To T3 or NOT

[Maciek]

Hey all, ive never posted on here, only really lurk in the for sale section so i wasn't to sure were to post this so apologies if this is in the wrong section.

My question is, is Technotoy T3 products good or bad?
because ive read and heard that ppl have mixed feelings about there products so i thought id see what you guys thought.
reason i need to buy these parts is because i had an accident in my rolla, got it fixed but i suspect that some of the arms are bent and what not so i would like to replace and upgrade t the same time.

this is the list of products i want to get, if you guys can share your thoughts of there products ill give you guys a kiss if i see ya!
jk! lol


1 - Shifter Rebuild Kit (79-83 Corolla)25.00
1 - Rear 4-Links (79-83 Corolla)360.00
1 - Tension Control Rods (79-83 Corolla)200.00
1 - Panhard / Lateral Bar (79-83 Corolla)135.00
1 - Adjustable Cam Gears (16V 4AG)160.00
1 - UNI Filters for ITB Velocity Stacks (16V 4AG)80.00
1 - Crank Pulley EDIS Trigger Wheel (16V 4AG)50.00
1 - Lower Control Arms (AE86 Corolla)350.00
1 - Outer Tie Rods (AE86 Corolla)240.00
1 - Traction Brackets (AE86 Corolla)130.00
1 - Negative Camber Roll Center Adjusters (AE86 Corolla)130.00


Thanks
Maciek

[Vance]

all t3 products are pretty quality. some parts however are better sourced locally for price reasons and quality reasons.

i would advise buying all above mentioned from t3 appart from:

1. panhard - buy from ajps, much better quality product and they are on car adjustable unlike the t3 item which will have to be removed everytime you want to adjust it.

2. traction brackets. buy from ajps or get measurements drawn up depending on how low you are going and weld some on. with bolt-ons ajps have it pretty much covered and for about the same price. weld on will always be superior here if you arent going to adjust your ride height by a great deal on a regular basis.

3 . DO NOT BUY NRCA's. they will fuck with your geometry and give a funny steering feeling. if you want more neg camber adjust the cambertops or LCA's to give it to you.

[Maciek]

What about the normal RCA's? should i steer clear of them too?

[Todd]

normal rca's are a must have in any lowered car really.

nrca's are just ghey.

get rca's.

edit:

and if you do plan to put quad throttles on your 16v, i highly suggest you look into the t3 manifolds.
very good piece of kit.

[timbo]

i run T3 traction brackets and camber tops, both very high quality parts, and cheaper than most others. where the AUD is at the moment its worth while getting stuff from the states as some parts will be cheaper.

i would argue that T3 traction brackets are better than the ajps items, they are made from much thicker material.

[Maciek]

ok, so NRCA's are out and normal NCA's are in?
and there traction bracket is questionable hey?
ive already got quads on the girl :)

[pen15]

hey mate take it from me i run alot of t3 gear no problems so far i like it nrca's are probably the only thing i can say steer clear from

check my build thread look at the parts list lots of t3

[timbo]

NRCA's are a no-no. for the traction brackets there is no question, T3 is the better item.

[ke_70]

one peice will always be stronger wont it?

everything from t3 is over engineered. not a bad thing but for a track car everythings way to big and heavy. especually those steering arms!

personaly id buy more qualiy parts if i did it again. not that they're that bad just not the best
bang for buck i suppose

[timbo]

one peice will always be stronger wont it?

im not sure in this case, the T3 traction brackets look near indestructible and when a trailing arm is hanging off the end i think this is probably a good thing. maybe a little over engineered, but keeps within the toyota philosophy.

[Maciek]

Cheers pen15, geezin it now :)

what LCA would you buy if you could do it again ke_70?

cheers for the responses guys :)

[Maciek]

Check out the link i just found!
got some nice one piece LCA+TENSION ROD
http://www.greenline.jp/catalogue/bccatpartlist.php?make=Toyota&carcode=AE86&intake=NA&category=suspension

[H8CHIR6KU]

riojin - my t3 panhard was adjustable on car easily. you might be thinking whiteline where you have to take it off.

i liked the t3 adjustable lower control arms. crazy big tho but awesome adjustment.

the only thing id prefer if i ever did it again is the 4 link bars. id prefer to have bars with adjustment in the middle instead of at the end. the t3 4 links are near on impossible to adjust when they are in the car.

