Editing S13 Suspension Conversion (section)

=Safety=

==Tie Rod End Ball Joints==

One issue I might raise... my friend has that setup on his aussie 31 and went to get a wheel alignment the other day.  The guy told him that the tie rod ball joints were at absolute maximum tilt because the car is so low (perfect stance imo!) and its really dangerous...

Picture this: with the steering rack sitting level, the tie rods are pointing upwards towards the steering arms. then in order for the ball joint to go into the steering knuckle they have to be aimed outwards as far as possible.  This becomes more extreme as the suspension compresses (i.e. over a bump). seeing as the ball joints are at max to start with, when it compresses there's no movement left so all there is to do is bend stuff... 

- '''Decs'''

[[Image:Brakes s13strut2.JPG|600px]]

===A Fix===

I ended up using Hyundai S Coupe rack ends and Toyota Lite Ace rod ends. All brand new and cost me $110 for both sides. The reason you don't want to use the R31 rod end is because of the angle it sits at when lowered. The part numbers are rack end: RE1888 and the rod end: TE3722

- '''are31'''

===But Then...===

OK.  After getting s13 coilovers, and s13 front hubs etc. took advice from suspension thread to swap r31 rack ends and rod ends for Hyundai S Coupe rack ends and Toyota Lite Ace rod ends as advised in thread but they don't fit.

- '''arrbeethirty'''

Same thing happened to me when I bought these, had to take them back.

- '''Tim Failhard'''

[[Image:S13 hyundai toyota1.jpg|600px]]

[[Image:S13 hyundai toyota2.jpg|600px]]

==Tie Rod End Engaged Thread==

Depending on what combination of parts you use for the conversion, if you retain the R31 TRW rack, you may find that there are now only 5 or 6 threads engaged on the tie rod end, as opposed to the 14 or so before the conversion.  There are various ways around this.

[[Image:S13 TRW Tierodend Extension.jpg|500px]]

Personally I used the stock rack but welded the locking nut to lengthen the arm and then retapped the thread to clean it out. All I need now is a new locking nut. - DrifterDan

== S13 tie rod fix ==
Because I'm a cheapskate and didn't want to spend $100+ on a set of adapters to run S13 tie rod ends with R31 rack ends I had a trawl through a whole bunch of parts catalogues to find an alternative. I found that the thread on a TRW rack was 16x1.5, and the thread on an S13 tie rod end was 12x1.25. 

This meant that I couldn't just stick S13 rack ends on and be done with it because most imports seem to use a 16x1.0 thread on the rack so I had to find something else.
After a bit of searching I found a few possibilities. Namely the N12 and N14 Pulsar rack ends. I ended up ordering the N14 ones.

S13 tie rod ends and N14 rack ends compared to R31 stuff.
[[File:Tierod 1.jpg|center]]
[[File:Tierod 2.jpg|center]]

From top to bottom: R31, N12, N14.
[[File:Tierod 3.jpg|center]]

The amount of adjustment left with N14 rack ends and S13 LCA's.
[[File:Tierod 4.jpg|center]]

How much adjustment you can get out of the N12 rack ends.
[[File:Tierod 5.jpg|center]]

===Installation===
First off remove the R31 rack end and rack boot until you are left with just the rack end sticking out.
[[File:Tierod 6.jpg|center]]

I did this part with the strut and LCA out of the car so I had more room to move about but it is possible without removing it. Get a big pipe wrench on the rounded part of the rack end. For some reason the stock ends don't have any flats machined in to allow you to use a spanner on them so you'll have to struggle. I undid one side with the pipe wrench but due to the proximity of the crossmember I had to use multi-grips, vice grips, and a hammer to do the other side. Be prepared to smash your knuckles on the chassis rails.

Bolt your new rack ends in to the rack, and don't forget to put the rack boot on before the tie rod end.
[[File:Tierod 8.jpg|center]]

Then stick the tie rod end on and bolt it in to the knuckle.
[[File:Tierod 9.jpg|center]]

And that's basically it. All that's left is to give yourself a basic wheel alignment to get you by until you can get a proper one done.

===Part numbers===
*RE1014 N14 Rack End
*RE906 N12 Rack End
*TE713 S13 Tie Rod

==Modified knuckles/extended lower control arms==
If you are running S14 or longer control arms or knuckles modified for extra lock you will probably find that you don't have enough thread on the rack end left to get a safe amount engaged in the tie rod end. The length of the rack end needed will vary depending on your setup but a CE Lancer rack end at 329mm long suits the thread in both the R31 rack and the S13 tie rod end making it a possible solution.

===Part numbers===
*RE1013 CE Lancer Rack End