[S.Macias]

Just when I think I’m done I stumble around on the forum and find a video showing that the Cadillac performance front steering knuckle has the potential to get more negative camber with a mostly stock setup. For $300 I figured I’d give it a go and do some other front stuff as well.

New steering knuckles installed. Couldn’t get the forward control arms out (believe me I tried) so I just left them attached to the old knuckle and ordered new ones. Had to pop the BMR bushings out but that was easy to do.

Installed new wheel bearings since it was just three bolts away and went ahead and slapped on new outer tie rods since they’ve never been replaced. They didn’t look too bad but I could see the cracks in the boot and the feel alone made me think they were getting close to end of life.

Really just need to get the passenger side put back together, get an alignment, and have some fun…

[lowke]

Great journal. What rear differential are you using?

[S.Macias]

Originally Posted by lowke

Great journal. What rear differential are you using?

Stock 3.6 rear differential (2.77 open slip). Thought about upgrading to the limited slip 3.23 since I had everything torn apart but decided against it.

[lowke]

Originally Posted by S.Macias

Stock 3.6 rear differential (2.77 open slip). Thought about upgrading to the limited slip 3.23 since I had everything torn apart but decided against it.

Should be more fun with a limited slip. Will be interesting to see if it makes you faster.

[S.Macias]

Originally Posted by lowke

Should be more fun with a limited slip. Will be interesting to see if it makes you faster.

Probably, but laziness… that and sourcing the correct part. Would have to find a v6 m6 which had the limited slip since the gear ratio remains the same, just with the limited slip versus open.

[S.Macias]

After everything I finally got the car in for an alignment. Shop got it pretty spot on with -3 front and -2 rear. Because of the rain and other errands I could only drive it the one mile from home, but it definitely felt good.

[S.Macias]

Little Black Friday purchase, ZZP dual gauge pillar pod and an additional Aeroforce Interceptor gauge.

[S.Macias]

Even though I just did a fluid flus last month, I wanted something more autocross/light track duty friendly. Found out VP Stay Frosty made a high performance, daily driver friendly coolant that offers protection. Positive reviews so figured why not. Haven’t driven yet, but I personally like the purple more than the orange-pink mix so aesthetically it’s a win, even if I see no major improvement. Will go for a drive this week and update. Ordering some 200tw Yokes at the end of the month to make the car just that much better. Wish the RT660+ came in my size…

[S.Macias]

Ordered Apex EC-7 rims in satin black.

Fronts at 18x9.5 et22 and weigh 21.6 pounds.
Rear at 18x10.5 et 40 and weigh 22.3 pounds.

With the Falken RT660+, fronts should weigh a little under 50 pounds, rears at 52 pounds. This will put me at ~4 pounds lighter per wheel in the front and ~2 pounds lighter in the rears than my current setup, which should be a noticeable difference. Tires will be on a 265/35 front and a 295/30 rear.

Why this setup? One is weight, obviously lighter. Two, because the Falkens run wide and their 265 is 4/10” narrower than my current 285 on front, and their 295 is 1/10” narrower than my current 305 on the rears (the contact patch is actually larger by 1/10”), so visually it’s about the same size. They also have similar load and speed ratings. Tires are also more readily available and cheaper. Lastly, I’m not a high horsepower car, only at ~310rwhp on a 3,290 pound frame, so the grip should be adequate.

[lowke]

TSW 18-9 et 22 ,19.25 lbs. 255-45-18 tires. $330 car drives much better. They don't make this size anymore so if 1 gets hurt I may get apex . Hope it doesn't happen I love them

[S.Macias]

Added an offset rally strip. 5” solid with 1/4” space followed with a 1/4” stripe. Gives the car a great look.

[S.Macias]

Second to last piece of the puzzle. New Falken Azenis RT660+. Will get mounted in the next few weeks.

[S.Macias]

Installed the JXB Performance Driveshaft Center Support Bearing Carrier Upgrade with the track bushing https://www.jxbperformance.com/produ...arrier-upgrade

This is something I definitely should have done sooner. With the BMR differential bushings and the JBX Support Carrier, it feels and sounds like a different car. Throttle hesitation is gone, there’s definitely more kick (in a good way), the shifts seem smoother and there’s a nice purr sound from the driveshaft.

Install was pretty straight forward thanks to their video. I did skip a few steps since I could just slide the exhaust out the way enough to have clearance and didn’t remove the shield like they do in the video. Overall, very impressed.

[S.Macias]

Video of the driveshaft hum after the JXB Performance install. No leaks, no loose bolts, no CEL, just the nice sounding hum. I guess the EOM support carrier really absorbed a lot of sound. I also went with the track bushing and personally like it; I suspect the street bushing will absorb most of this noise.