[Maciek]

ahh i c i c,
they should re design them to make it easily adjustable, its a bit of a wank i know, but i like the whole red thing they have going as my cars red lol

[AJPS]

i run T3 traction brackets and camber tops, both very high quality parts, and cheaper than most others. where the AUD is at the moment its worth while getting stuff from the states as some parts will be cheaper.

i would argue that T3 traction brackets are better than the ajps items, they are made from much thicker material and are a three piece weld rather than one piece bent.

I would argure that AJPS traction brackets are three piece welded.

They are being run in 2 rally cars which receive considerable punishment,

The T3 items are over engineered heavy as hell and only suit JDM diff where are mine suit ke70 and adm ae86.

I used to sell T3 and I can tell you.

The camber tops suck, the 4 link snaps axles like no tomorrow, and mostly its way too heavy. IE the chassis bends before the LCA/caster rod.

Also had issues with RCA not fitting.

Things like quad adapters, pulleys etc are quite good tho. And with the AUD how it is. I just prefer to keep my money in Australia where possible.

I could go on, but I dont like slagging competition and flogging my own shit.

[timbo]

my bad dave, obviously was looking at the wrong picture re the traction brackets, post edited accordingly.

as for the camber tops, i had them loose out of the car for some time and the bearings seem pretty damn solid.

[Maciek]

Hey ajps, dave i take it? (dont know your name sorry)
these are the exact points that i am looking for, so to others it may seem like your slagging ur competition but to me your an individual who decided to make his own products because the ones at hand didn't meet your criteria
so bigs up man!

personally i like the look of all the T3 products, look like there crafted nicely, tough and do the job.
which is why i posted this thread, to learn more about there products.


you say that the 4 link snaps axles? how exactly?
and are heavy?
i thought they were aluminum tubing?

[AJPS]

Yes Dave

And thanks. I wasnt happy with the products or shipping lots of stuff across the world, so I had my own made, to my own specs in my own city and anything I couldnt/didnt want to make I got cusco and I think Ive achieve a far superior result.

Cusco caster rods are the main reason, Ill send you some info in a pm.

My issue with the camber tops is to do with the top nut. They should run the shank style. Much better, also doesnt sacrifice stroke (albeit very little but in a low car 10mm is a bit)

The 4 links are not heavy.

But the solid bearings all round, mean there is no 'give' in the diff as it would have if you ran bushes.

T series axles snap under any kind of drifting/thrashing with a 4 link. (Not just T3, any brand)

Seen it with my own eyes in separate cars.

[Maciek]

sweet, cheers for the info

[sundee]

These threads are funny and always come up all over the shop, guys either love or hate T3 products.
I'll clear a few things up for you though, as most, if not all the negatives you are hearing are about older designed, now fased out or replaced components.

Panhard - this is on car adjustable. And rose jointed, Teflon lined bearings.
4link - well engineered! On car adjustable ( I can turn them by hand ) rose jointed, 6061 T6 aircraft alloy, same as panhard
Camber plates - new bearing design, Teflon lined, better quality then the older style ( sold many pairs with no complaints)

You won't have an issue with their products, if you do the issue will be sorted quickly.

Over engineered? I'll be honest, I'd like to see some things be put on a diet but they perform and perform well at that!

Their a great product for the money it will cost you.
Their are products available in aus from guys like Dave at ajps, but different designs, you just have to decide what YOU want in your car and how much can you afford?

[Maciek]

thanks once again for the response.
Well ive gone off the T3 LCA and heading more for AJPS's now, since hearing that the T3 its a bit over engineered, (meaning there a bit too strong and if i was to have a bingle id bend my chassis and not the arm) and weighs a fair bit.

I hear what your saying about the 4 link sundee86 about there kit being of top quality, as personally i love the look and finish of them but what about the 4 links snapping axles?
have you heard of this?
Sorry i dont mean to start a debate, i just want to discuss the product and get the most information about them.

[blair]

I like bushes :)

You can have a car thats very competitive/responsive/predictable/fast/fun but still run bushes so its not as harsh on the roads. Polyurethane! (AJPS Panhard, re-bushes stock rods or whiteline adjustable rods, rebushed/balljointed LCA's, rebushed castor arms etc etc etc - rebushing things is a fraction of the price of a whole new arm/component, you just have to ask yourself if you NEED the adjustability/rijidity of rosejoints)

its a how long is a piece of string sortof topic man

I have a couple of T3 Products, rear brace, front tribrace and RCA's... never failed on me, everything lined up (have to drill new holes anyway LOL) so no massive complaints.

