I got the RR-Racing spherical bearings for the front LCAs (switched out the poly USRS). The front wheels got toed out 0.5 degrees each...definitely recommend an alignment after this mod.

I kept my camber settings of -3F and -2.5R. Zeroed out the toe in front and +0.16 degrees per side toe for the rear (about 1/14" of toe per side; 1/7" total rear toe). Lovin it!

 

Fitment looks awesome. Barely looks like -3deg of camber up front.

 

I switched out the Figs FUCAs for RR-Racing. All aluminum, spherical bearings, fixed static caster. You can definitely feel the caster increase! I'd recommend these.



I ran down the wear indicators on my front girodisc 2-pc, and the winmax w5 pads were nearing the end of their life. The pandemic has hindered the production and/or export of winmax pads, so I got some Carbotech XP10. Also replaced the rotor rings.



I've been having an itch to replace rubber bushings in the car with polyurethane bushings or spherical bearings. I'll probably throw some poly bushings in the rear knuckles and trailing arms. For now, I put in the Megan upper camber arm (#2). Has spherical bearings. Also readjusted my rear endlinks (they were too short). Car feels amazing. Diff has been on the backburner for years...any day now.

So many colors

 

Really like the RR racing UCA but it looks like adjusting the camber would be a pain with that design.

 

Im more worried no one would align it. I don’t align my own cars. After a tech sees that, they may so “nope” based on the work involved in incremental changes.

 

Same with the FIGs, have to undo castle nut from the knuckle and hammer it out. You could say this is a little easier because no hammer involved.

I go to a local place in WV, and the car gets aligned to the exact specs I want every time, no fuss. It requires wheel removal and taking off the 2 chassis bolts on the arms and can be roughly done using one of those camber meters that attach to the rotor. It's really not that bad unless a tech is lazy, I suppose. Currently at -2* camber F&R (wanted to dial it down because inner front tires were getting eaten), 0 front toe, and .16* each side toe in the rear. Feels amazing, and the caster increase was huge.

 

I can get that sentiment, but as a former tech I can tell you it's not being "lazy", its that he is not getting paid for that extra work and that is how they make a living.

I'm sure if you were to throw out there when getting written up, "hey, I have some aftermarket arms that may require more work to get the adjustment where I want it, let me know if I need to pay more to get that done" it may go a bit more smooth. Most places would probably just say "i got you, thanks for the heads up". If they do ask for an extra charge to do that however, it is warranted..

 

I agree with you. I've never experienced a "lazy tech." My alignment guy kicks ***

 

Honestly, the real trick is finding someone who will align to the numbers you want, not what's in their database. Some places refuse to set up alignment to anything other than the OE numbers. When you find the guys who will use your numbers, bring them all the business you can.

 

I was in the market for a manual, AWD car and I ended up picking up my first German car, 08 RS4. It's an extra rare spec in imola yellow with titanium package (6 of them in the US). I won't be modifying it beyond an exhaust and updating the headunit as it'll be my daily. I chose the RS4 among multiple choices including Evo (8 and 9) or STI or 996tt. Pretty happy with my choice! Previous owner was a devout car guy.

 

I threw in an Arc-Angel LiFePO4 battery. It was a group 35 battery left over from my previous Evo and fit in very snugly. I have really liked this battery, though the company does seem to be out of business or at least the battery is not in production now. Found an aluminum battery bar on eBay which fit perfectly.



I gave the ISF a detail, including using Meguiar's ceramic SiO2 wax, and covered it with a Lexus OEM cover. It repels water quite nicely. Took some photos with the RS4 as well. When together, they form the flag of my home country

 

Hi, new to the forum, great build and beautiful ISF!
Just curious to see how your Kein gearbox mount held up and whether the NVH has decreased over time? The opinion on these mounts seem very divided on this forum.

i have had urethane gearbox mounts in a few of my previous cars. While I did notice some increase in NVH but it wasn’t unbearable and sometimes they even “wear in” after a while and you don’t even notice it’s there.

The performance enhancement on urethane gearbox mounts were great! Only thing is my experience with them are limited to manual transmission and my current car is my first AT. so curious to see your long term review on these.

I found Xcessive engineering sell urethane mounts for Lexus/ Toyota rwd AT applications with the exact same design as Kein, just using urethane instead of rubber, so these are the ones I’m planning to go with.

thanks!

 

Really curious of your thoughts of the RR arm over the Figs arm?

I've been looking into both, and I don't like the fact that your have to undo the balljoint in order to adjust the Figs arm, but I like the fact you can get poly bushings.

 

Hi, I wonder if the Megan 3pcs rear lower brace will fit on ISF?

 

I have full exhaust and the gear noise is heard after the Kein mount but it's not that big of a deal. I'd imagine with stock exhaust it would be less than desirable.



You have to undo the balljoint for the RR arm as well. I like the RR because of the static increased caster. I'm sure RR could do poly bushings instead of the spherical as well. I like the FIGS too because they were easier to adjust.



Those bars circled unfortunately do not fit the ISF, unless you drill into the underbody, but even then not feasible.