Tanabe Sustec Pro FIVE
Tanabe Sustec Pro FIVE
03-07-08, 05:27 AM
#3
Just installed a Sustec Five on my 04 LS430.
Tanabe Sustec Pro Five is a fully featured coil-over suspension using KYB internals for shock absorber and Tanabe's own coil springs. While it does not have full tapped bottom adjustments to very the actual height of the shock absorbers independently from the coil perch, it does the job well for lowering the LS430 by almost 3" without issues in bottom-out of strut pistons as experienced with excessively low spring-only setup on OEM strut case.
For many VIP theme users, 3" may not seem a lot in number as we are used to 2.5~5" drops on many older Nissan and Toyota (Lexus) cars. However, the LS430 already has fairly full wheel house from the factory and a 1.5" drop on a 20" or 19" even, brings the car down to a respectable look, and 2.5" drop will cover most of 255/30-20's sidewalls with its rear fenders!
I do not know a reason why Tanabe chose to equip the FIVE for LS430 with a really high rate spring though. I can see, for maximum drop, a high rate spring can be an asset to keep the oversize tires from scrubbing the fenders at the front for extreme "shakotan-drop" users... It's a bit downright harsh for those used to Air suspensions and near-OEM spring users who seek more conservative stance at 2" or less. The adjustable shock valving does a good job of controlling bounce on the equipped springs at "high" setting, but seems mismatched at softer settings, letting the rear of the car get jumpy at times.
Still the quality of the suspension kit and shock valving is very high, and I do like them a lot. I ordered some softer springs at about 60% of the rate as equipped and THAT was perfect for using it at milder drop and taking the harshness out of thin-walled 35 series 20" tires.
And, other rates are as easy as any spring available from the SUSTEC Pro line of springs as well...
The real beauty of using Tanabe Sustec 5 on a LS430 therefore is the ability to cater it to your needs with a huge variety of spring rates available and knowing that the strut assembly itself is really good for a long-term use. Not just from out of box specs but to tailor it to your needs without degrading or resorting to further modifications. It's really how any REAL coil over suspension kit should be, and really the ONLY reason one should opt for a coil-over "adjustable" suspension in the first place.
Sorry though, this is a LS430 review and not the SC300...though proportionately the SC300 kits also have high rates on SUSTEC 5 and probabaly applies...for the most part.
For many VIP theme users, 3" may not seem a lot in number as we are used to 2.5~5" drops on many older Nissan and Toyota (Lexus) cars. However, the LS430 already has fairly full wheel house from the factory and a 1.5" drop on a 20" or 19" even, brings the car down to a respectable look, and 2.5" drop will cover most of 255/30-20's sidewalls with its rear fenders!
I do not know a reason why Tanabe chose to equip the FIVE for LS430 with a really high rate spring though. I can see, for maximum drop, a high rate spring can be an asset to keep the oversize tires from scrubbing the fenders at the front for extreme "shakotan-drop" users... It's a bit downright harsh for those used to Air suspensions and near-OEM spring users who seek more conservative stance at 2" or less. The adjustable shock valving does a good job of controlling bounce on the equipped springs at "high" setting, but seems mismatched at softer settings, letting the rear of the car get jumpy at times.
Still the quality of the suspension kit and shock valving is very high, and I do like them a lot. I ordered some softer springs at about 60% of the rate as equipped and THAT was perfect for using it at milder drop and taking the harshness out of thin-walled 35 series 20" tires.
And, other rates are as easy as any spring available from the SUSTEC Pro line of springs as well...
The real beauty of using Tanabe Sustec 5 on a LS430 therefore is the ability to cater it to your needs with a huge variety of spring rates available and knowing that the strut assembly itself is really good for a long-term use. Not just from out of box specs but to tailor it to your needs without degrading or resorting to further modifications. It's really how any REAL coil over suspension kit should be, and really the ONLY reason one should opt for a coil-over "adjustable" suspension in the first place.
Sorry though, this is a LS430 review and not the SC300...though proportionately the SC300 kits also have high rates on SUSTEC 5 and probabaly applies...for the most part.
Last edited by motohide; 03-07-08 at 05:30 AM.
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