Okies, well the red Z is on the road again, though i have to wait for body panels to finish lining the front up. I've kinda run into another problem and I'd really like to get to the bottom of it so i don't have to get rides everywhere . If I'm driving at anything faster than 10 mph and try to stop, the steering wheel shakes really bad and it's way scary. I'm at a loss because it's a 1983 S130 Turbo with power rack and pinion and just about everything suspension wise (aside from transverse link, and the thingamabob that goes from the steering knuckle to the radiator support that has all these bushings in the front) is brand new. So far the rotors, pads, ball joints, knuckles, bearings, swaybar endlinks, struts, springs, and tierods are all brand new. The calipers were rebuilt, and everything else seems to be fine (which obviously i've missed something or i wouldn't be having this problem ). I tried lifting the tire to wiggle it in various ways to see if there is any play and I am so missing something because everything seems solid. Oh and the passenger tire is wearing out pretty quickly on the outside, well they both kinda are but the passenger is going faster than the driver. Please help

 

This is the 280zx that was wrecked in the front end? I'm sure it needs to be taken to the alignment shop. Be prepared for some bad news though. When I wrecked my 318ti into a wall I bent half of the front suspension parts.

 

+1 on nismo. that'd be the first thing i'd check.

 

you have a toe problem, take a tape measure and you can get it to 1/8" toe in. it should be an easy fix to the problem, and cost nothing. thats the only adjustment these cars have anyways. ive done hundreds of alignments this way in the shop. once you have the toe correct, drive it and see which way the wheel is. if its crooked then just adust both tie rods the same way the same number of turns until the steering wheel is straight, or just pull the wheel off and reposition it.

 

wow thats simple enough, 1/8 toe in meaning that if your measure the front of the tire then the back, the front is 1/8" shorter correct?

 

ding ding ding, cyber cookie for you

 

There are some variations on this. While what he said can work, there are a lot of variables that could throw it out too. Look at the sidewall of tires some when your running around. You'll find that tires themselves can vary an 1/8th, x2 and you could be way off. I've known guys that would jack up the front, spin the wheels by hand while spray painting a line on the road surface area. Then they spun it while holding a scribe against the tire as it spun, thereby establishing a true centerline. At that point, they set it back down, move it back and forth some to let the suspension settle, and then measure the front and back of the tires centerline to centerline. It can be a bit of a pain jacking up and down and moving untill ya get it all right.
Now, with that said, I EYEBALL it.(I'm lazy) I've done enough to know just about how far outside the back wheels one should be when sighting down the front wheels... No jacking unless it needs moved...

 

always do the measuring at ride height. also roll the car by hand and use the e-brake to stop the vehicle to prevent any sort of extra pre-load in the front. its easier with trucks tho, higher off the ground