[sundee]

The T3 LCA's are heavier then standard because they use NO OEM metal at all... they are made from scratch.
Bending chasis? in the end of the day, if you hit something hard enough your going to bend the chassis. i hit my sprinter with all stock components... bent the chassis rail.

i have only heard from 1 person that they have snapped axels and pointed the finger at the 4 link.
But i personally know of guys that have ran un equal 4 links for years and had no problems ( T3 and other brands )

So as you can see, alot of this stuff is personal preference, and we all drive differently, none of our cars are the same, we all run different setups, so to have a defined statement saying 4 links snap axles is a bit inconclusive.

I have all T3 gear in my car - yeah i sell it, the whole front and rear end boasts all their components, all Fitted Perfectly with no issues what so ever.
im not trying to flog their stuff, im just telling you how it is from 1st hand experience, not just hear say on the interwebz.... so you can make your own decision with what you want to run in your car.

[takai]

Also for the NCRCAs you really have to know what you are doing. Slagging them off willy nilly is pointless, because they can be made to give good results, but you have to understand your suspension setup.

Personally i run them, and have done so for years, on the race car as my category regs specify that i need to run standard LCAs. With a bit of suspension tweaking and shifting stuff around the turn in is great, scrub radius is pretty much the same, and overall its better.

[skit]

Also for the NCRCAs you really have to know what you are doing. Slagging them off willy nilly is pointless, because they can be made to give good results, but you have to understand your suspension setup.

Personally i run them, and have done so for years, on the race car as my category regs specify that i need to run standard LCAs. With a bit of suspension tweaking and shifting stuff around the turn in is great, scrub radius is pretty much the same, and overall its better.

Good points, I was just having a chuckle at how nrcas have gone totally out of fashion all the sudden.

To contribute to the the thread, no problem with quality or delivery on T3 gear I have bought over the years - manifolds, trumpets, quickshifter, bushing kit, nrcas. Can't comment on ajps equivalent products as I've not used them.

[takai]

Yeah, must say ive never had issues with any of the T3 gear i have. Have had it on various cars including my AE86, a 510 and my MA61

[marvis]

Go with AJPS where you can, then T3.

[sundee]

Go with AJPS where you can, then T3.

pointless comment. neither constructive or affective.

[blair]

pointless comment. neither constructive or affective.

pointless comment. neither constructive or affective.

[blair]

Just because he didnt explain it, doesnt mean his post wasnt constructive.

Quality Aus made products > importing shit.

way to turn this thread into a downward spiral man!

[sundee]

in that format its not constructive. care to elaborate? then it may be useful to this discussion.

[Gunner]

Just because he didnt explain it, doesnt mean his post wasnt constructive.

Quality Aus made products > importing shit.

way to turn this thread into a downward spiral man!

Nice Simmons.

[blair]

Really? Didn't realize I could get trispoke simmons in 14x8's? Damn, wanna chuck us a link bro?

Hero

[Maciek]

fook me guys seriously dont get ur nickers in knot.
if you dont have nothing nice to say dont say it, i clearly stated my reasons and purpose for this thread so dont turn it into a girly bitch session!

[Gunner]

Really? Didn't realize I could get trispoke simmons in 14x8's? Damn, wanna chuck us a link bro?

Hero

I'm the hero? Good on ya clown.

[sundee]

Ohh stuff it's on... Haha

[LittleRedSpirit]

1 - Shifter Rebuild Kit (79-83 Corolla)25.00 Worth every cent
1 - Rear 4-Links (79-83 Corolla)360.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - Tension Control Rods (79-83 Corolla)200.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - Panhard / Lateral Bar (79-83 Corolla)135.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - Adjustable Cam Gears (16V 4AG)160.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - UNI Filters for ITB Velocity Stacks (16V 4AG)80.00 Can get cheaper in aussie.
1 - Crank Pulley EDIS Trigger Wheel (16V 4AG)50.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - Lower Control Arms (AE86 Corolla)350.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - Outer Tie Rods (AE86 Corolla)240.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - Traction Brackets (AE86 Corolla)130.00 Never bought them before so wont comment.
1 - Negative Camber Roll Center Adjusters (AE86 Corolla)130.00 Never bought them before so wont comment. I do have the roll centre adjusters and they are fine.


My 2c, or maybe thats just 1c.

[Maciek]

that was a good 5c worth man ;)
cheers appreciate the honesty :)

[takai]

Unifilters are cheaper locally, from quite a few places.

