Cusco Street Zero A being Noisy...Normal?

[Norcalscionchamp]

So my cusco street zero A suspension is awesome but there a weird squeaks and groans that sometimes come out of the wheel well area... Is this normal with aftermarket suspension?...the install was done at my Toyota dealer but all instructions were in Japanese and Cusco basically told me I was pretty much S.O.L. For finding English instructions...the spec numbers for the equipment was readable though so I know all the hardware is tightened to spec...I'm a little disappointed that I am supposedly according to Vivid Racing one of very few people to have this kit in the U.S. and I am not getting any assistance with these issues...called Cusco twice in the last few weeks but no return calls...it's a tight race between the KWs and Cusco but if I find out that the kw doesn't have the same sounds I will regret that I didn't go with those instead...that being said the car has never handled better... Going auto-crossing tomorrow for the first time ever and will post some pics

[civicdrivr]

What sort of creaks and groans? A stiffer suspension setup will amplify noises and rattles in the car, but you shouldnt have any really noticeable noises. If anything, doublecheck everything that was touched and make sure its torqued to factory specs.



My new suspension doesnt make any noises that werent present with the factory suspension. Make sure all spring perches are tight and check for any binding.

[RiskyTrousers]

Heim joint top hats tend to be pretty noisy. Not sure if that's what you're running.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

[Norcalscionchamp]

Thanks for the info and the diagram!!!

[Spaztastik]

Originally Posted by Norcalscionchamp

"Cusco basically told me I was pretty much S.O.L." "I'm a little disappointed that I am supposedly according to Vivid Racing one of very few people to have this kit in the U.S. and I am not getting any assistance with these issues...called Cusco twice in the last few weeks but no return calls"

Thats a bummer, I got ahold of Cusco USA on the first try Tuesday night when I was puttin my coilovers on, and Kenji was able to answer my questions and translate for me.

The squeaks and groans you are hearing could be normal, or maybe the suspension bits (like sway bar endlinks and stuff) werent torqued down with the suspension under load. Mine had some nasty pops when turning at full lock after I first put the coilovers on, but I bolted everythin on in thhe air on a lift. once I drove it onto the alignment rack and loosened and fastened everythin again the pops mostly went away. Still some there, but I had the same issue on my car before I lowered it.

[civicdrivr]

Oh yea, good call. You should torque the bolts when the suspension is loaded, AKA on the ground (or ramps or lift). Its tough to get under there but the bushings will thank you for it.

[mechaghost]

Originally Posted by Norcalscionchamp

So my cusco street zero A suspension is awesome but there a weird squeaks and groans that sometimes come out of the wheel well area... Is this normal with aftermarket suspension?...the install was done at my Toyota dealer but all instructions were in Japanese and Cusco basically told me I was pretty much S.O.L. For finding English instructions...the spec numbers for the equipment was readable though so I know all the hardware is tightened to spec...I'm a little disappointed that I am supposedly according to Vivid Racing one of very few people to have this kit in the U.S. and I am not getting any assistance with these issues...called Cusco twice in the last few weeks but no return calls...it's a tight race between the KWs and Cusco but if I find out that the kw doesn't have the same sounds I will regret that I didn't go with those instead...that being said the car has never handled better... Going auto-crossing tomorrow for the first time ever and will post some pics

Did you ever get this resolved? I'm getting the same groaning/creaking/popping after installing RCE Yellow Springs

[Norcalscionchamp]

Yes after about 1500 miles the suspension settled and there are now no more noises... Happy camper

[Moto-P]

Originally Posted by Norcalscionchamp

Yes after about 1500 miles the suspension settled and there are now no more noises... Happy camper

Hello and I'm posting this as a very late response to this thread and hoping to demystify some of the products for general audience here.

I have been a R&D consultant to many firms including Toyota Japan and with the creation of the 86 in some small part with the Chief Engineer Tada. But more over, I have had the opportunity to work as R&D for RS-R in the making of the RSR Sports-i suspension for the 86/BRZ in the past, and now have moved on to Cusco recently to clarify some of the concepts of how the products are sold and installed as well.

Anyway, in the case of some of the install issues of many Japanese built kits are that resulting of cultural differences in how products are reaching the end users. It may seem strange that I say this but lat me elaborate.

Japanese name-brand components like Cusco, RS-R, Greddy and other that you may be familiar with, are built more often than not, with great deal of R&D and tuned and designed by very talented engineers with huge accolades and credentials in both racing and automotive design.
However, in Japan, these parts are mostly installed also by very experienced and uniformly trained technicians in shops throughout, and they all have customary ways of spending much more time with installation, as well as customers having much more patience with resources of compensations. Japanese manufacturers clean and assemble the parts like suspension neatly and are cleaned sterile of fingerprints even, and are packaged like gifts in boxes as part of customary standard of how things are sold typically in Japan. Shops then receieve these packages, and are presented to customers and unboxed. The shops often inspect and disassemble shocks and grease things as needed, or add optional items as suggested to customers, and are assembled again, and neatly installed much like how you see brand new cars come out of factories.

I am not saying that the USA methods are careless at all, but the culture here is that things can come in brown bags, and are installed quickly often, and in many cases, done DIY by owners who may not be familiar with pre-installation inspection of things like coilover suspension. Price of both products and installation labor is very critical here as well.
So sometimes, installing a coilover system like this can present noises and at times adjustment issues if installed without familiarity.

Cusco Zero A is a street-oriented line of shocks from Cusco, and for sports car applications, the upper mount can optionally be ordered with ball-joints for direct response and added feedback. The upper ball joints are dry-joints, and are pre-lubricated so there is no added step there. The shock/spring set however are clean and free of oils so it is suggested that it be measured to spec on preload, disassembled partially to lightly grease the contacts for spring perches and springs, and reassembled to specifications.

Mounting to that car, also should be done with clean parts with regard to arms and upper receiver points of the car, and lightly greased as well.
And finally the parts should all be assembled and damper adjustments preset to preferred initial setting or according to the manual for recommended setting. You may be wondering why things don't come full of grease, but that is how things are sold in Japan, free of things that might attract stains or soil during shipping, handling, and presentation in a clean manner upon receipt, and much of the final preparation is left to pro-shops.

Having said this, if all of these precautions and preparation are done at the time of installation, most of the issues commonly seen in the USA can be avoided with regards to noise and binding that can be felt at times.

Hopefully you can understand from this writing, that it's not really an issue as much as it is a cultural difference, and if you have any questions, please contact us at the number on the website, or even by PM, on facebook.

Thanks so much, and have fun!