What's currently the best s13 5 lug conversion

[Eazy_tom]

So what's the best option for a front 5 lug swap right now?
I'm seeing people say the quality has dropped with some of the ebay ones.

So isr, Megan?
There's gk tech, but OE bearings are discontinued so what bearings are available?

Thanks guys.

[e30gangsta]

These https://www.240sxconversions.com/

[KA24DESOneThree]

Originally Posted by e30gangsta

These

Those look cheap. Quality wheel bearings on their own are $70, quality studs are $100-130, etc.

I have Attain hubs on my track car.

[PoorMans180SX]

You can buy GKtech hubs and then get NSK/SKF bearings here:

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...l+bearing,1672

[nmerriw]

I run q45 hubs on mine, oem quality, just have to swap in s13 wheel bearings. Nearly free from the JY if you can find them

[Thursday7]

I am planning on using GKtechs paired with Timken/SKF bearings from Rockauto. Most Timken bearings for Japanese cars are Japanese-made Koyo which is an oem for lots of manufacturers.

[SupaDoopa]

Nothing wrong with conversion hubs. I personally just bought the whole ass OEM assembly from Z1. It isn't the cheapest but for the price to have a complete OEM unit delivered in Nissan packaging, it was worth it to me.

https://www.z1motorsports.com/front-...ly-p-9473.html

Those are fronts, you can find the rears there too.

[CrimsonRockett]

I personally avoid running most of the conversion hubs. Low quality bearings and extremely short lifespan before they develop play.

OEM hubs have never failed me. S14 front and rear hubs are still available new and aren't too expensive considering how long they'll last you.

S14 rears are a direct bolt on. Fronts will require S14 front knuckles, the small knuckle sleeves (S14 knuckle holes are bigger than S13. Don't drill out your coilover/shock mount and just keep the original S13 hardware and run the small sleeves inside).

https://diftech.com/products/front-s...e-spacer-60109

Also, in order to run S14 front knuckles on an S13, you will need to run S14 LCA (slightly wider than S13) or swap ball joints on your S13 LCA to match the S14 knuckle taper.

Sounds like a lot, but it really isn't that difficult when it comes down to it.

[PoorMans180SX]

On another note, you can always toss on the cheapo hubs and then service them with quality bearings when they go. I also think part of the reason the conversion hubs die early is because of poor quality grease. I pulled mine apart after a year and it was essentially some half dried glue crap. I repacked them with redline grease and then ended up selling them to a friend because I went to Goemaster 3's in the front which needed S14 hubs. That was three years ago now and they're still on the car as far as I know. Just a theory.

[brndck]

Originally Posted by CrimsonRockett

I personally avoid running most of the conversion hubs. Low quality bearings and extremely short lifespan before they develop play.

OEM hubs have never failed me. S14 front and rear hubs are still available new and aren't too expensive considering how long they'll last you.

S14 rears are a direct bolt on. Fronts will require S14 front knuckles, the small knuckle sleeves (S14 knuckle holes are bigger than S13. Don't drill out your coilover/shock mount and just keep the original S13 hardware and run the small sleeves inside).

Also, in order to run S14 front knuckles on an S13, you will need to run S14 LCA (slightly wider than S13) or swap ball joints on your S13 LCA to match the S14 knuckle taper.

Sounds like a lot, but it really isn't that difficult when it comes down to it.

s14 knuckle with oem hub and bearing is the move. S13 lca + s14 ball joint is the easiest way to make it happen, or s14 LCA if you can find good condition ones. I've been using s14 knuckles and oem bearings for 15+ years and I have yet to have one fail. (NEO grease has a lot to do with it imo. See my comments below)

Originally Posted by PoorMans180SX

On another note, you can always toss on the cheapo hubs and then service them with quality bearings when they go. I also think part of the reason the conversion hubs die early is because of poor quality grease. I pulled mine apart after a year and it was essentially some half dried glue crap. I repacked them with redline grease and then ended up selling them to a friend because I went to Goemaster 3's in the front which needed S14 hubs. That was three years ago now and they're still on the car as far as I know. Just a theory.

I've been replacing oem grease with NEO grease on every single set of bearings that comes my way, on all my vehicles. Even brand new bearings. I have yet to have a failure in 15+ years, and I attribute that equally to buying oem bearings whenever possible and the NEO grease as well. Thanks Dave Coleman for the tip.

https://www.amazon.com/Neo-Synthetic...K%2CB00H8KKGHW

[cured13]

Originally Posted by nmerriw

I run q45 hubs on mine, oem quality, just have to swap in s13 wheel bearings. Nearly free from the JY if you can find them

is that for s13 front? Q45 is very heavy car and these hubs are probably much stronger than the ones from s-chassis cars.
Have some pics of how these fit on the s13 spindles?

[Knownworldwide]

I too have run S14 hubs front and rear since 2005. No issues. Z32 brakes all around. Been working fantastic! One of the best mods for these cars. Of course unless your planning on “hard parking” you probably couldn’t care less about bigger brakes.

[Eazy_tom]

While I would love to get oem front hubs I have a pbm angle kit with s13 sized spindles.
So I went ahead an ordered some GKtech hubs since a few of you guys mentioned the non OE bearings are good to go. I'll end up getting some oem rears and then I'll be done.

Thanks for the help guys.

[nmerriw]

Originally Posted by cured13

is that for s13 front? Q45 is very heavy car and these hubs are probably much stronger than the ones from s-chassis cars.
Have some pics of how these fit on the s13 spindles?

Yes s13, and I don't have pics, but they fit like any other 5 lug conversion using the s13 bearings

[AKADriver]

The Y32 (J30 or Q45) front hubs' snap ring groove that retains the bearing is in the wrong place for the S13 bearing and has to be machined. Some say it's ok to run without the snap ring since it's pressed in, some say it's a death trap. You can have it machined, but if you don't own a lathe yourself or have a buddy who will do it for beer you're probably up to the cost of GKTechs and new studs. Especially since where I live you don't find J30s and Q45s in the boneyard anymore.

[shaggyjake]

Only problem with the GKtech hubs is that you can no longer get the bearing circlip. You can reuse your stock one if you still have the oem hubs. Unfortunately I ditched mine years ago

[AKADriver]

True, but the snap ring isn't magic unobtainium just because Nissan doesn't list it anymore. With the caveat that I have not done this, my guess is that you could just order a 68mm nominal diameter internal snap ring from anywhere and it would just work. In the EU the replacement bearing kits for the S13 that Moog, Bendix, etc. sell seem to all come with a new ring. Dunno why US suppliers don't do that!

[KA24DESOneThree]

With Loctite 620 high-temp bearing retaining compound applied to a clean and prepped surface, wouldn't you have similar strength to a snap ring? Should have a failure point of just under 60k lbs in shear. Even at ~480 degrees, shear strength should still be over 40k lbs.

Disassembly would be fun, though.