240SX Drift Setup: Spring Rates, Steering Angle and Corner Weights

This article was written by Coilovers.com Owner and Principal, Lou Tortola.

The 240SX made its name in drifting. This guide gives you a starting point for a drift setup on an S13 or S14 with coilovers, plus what changes for street, track and daily use.

Every setup below is a starting point, not a rule. Tires, angle kit, seat time and the event you run all move the numbers.

The BC Racing coilover kit listed for the 1995 to 1998 Nissan Silvia 240SX. Photo: BC Racing.

Picking a Brand for Your 240SX

Each brand on these chassis serves a different kind of build. None of them is the only right answer.

Ask yourself one question first: what does the car do most weekends? A daily driver with the odd meet points one way. A car that lives on tandem days points another. Our article on drift coilovers covers what drift use asks of a damper.

Drift Setup: A Starting Point

There is no single drift setup. Drivers, tires, power and courses all differ. What follows is a baseline to start from, not a finished tune.

Ride height and travel

Drift cars hit curbs, ruts and transitions at odd angles. They need travel. Slamming an S13 or S14 for looks and then drifting it puts the car on its bump stops mid-corner, and the handling turns snappy. Leave room to compress.

On full-length kits like BC Racing and Fortune Auto, you set ride height at the lower mount, and the spring perch sets preload. That lets you lower the car without changing preload or using up the damper's stroke. Tighten every coilover lock ring once height is set.

Steering angle and clearance

Many drift builds add steering angle. More lock means the front tire swings closer to the strut body, spring perch and inner fender. Check clearance at full lock with the suspension compressed before you send it. If the tire touches the coilover, change wheel offset, tire size or angle before the next session.

Damping and spring rate

Start from the damping setting in your kit's manual. Click counting and direction differ by brand, so do not copy a setting from a different kit. Change one end at a time, and write down every change.

Coilover spring rate sets how much the car rolls and pitches. If you have a specific rate in mind, ask before you order. BC Racing builds custom rates on most fitments, and Fortune Auto and Feal custom-valve their kits.

Alignment and corner weights

Every height change moves camber and toe, so align after the height is final. If you plan to corner balance, do that before the alignment. The goal is about 50 percent cross weight. Our guide to corner balancing walks through the process.

Weight that moves with the wheel

Unsprung weight is the mass the springs do not carry: wheel, tire, hub, brakes and knuckle. A heavy wheel and tire package makes the damper work harder over every ripple. Swapping the coilover kit alone does not cut it. Lighter wheels do.

Street, Track and Daily 240SX Builds

Not every S13 or S14 is a drift car. Plenty are clean street cars, and some see more autocross cones than tandem lines. The same kits fit all of them. What changes is how you set the kit up.

For a daily driver, comfort and clearance come first. Keep the drop modest, so the car clears driveways and speed bumps with passengers aboard. A street spring rate and a softer starting damping setting keep the ride livable on rough pavement. TEIN's Street Basis Z, with fixed damping and adjustable height, is built for exactly that kind of owner.

For autocross and track days, the priorities shift to body control and repeatability. Adjustable damping earns its keep here, because you can firm it up for the event and soften it for the drive home. Heat matters too. Long sessions warm the damper oil, and a damper that sheds heat well holds its damping longer.

Whatever the use, the old-car rules apply. Measure your ride height at all four corners before and after the install. Keep a log of settings and changes. Small, recorded changes beat big guesses every time.

Prepping and Owning a 240SX Coilover Setup

These are old cars now. Before the new kit goes on, look at what it bolts to. Worn bushings, tired ball joints and rusty mounts all undo the gains from a good coilover kit. Our guide on prepping your drift car covers the checks. Our piece on how to build a drift car covers the rest of the build.

After a drift day, check the dampers. Look for oil on the shaft or body, which can mean a coilover leak at the seal. Make sure the collars have not moved. Clean the threads before you adjust anything.

Plan for coilover maintenance. Damper oil and seals are wear items on any kit. Fortune Auto publishes its own rebuild schedule, and track-only use calls for a rebuild every 1,000 miles under that schedule. Other brands set their own intervals, so check your kit's manual.

Frequently Asked Questions