They are an Aussie product: http://www.uniflow.com.au/

[Valkyrie]

I use the following on my RA60/1JZ:

T3 RCA - 100% perfect fit.
T3 steering arms - 100% perfect fit. I use these on the shortest setting and love them:D
AJPS lock spacer - 100% perfect fit, extra lock for the dori dori.
AJPS panhard rod - Had to use two smaller nuts to shorten it. It was purchased second hand for "an unkown car", so not the fault of the item. On car adjustable, quality is great.
AJPS hand brake button - 100% perfect fit, great for "emergency turns":)

I'll be looking shortly at adjustable upper trailing arms due to my diff hitting the underside of my car (lots of hits). I currently have no preference, but am looking at Whiteline most likely. Remember to keep your eyes open and research thoroughly. When taking peoples opinions on board, check their members threads etc, do they have a car that is driven or a garage queen (my car is on another Toyota forum with the same username)? Do they regurgitate horse shit from others or Google? So please 4keep that in mind when spending YOUR money on items YOU want.

My brother had a well sorted Sprinter, and that had a mix of T3, Whiteline, custom and AJPS bits. That was built ~4-5 years ago, so there were not as many options. Funnily enough, the car is still around running most of those bits (so I'm told). I used Sundee86 for my T3 purchases, and Dave (AJPS) for my AJPS bits. Either is fine to deal with.

So really, I'd be looking at mixing and matching. Also, would you rather bend a chassis rail, or break a steering component when punting your car. I know which one I'd pick...

[H8CHIR6KU]

i think its irrelevant about the arms being too strong.

for one you would be pretty hardcore to be running rose jointed stuff on the street. and most rims would take the damage.

and more than likely if your hitting shit thats bending suspension arms chance are your gonna bend your chassis. and if you do use the arms on the track and you have a hit hard enough to bend an arm chances are thats because you have hit a wall. when you hit a wall a bent suspension arm are the least of your worries

[sundee]

i think its irrelevant about the arms being too strong.

for one you would be pretty hardcore to be running rose jointed stuff on the street. and most rims would take the damage.

and more than likely if your hitting shit thats bending suspension arms chance are your gonna bend your chassis. and if you do use the arms on the track and you have a hit hard enough to bend an arm chances are thats because you have hit a wall. when you hit a wall a bent suspension arm are the least of your worries

Finally someone with some logic! And common sence, Like I said I had a medioka hit in the front of my sprinter with all STOCK suspension components bar coilovers (irrelevant ) and bend the crap out of the chasis rail. So you can really disregard all that guys are saying "I know what I would rather bend" etc because most guys are just repeating one of those lines that makes them look like they know what they are talking about.. When infact they are just repeating something they have read on a web forum

[Gunner]

besides that, if you hit something, you're doing it wrong.

[takai]

When you can do this with stock components then making things too strong is a very moot point:
http://gallery2.plebeians.net/d/30498-2/IMG_1193_s.jpg

[sundee]

besides that, if you hit something, you're doing it wrong.

Ha doing it wrong! He who owns an EJ powered 86 :p ( jokes jokes gunner ) don't get your nappy in a knot

This thread should be locked and deleted

[Gunner]

You love it joel.

[sundee]

and a good biff... fred flinstone is back! ^^

[Gunner]

not for long licker.

[marvis]

pointless comment. neither constructive or affective.

I don't see how? I was saying. AJPS > T3. But T3 do make some stuff that AJPS does not.

[ke_70]

*cough* unsprung weight *cough* (shifty eyes)

[Maciek]

Actually i do know what im talking about which is the reason that im looking at buying these products as i have had a prang in my car so im looking at replacing all the components said...

YES i 100% agree with if u prang it ur doing it wrong, but, u wont know how to do it right if u dont do it wrong at the start.
So...
Lets put it this way, if the weaker arm takes 50% of the impact, (for example sake) then the chassis rail will take the other half of the impact.
But if we put the stronger arm on it might take 20% of the impact, and the chassis rail 80%, thus meaning that i would have to repair 30% more damage to my car...

This is a mature discussion, so i dont see why it should be locked and deleted, i think your taking it a lil too personally...?

