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 Every G1 sway bar package...  Every G1 sway bar package comes with the correct diameter bushings in four individual containers. These don’t require any grease whatsoever and can be installed dry, right out of the box.  With the factory sway bar...  With the factory sway bar out of the way, we installed the adjustable G1 piece, which features a robust 11/16-inch diameter. All you need to do is replace the four bolts on the rear carriage, bolt it to LGM’s heavy-duty quiet endlinks, and connect the other side to the lower control arms. Based on LGM’s recommendation, we placed our endlinks (torque to 53 ft-lb) on the middle setting; moving the endlinks to the inside will stiffen the rear bar, whereas placing the endlinks outboard will soften it.  To swap out the front suspension,...  To swap out the front suspension, we began by removing the sway bar. Using a 13mm socket, we removed the four bolts retaining the bushing and the sway bar.  We’ve heard of people removing...  We’ve heard of people removing the washer fluid and coolant tank to gain access to the upper shock bolt. This wasn’t the case for us; instead, we used a 1/4-inch wrench to hold the stud up top and a 15mm wrench to loosen it up.  It took a few steps to remove...  It took a few steps to remove the shock and prepare ourselves for removing the leaf spring. First we placed a jackstand underneath the lower control arm for additional support. Then we carefully loosened the four upper control bolts (watch out for shims and make a mental note of how many there are) and proceeded to remove the shocks.  To remove the leaf spring,...  To remove the leaf spring, we started by taking out the four bolts that hold the unit in place with a 13mm socket.  We know some have been able...  We know some have been able to remove the leaf spring by pulling down on the lower control arms. That just wasn’t enough for ours. We took an extra step and removed the caliper for additional clearance.  With the caliper out of the...  With the caliper out of the way and not getting hung up on the brake line, we gained all the room we needed for the removal. While the leaf spring didn’t come out as easily as we expected, after a little bit of coercing we were able to slide it out through the driver side.  Unique to LGM, the front coilovers...  Unique to LGM, the front coilovers have a broad base shock mount that’s designed to help distribute the load under severe conditions to the strongest portion of the shock tower. Ultimately, this means the coilovers will be able to drive through the worst conditions with little chance of bottoming out—or worse, having to contend with something breaking.  Installing the front coilovers...  Installing the front coilovers is very straightforward. We simply aligned the upper perch into position and placed the supplied bolt loosely up top. From there, we installed the two 6mm Allen bolts into the lower control arm, torqued the upper bolt to 19 ft-lb (21 ft-lb for the lower ones), and finished by mounting the caliper back into place.  The front G1 sway bar install...  The front G1 sway bar install is similar to the rear, and this thing is a monster, measuring in at 19/16 inches in diameter and is a direct replacement for GM’s line of T1 sway bars. Again, torque the endlinks to 53 ft-lb.  It’s worth noting that for...  It’s worth noting that for those of you running aftermarket brake cooling kits, these are designed to clear them with ease. Getting Scaled
From the beginning, we scaled our Z to get a better idea of just how it sat from the factory. Truth be told, it was impressive, weighing in at 3,148 pounds with a full tank of fuel and showed our crossweight percentage at 50 percent. Once everything was installed, we weighed the car again, revealing identical 3,148 numbers. We had no idea whether to expect a significant increase or decrease, but we certainly didn’t see that coming. After probing into this, we learned that the GT2 coilover assembly actually removed 13.4 pounds from the chassis; however, the G1 sway bars are slightly heavier over the factory counterpart due to their size, putting us right back to our factory weight. What we did see was a change in the weight distribution, with the rear ending up around 5 pounds lighter, changing the crossweight percentage to 49.3. Our goal was to meet the original 50 percent, only this time with the driver inside. To do this, we disconnected the rear G1 sway bar and ended up altering the ride height slightly from the front passenger side coilover. We’ll have a better idea of how the chassis will react on the road course, but for the time being, this would allow us to compare the results with our original baseline numbers. LGM uses its experience to... LGM uses its experience to produce high-quality products that can put you in the winner’s circle—of course, that’s assuming you have the skills to push these components to the limits. If nothing else, the new setup is confidence inspiring under every road condition, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. CHP The end product was well worth it and certainly validated. For our 420-foot slalom course, we bested our previous numbers by 0.11, running a best of 5.68 at 51 mph over the 5.79 at 49-mph baseline. Keep in mind; we’re going quicker, maneuvering the car through cones all the while gaining speed. On a road course application, and depending on the length of the track, these numbers can quickly add up to secondswhich is huge under competition conditions. The biggest difference was consistency. During previous testing, it would take several laps to procure good numbers, whereas this time, shy of scrubbing the cones, every run besting our previous outing. When it came to the shock settings, we initially placed them at 6/6, front/rear, but by the end of the day, we set them at 8/7, front/rear, for our final results. Even on the street, these settings seemed to work well for us. Firm? Slightly, but it’s still compliant under rough road conditions and comfortable enough for any road trip. And for those looking for a softer ride, a few turns of the shock settings and you’re good to go; it’s really that easy. Stock Slalom (On Nitto NT05 tires) 5.89
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