Strut bar/brace info.

[conswaylos]

i need to know if there is a difference between big brands and the regular ebay "no brand" strut brace for an ek3. Any help would be appreciated greatly, im only interested in the performance and not the form,
Navin

[red_dragon]

go with the ultra racing brand

they have the oem versions and multiple point strut bars

and alot more

[speedfreak44]

ultra racing is nice...but an oem sir should you just fine...

[CD4Accord]

Honestly, I have an expensive Tanabe strut brace on my accord... Yes it makes a minute difference, but honestly I think you will feel much more of a performance benefit if you either upgrade your sway bars or suspension bushings or even shocks..

The strut brace should be the last thing to consider really..

Concerning brands, I love the design of the Tanabe but it does cost quite a bit.. Cusco is usually agreed to be the best but you pay for that benefit...
As a backup, the megan racing seems to be a decent balance between cost and quality...

Check this link out, has reviews of most of the major brands..
http://www.horsepowerfreaks.com/perform ... Tower_Bars

[conswaylos]

i have rsr springs, energy suspension bushings up front, and the entire back is prothane bushings, so my nex move was the bars, i just wanted to know if there is a difference with the brands and d generic sheit thats on ebay for small money. Also about that sway bar, any more info on that?

[Sky]

Honestly, I'm yet to see the big difference with all those brace bars. They're more or less the same material and design. And it comes down to weight and aesthetics. And CD4Accord, that tanabe ugly jed

[CD4Accord]

Well unlike most buyers, aethetics is not part of my purchasing criteria...
ANYTHING I buy on my car is strictly there for performance purposes.. I can say with 100% truth that nothing on this vehicle is there for looks...

The biggest difference between the expensive and cheap bars is not the actual bar design but usually the brackets which it uses to attach to the strut tower.. For example the megan bar has a sort of semi circle mounting bracket whereas the more expensive ones have brackets that go all the way around...

I don't know about the other big brands, but the tanabe has bolts holding the bars on to the bracket that you can use to adjust the bar stiffness.. ie. Tighter or looser..

Before you go for the strut bar I would say look at bigger sway bars... But if you are going the strut, it wont make a huge difference between brands.. I just try to avoid "ebay brands".. Megan to me would be the lowest consideration

[conswaylos]

i have an original typeR, but my airbox is in the way i saw someone post a cusco, i guess id just get that.... what vehicle am i getting the upgrade swaybar from? and what size is it?

[CD4Accord]

Well I'm not a civic man myself...
I would actually try to buy sway bars specifically for your model, just larger sizes as opposed to trying to get from another vehicle..

Use the same link I sent earlier to look at options, but once again Tanabe and Suspension Techniques will be excellent options..
Not sure if they sold in Trinidad or if you will have to import though....

Alternatively if you good with welding and fabricating, you can technically make your own sway bars and strut bars and just buy bushings to suit..

[conswaylos]

im actually very good at welding, but arc welding that is, i dont have a mig or tig, so aluminum and stainless steel is out :'(

[CD4Accord]

Hmmm well iron bars etc will do the job eh, but that is some serious weight...

I would say see if you can find the sway bars selling in T+T... I will MUCH quicker do that before adding a strut tower bar.

[ramishrrr]

The laws of physics will tell you that a strut brace is hardly necessary for the average motorist. The suspension components that keep the two front wheels equidistant from each other would be the track arms with their bushings and ball joints. In other words, they see the greatest stress in cornering and any radial movement. The stabiliser bar helps the front wheel assembly from excessive movement fore and aft.
Seeing where the struts are anchored (with the three or four bolts) any movement left or right would compromise the camber (toe-in or toe-out) of the wheels. This would increase tire wear and reduce handling, especially on corners.
The strut-bar would prevent this. However, in the design of the modern car this occurrence is minimal, hence the reason for it not being OEM. The side aprons with the shock mounts are stiff enough to prevent this. In rally cars, and possibly Solodex cars to some extent, this would be standard, due to unusual stresses of the terrain they go through.
Now, the question about the "e-bay" stuff or "brand name". As far as I see it, any ole' strut bar will do, even the home-made ones. For most of us, it is just a question of esthetics...........some are "prettier" than the others.
Regards,
RR.

[adriano7910]

from experience sway bars help much more than strut bars just you wont have the bragging visible factor they keep the pressure on the suspension somewhat even through corners keeping more contact to the road. oem sway bars work nice.

[alexfos101]

i use megan struts good quality not so expensive a great upgrade strut wise h-brace love it..

[TK!]

ramishrrr dead on correct.

i always say...
1. anti-sway bars first
2. chassis reinforcement (perhaps this must be done before #1... cause some aftermartket anti-sway bars generate too much force for the stock chasis)
3. shocks n springs. eg sport shocks, coilovers
4. tyres and rims.
5. tower braces
6. beyond this is race stuff... and i better not get into without properly thinking. there are many ways to go depending on your application.

[rism]

^^^when you say chassis reinforcements what do you mean? the tie bars between the front and rear lower cradles? H-brace? Also i know this may be a stupid question, but anti-sway bars and stabilizer bars, are they the same thing?

[adriano7910]

^^^when you say chassis reinforcements what do you mean? the tie bars between the front and rear lower cradles? H-brace? Also i know this may be a stupid question, but anti-sway bars and stabilizer bars, are they the same thing?

he means subframe braces to stop the anti roll bars from tearing them off. tie rods may act somewhat the same but do not offer subframe rigidity like the braces.

[rism]

does adding a tie bar alone make a significant difference?