[sundee]

ha now unsprung weight is here... oh dear.

lets face it, we are not driving beep beep barina's - if we hit something , odds are we are going quick, or sideways
I get what your saying about impact absorption, but at speed, an impact means a bend rail.

and really that theory only comes into play if you have a direct hit on the LCA or Tension rod or wheel (as these are the components we are taking into account.... any head on or impact from front indicator area at speed = Bent rail weather you like it or not.

im not taking this personally, "Locking and deleting was a laughing joke. if i sold T3 stuff or not i would still argue this case as it seems to be one of those things that is said all the time on the net,

like -
"Jacking on dirt or grass fails" - ( What about offroad 4WD's that use "4WD Jacks" That lift up to 48 inch's high ( THATS 122 cm's! ) on the dirt and are rated to over 1 Tonn )
The only thing that fails with jacks is jacking on a sloped or uneven surface. Jacking on dirt or Grass is fine!

Or
"to much unsprung weight" - ( most of us are streeters with a few track days, Really who cares, we are not racing V8 supercars with million dollar licence fees, in our territory it comes down to the driver not how kik ass your car is.)

T3 - over engineered ( mostly hear say from the interwebzz from those with no experience with their product )

Their are some other stupid ones going around but i cant be bother to dig thru my brain to retrieve them.

[Konakid]

I just don't like american companies to be honest, which is why ill never buy it.

[timbo]

I just don't like american companies to be honest, which is why ill never buy it.

thats a very unwise statement to make... i hope you've never watched tv or eaten mcdonalds...

this thread has become riddled with bullshit. admittedly i made a mistake about the construction of ajps traction brackets but i stand corrected. there is nothing wrong with t3 products, plenty of people use their stuff on this forum with no complaints. lets put the patriotism crap aside, if you can buy an equally well made product for less you are a fool to do any otherwise.

now i wait for some side by side testing of both products.

[blinded]

Agree with Timbo 100% here.

This thread is a laugh with all the JDM/Anti-US and AJPS fanboys. (No disrepect to AJPS here, great products/service, not doubting that at all).

The fact of the matter is in the current economic state, if T3 products are going to be the slightly less expensive option, then there is no reason why he shouldn't be able to get them. Obviously as previously mentioned, not all of the products listed by the OP are going to be cheaper from T3, but quality wise, unless you actually have some proper information about the products to report, why fucking bother posting useless shit like how you're too elite to buy from american companies (biggest LOL of my night reading that) or just straight up think "AJPS>T3" with no proof given?

Again, not having a dig at either company, but as as above, what NEEDS to be said in here is only first hand information regarding either failures or poor services by either company, or a direct first hand comparison of both products side by side. That is the information that should be put up, not hear-say bullshit that is just a waste of everyone's time and makes you look like an ass. And the "over-engineering/weight" of T3 products, is that a joke? Seriously? Unless you're a racing driver chasing thousandths of a second per lap after already sacrificing every last bit of weight, then by all means whinge away, but for the 99.99% of us normal/spirited drivers, is that really something to bring a product down for? If you crash your near 30 year old Corolla into something, be that tree, gutter, or a wall on a race track, having "over-engineered" components arn't going to be the reason for you having a wrecked car/bent rail(s)...



Not trying to bring down, or glorify either company, but it seems some people don't realise that having something other than AJPS or JDM YO! brands does not mean that everything else is inferior. That picture from 'Daims' 20V build thread of the shattered Watanabe is proof. And for what it's worth, I run both AJPS and T3 products in my car.

Build quality for both brands are great. Yet to have any problems what so ever in 2-3 years of hard daily driving and motokhana/khanacross events with either brand, and I would confidently say I don't think I will.
Whilst I havn't dealt directly with T3, I will say though that I have with AJPS, and more than a few times. Excellent service from AJPS. Was near always same day replies, helpful ones too, and also fast postage. No complaints there at all.



/rant

[Maciek]

Yeah im not really concerned about the unsprung weight, but as the saying goes with the 86 every kg saved is like a hp gained. I know its a bit of a wank, but its still some thing I think about.
I actually drove square on and literally bunny hopped the rolla into and over the gutter at 60-80 clicks. There were no lights, no signs saying DEAD END or NO THROUGH ROAD, so when ppl ask me what happend i actually do reply with 'the rd stopped or 'ran out of rd'
least i can laugh about it now.
So i royally fooked all 4 wheels, COMPLETELY royally fooked my coilovers, broke the steering rack and bent the arms, chassis rails were bent also but had them straightend.
but yes if i was to hit a wall the car would have been a complete write off.

Sorry, i didnt realise you were joking, apologies.


Thats exactly right. I looked into some of the t3 products because of the exchange rate atm, but i wasnt to sure of there products so i started this thread.
and because of it I have come to my decision.
so i thank you all for your contribution