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Old 10-31-2021, 01:56 AM   #12
EndlessAzure
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Join Date: May 2017
Drives: '14 FR-S [37J] | Daily/Track
Location: Los Angeles
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@nova.86

Alignment: -1.5 front/-1.0 rear has decent balance of performance and wear for the street and track. A good shop will also ask what toe you want, so be prepared to answer that question as well

Ride Height Adjustment & Rake: For ride height adjustment, doesn't really matter as long as you maintain some positive rake. Either lower the car equally, or front a little more than the rear, and you'll be fine. Just stay within the manufacturer's recommended ride height adjustment range

Corner Balancing
: Corner balance the car if you want peace of mind, but it's not required. If you don't get rear lower control arms (see below), it will also make matching the left-to-right rear camber easier for a good alignment shop

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Poll responses

1. Adjustable Rear Lower Control Arms
For the type of alignment you have listed and the amount of ride height reduction you are seeking on the car, you'll want to invest in adjustable rear lower control arms. The factory rear arms have practically no adjustability, and the rear camber is strongly influenced by ride height due to the suspension geometry. The lower you go, the more natural rear camber you have.

2. Adjustable Rear Toe Arms
Depending on how low your car is and how close to zero camber you're looking for, you may also need rear adjustable toe arms as that is also part of the linked geometry equation.

3. Wheels & Tires
These are really your preference. I like 17's for their look and long-term price advantages. Some people like 18's styling and stiffer tire sidewalls. I think the most three important pieces of advice I can give you here is: 1. buy good quality and buy once for street wheels & tires, 2. Get a second set of wheels for the track (or even start off on your stock wheels), 3. Don't buy the grippiest, highest performing tires for your first track outings; you will mask and hang onto bad driving habits.

4. Unlisted: Rear Adjustable End Links
One thing you didn't list on there was rear end links. This is one thing that is lacking from the factory and worth upgrading since there is unwanted preload/binding from the factory ones.


Most everything else you listed is not needed in my opinion. They are nice to have; add them as you go along depending on your style preference, budget, or evolving needs.


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-1. Do not upgrade: Sway Bars

Don't touch the sway bars until you've driven the car on track and run out of adjustability on the coil overs. Sway bars are a very common "first" upgrade on the car. However in my opinion, they are a very drastic change that can negatively impact the car. Do not touch these until you have a clear vision of how you want to change the car's handling characteristics.
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