[conswaylos]

ramishrrr and TK!, u both answer my question dead on.
one more thing, is there any interchangeable sway bars between honda models that i could use to upgrade my local EK3? or do i need to buy an aftermarket swaybar ?

[conswaylos]

let me give you guys a basic run down of my car, its a local ek3, first/only owner.
i currently have ek9 rear disc brakes, i got the front as well(not installed), but yet to decide on what to do with the brake MC(id love if u guess could advice me on that), i have a set of spoon rims(not rota slips, the real spoon rims) and finally i have a set of rsr drop springs on stock shocks(soon to upgrade to AMR engineering coilovers)......i dont race, my car has a bone stock engine and do not plan on upgrading it, i dont drive hard, but i like to corner with out slowing down(not in a wreck-less manner) its just simply my "get away", i like to play mechanic. i do everything for my self, i have alot of tools and so on. So let me hear what u guys think

[adriano7910]

you forgot to mention if its vti or lev it would help in advice. since they came with many differences

[conswaylos]

EXi, local civic.

[adriano7910]

for normal road use their is no real need for these things but as you said u like spirited driving lets see. the rear discs are a nice add. but one thing you didnt mention. did you change the proportioning valve from the exi. if not your prob doing more harm than gd. (more experienced ppl could advice on this)
* 22-26mm OEM front sway bars will reduce front end understeer an lessen body roll.
*OEM 13 mm rear sway will also help with body roll and stiffen up the car by evening the suspension load on all wheel
*add the two together and they work really gd together even promote oversteer at some point (ie trailbraking in corners)
*coil over are a bit of a overkill if your not into racing. sport springs and es bushings will do the trick and have you satisfied

[TK!]

^^^when you say chassis reinforcements what do you mean? the tie bars between the front and rear lower cradles? H-brace? Also i know this may be a stupid question, but anti-sway bars and stabilizer bars, are they the same thing?

he means subframe braces to stop the anti roll bars from tearing them off. tie rods may act somewhat the same but do not offer subframe rigidity like the braces.

chassis reinforments include the subframe brace, h-brace, fender braces and other chassis work you can do (eg - seam welding.. but that's a bit extreme for non-race)

the reinforced subframe brace is very important if you decide to really upgrade the rear bars (assuming you've already upgraded the front.

there's a lot to explain and it's been covered here:
http://www.ek9.org/forum/suspension/31- ... ation.html

the above link also answers your other question about inter changeability of different civic components.

i bought the dc2 rear anti-sway bar for my ek3. havent used it yet cause i wanna go more extreme. check the FS thread. my price is low and negotiable. really got no use for it now that i'm going asr (brace and bar).

i dont remember if we mentioned bushings. a full energy suspension kit costs a mere 1500-2000 and helps a lot with precision and response. i also added the motor mount inserts to help with this.

[conswaylos]

i have full es bushings, and what ever that kit is missing i bought prothane bushings and did the entire back. So everything is poly Urethane . i want a dex car feel, even if it makes no sense :/

[adriano7910]

well if thats what you want you have to specify how important ride quality is to you.
i dex and from experience a firm car for dex is not very pleasant daily unless you dont mind like me.
first you would need a spring shock combo. still no need for coilovers unless you insist. you already have the rsr springs why not invest in a gas shock. but if coin is not the issue its your choice.
so now your ride is stiffer and lowered.
*next big part of handling is rims and tires. 205/50/15 are good. light weight and gd tires (use to have normal tires like nexen and sumitomo on my car. then i tried dunlop direzza z101 and bridgestone potenzas and boi want a difference
*sway bars. oem 22mm front 13mm rear. aftermarket cld be and option but keep in mind that mixing and matching different brands bring a big variable into play about how they compliment each other
*no need to go over these sizes as you will oversteer and oversteer is not safe for your average joe.
*you already have the type r front upper. now to help the chassis you will need a h brace and rear lower tie bar and or subframe brace
you can also research and invest in camber kits if your going the gas shock or coilover route

anything beyond this and your asking for back pain
(My Thought May Differ to others. Please keep all judgements to a friendly tone )

[conswaylos]

ive used all sort of tires and i seem to like goodyear eagle nct 5, as for rims, my car is 5lug, so i have 15 inch spoon rims, i use 195 55 tho, using the 13mm rear sway bar, do i need the asr brace? or it could just bolt up? as for the front sway bar, what vehicle do i get that oem honda sway bar from? listening to what everyone said, i have decided to make my sway bars my first priority...i would get strut bars and such after. oh and btw, i couldnt carelss about ride quality, i kinda like a firm ride X_X

[TK!]

using the 13mm rear sway bar, do i need the asr brace? or it could just bolt up? as for the front sway bar

bolt up

tyres.. toyo proxes t1r, nitto neogen... dem is meh favorite that i could afford.
dunlop direzza dz101 affordable. nexxen .. ah wouldnt even use it to mash dog sh-t

[adriano7910]

answer to question. those tires are good. when they are dead try 205.50.15. will give you a extra grip and the direzza z101 are gd and affordable. be careful in rain doh. they tend to me more dry terrain tires. 13mm sway bars are bolt on and i would suggest a oem from a vti civic or ek4. integras 94-01 will also work but i'm not 100% sure if the civic and integra are identical (others my know) since they were made fr two diff chassis. thickness doesnt mean identical. to put in sway bars you would need lca's from a sway bar equipped civic or integra, d-bracket, end links and bushings. (may need other things will let the more experienced swapper tell you)

[TK!]

all rear lca's have the bolt positions for the sway bar.
the front is a diff story.