look correct.

EDFC........=Endless Damns Fun Controller
You need these instructions http://www.tein.com/tech_info/inst/edfc.pdf
You will have four motors with a rubber cover boot and a short pig tail. To install these, if you have the ratchet setup for adjusting dampening, you will need the wrench for sale on Teins website to remove this. "Click assembly 8mm" a regular wrench is too thick http://www.tein.com/online_shop/wrench.html and then install the hex bolts for the EDFC.
A quick run down once the click assembly is removed, put a few drops of locktite on the threads, then you place the motor on top and then use a small pocket screw driver and turn the screw 3 full turns clock wise, then thread the motor on the damper until it bottoms out. Repeat this on all corners. The wire harness is all labeled and it's all plug in play, you route the wires however you want. The front I ran through the firewall below the clutch master cylinder, I then removed the rubber boot and pulled the foam back, then used a wire coat hanger with the wire taped to the end and carefully fed it through the firewall. The back wires I routed under the leather around the transmission tunnel to the back and through the plastic behind the drivers seat. Mounting the EDFC module, I mounted underneath the dash by my knee, it makes it more difficult entering and exiting the seat, but once in the seat it's not in my way and I am 5 foot 11. Last, you will need to wire it in accordance with the EDFC instruction manual, it's only 4 wires so its not bad.

Megan Racing Rear Tie Rods AKA Anti Bumpsteer

I'll start off by saying that there are some things I would not buy from Megan Racing, just personal opinion. With that being said, here's the deal price on a part that will need to be replaced fairly often. With my luck the rear tie rods have lasted 1 - 1.5 years, this entailed alot of street driving keep in mind. But the fact is I have bought J's Racing ($635.00), then I replaced them with T1R (359.00) that was exactly like the j's but another color. These once again wore out, so I was going to give the EVS Tuning ($350.00) a shot. Right before I pulled the trigger, I came across Megan Racing ($160.00). Reason was  I could roughly buy 2 sets before I paid for another brand. The Megan Racing is made simpler than the the others and it is not anodized, it's painted. It came with all the hardware required, as did the others. Bottom line the Megans have Hime Joints just as the others, so it's going to function the same as the rest that have Hime joints. Im not sure if Megan sells replacements ends but I would say I'm sure they do, I found that J's and T1R's I was quoted roughly $180.00, plus the fact they would have to order them, EVS said they sell replacement Hime joints as well. On the board I have read threads where people had replaced their J's with Aurora Hime joints, but I was never able to source a part number.  Im sure you can see where I am going with the money thing by now on these. If you have Any of these aftermarket toe arms how do you know that their bad? If your back end starts to feel a little more twitchy or unstable a worn out Hime joint could be the cause. So jack up the car and move the wheel left to the right and up and down, in my case in all these directions you could feel and hear a "click". Garbage now. How easy is this to change? It's pretty easy.

Jack the car up and place on a stand, don't forget to chalk the front wheels.

Remove the wheel.

Remove the cotter pin and nut from the top side of the hub.

Use an 3/4 extension plus on the exposed shank sticking through the hub and hit the extension with a ball ping hammer. It has a interference fit so it may take a few strikes.

Remove the adjustment cam bolt on the inside.

Tap the toe arm now and it should fall out. 

Now try to measure from center to center of the old bar and adjust the new bar as close to that as you can. Try to adjust the inside and outside adjustment evenly to make it easier for future adjustment. 

Install the new stud and tighten it down to the hub.

Now install the bar to the inside cam bolt.

On the outside stud you have to get the geometry correct. I used 2 spacers above the bar and installed the third below the bar. The one below doesn't affect geometry. 

Tighten the Tie Rod ends.

Install the new cotter pin

Now go get an alignment because all your adjustments will have been changed slightly and slightly can reflect alot. 

If you are thinking about picking these up, here's what they do. You get more adjustment for your toe angle because the rod has movement on the inside and out, as well as the cam bolt and eccentric. The hime joint as opposed to the ball in socket does not move as much while cornering or on uneven surfaces. Next the stud on the hub has spacers to adjust the angle of the tie rod. Meaning when the car is lowered suspension geometry is changed and the spacers allow for the geometry to be re alined. If you're wondering what bump-steer is, its caused by the angle of the toe moving toe in and toe out. Its reflected to the driver to what sometimes feels as the back end is raising up and down. The hime joints reduce this.