20 replies to this topic

[karbie]

Hi guys,

I have always wondered what HICAS on a skyline is. Can anyone please explain to me what it is and what does it do?

[Bella <3]

its ur suspension. it suposedly stiffens the suspension at high speeds so that u dont lose control of the car. Nissan spent lotsa $$$$$$ making it.

[Ten Four]

Um, my car is dangerous to drive with hicas....... It kicks in under hard cornering and makes steering realllllly light. Need to get rid or I'll crash....

[Hanaldo]

High Capacity Actively Controlled Suspension

Basically it is all wheel steer, early model Skylines used a hydraulic system to turn the rear wheels. Later model Skylines use Super HICAS which uses an electronic actuator to turn the rear wheels.

Its actually hell good if you know how to drive with it, but people that don't race their cars aren't used to it so they just get lock bars to stop it. James get a HICAS lock bar

[Ten Four]

Martin, its not that im not good with it. I was going 80 round a corner and it cut in, steering wheel went light as fark, lucky i held it. but i expected this cause the prev owner told me.. Lock bar is in mail soon hopefully

[2LV8ETR]

HICAS eats dog balls.

[karbie]

Thanks guys for the info.

[Hanaldo]

Martin, its not that im not good with it. I was going 80 round a corner and it cut in, steering wheel went light as fark, lucky i held it. but i expected this cause the prev owner told me.. Lock bar is in mail soon hopefully

I didn't mean you weren't a good driver man, just that the only people that use HICAS are actual racers. Hence why people get lock bars. Although pro racers often also get lock bars because it can be unpredictable with the earlier model Skylines. Ive heard 34 GTR's have it pretty much perfect, you don't notice it at all; i imagine it is the same with the R35 GTR's.

[karbie]

Interesting, Martin how do u tell if u have a lock bar on ur hicas system?

[Hanaldo]

When Hicas doesn't work

Lol im not 100% sure, but i think the HICAS light comes on? Really not sure about that though. You would have to take a look at the actuator, lock bar would be stopping that from moving.

[karbie]

fair enough. Yeah I would presume that your correct that the light would either flash or stay on. thats what happens when something disrupts the ABS etc.

[Char]

all skylines have HICAS GTRs have Super HICAS
also, HICAS = good? bahaha i think not. a system that takes control of ur steering! why would anyone want to have an unpredictable pos trying to understeer them while taking a corner?

[karbie]

Good point Char. I might have to see if I can get my HICAS disabled.

[Hanaldo]

It is good, means you can take corners at higher speed. Thats why i say only racer drivers use it, they can actually control their car in understeer and it isn't unpredictable when youre used to it.

[Char]

wtf are u on about

[2LV8ETR]

I second the motion.

[Ten Four]

Martin, you should have seen me on that cruise lol. I was twtitching all over the place as hicas was kicking in and out. Was so bad that Rohan managed to stay on my tail

[NA_Goodness]

Martin was on the right track, then started talking shit... No offence dude!

HICAS is a 4-wheel steering system, but not like a Honda Prelude or MX6 where the rear wheels turn much like the fronts at low (under 30km/h) speeds. No, HICAS is a high speed 4WS system that changes toe (I think, may be castor though) to induce understeer when turning a corner. Why understeer? Because the Nissan engineers decided that inducing understeer would be a much better idea then letting the cars oversteer into a tree. However, it is common knowledge that oversteer is fun and very controlable, where as understeer is scary and impossible to manipulate to your advantage. Both are dangerous on the road, but understeer is a lot worse.
HICAS also weighs over 20kgs on a 32...
As for what it looks like, well its like a steering rack in the rear. Stick your head under your car, and you'll see it easily. If you have a lock bar, your HICAS light will stay on constantly (there is a constant "fault") and you'll be able to see the nice shiny bar in the arse end of your car.

James, have you fitted that lockbar yet? Because you're problem doesnt sound very HICAS related, and very, VERY serious...

[Hanaldo]

Lol you pretty much summed up what i was trying to say, but you said it better than me.

HICAS is shit on the road, yes i agree. Much better to get a lock bar. But for the track... i prefer it enabled

[Ten Four]

Previous owner is convinced it is the hicas issue. We'll find out soon anyway. I get my car back from Hyperdrive soon. Pretty sure its hicas though, i can feel it kick in and out.