STRUT BARS, rear, front, upper lower questions and answers

[vince]

they pretty much do all the same thing, im sure all the companies with a reputable name make it out of good materials. in the end they most likely do the same thing just depends what brand you want. its like smarties, some people will eat the red ones first but they all taste the same

[manxman]

Originally Posted by manxman

While I am waiting the 6-8 weeks for my Progress Technology rear anti-roll bar to ship, I decided that it is also time to add a front strut bar as well. There appear to be a growing number of manufacturers and marketers of strut bars all with very similar designs. The cheap ones on eBay are obviously cheap in their design, with the strut mounting flanges welded or rigidly formed to the bar ends instead of being attached with pivot bolts.

For those of you who use these bars, I want your opinions on 1. The best brand (and why is it the best), 2. Is the highest priced bar better than the lowest priced one and how is it better, and 3. All of the bars that I have seen in ads seem to be made of 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum with steel flanges, meaning GOOD materials for the purpose. Have any of you seen signs of failure (cracks, corrosion, etc.) on your bar that made you wish that you had spent more to buy a more famous name brand?

I ask the above because some bars are being sold at 1/2 the price of others but are made of exactly the same design and materials.

My questions are open to strut bar VENDORS as well as end users- reasons why I should consider your brand of bar over others--

Dave

Thanks in advance for your opinions!

I guess all of our experienced and opinionated sob's are on vacation??
Well, for anyone else who is wondering the same things about strut bars as me, I am leaning toward the $98.00 Tanabe bar.

The $300.00 Mugen bar is made of all stainless steel, which justifies a higher price. But I don't think that I need more strength and weight than aluminum. The generic aluminum/steel bars on eBay sell for around $40.00 and would probably work, but I doubt that the finish would last long in the damp weather around here. Cheap price must translate into some kind of quality sacrifice, most likely poor anodizing here.

The aluminum/steel Tanabe bar justifies its higher but still reasonable price by having a design that allows you to set an adjustable pre-load on the struts. Adjustibiliy isn't even mentioned in the ads for the cheap generic bars.

So, I have answered my own questions and made a choice, but would still appreciate any feedback available from the guys with the trial-and-error experience. Thanks---

Dave

[manxman]

Originally Posted by Toy Yoda

i second these questions. I'm wanting to buy a REAR strut bar and i'd love to know the differance between manufacturers. Don't some suppliers use the same manufacturers but just different logos when sellign to customers?

Hey Toy Yoda-
I called Tuan at A-Spec Products because they make their own strut bars AND are a Tanabe dealer. The A-Spec bars (at least the front ones) are adjustable for pre-load just like Tanabe, but cost $25.00 less. I like to buy from Californians when possible, and with similar construction and mounting features shared by A-Spec and Tanabe, I ordered my front bar from A-Spec.

It doesn't look like anybody has any answers for us (although I am in a hurry, and answers may still come in the future). If you are more patient than I am, you might get some guidance. Otherwise, my bet is that A Spec will probably be a good choice for your bar also.

[smeister]

Hey all,

Can the owners of the Spoon front strut bar chime in on this thread? I'd like to know how this compares to say the Cusco style front strut bar in terms of strength, installation hardware, ease of installation, and anything else you noticed. TIA

[JDMchris.com]

I had mine for maybe 2 weeks tops. it does its job. The installation is the same as any other strut bar. personally i just didnt like the look of it. I ended up taking a loss and selling it cheap to another member. it does its job.

[Fitinside]

eBay Motors: 06-07 HONDA FIT FRONT UPPER STRUT TOWER BAR+NEON LIGHT (item 180098166321 end time Mar-28-07 19:39:00 PDT)

So what do u think about this strut bar???? is it realy going to work well??? or it is truely unnecesary??? sorry for dumb question, i know little about that stuff=[ advice please?)

[manxman]

After looking at ads for almost ALL of the strut bars available, and comparing the photo of this one against the other brands that actually have reviews on this and other newsgroups, I avoided this one as being much too cheap in design to do anything at all. Take a look at my post under the Suspension and Brakes Forum for my review and DIY Installation of the A Spec bar. I am not happy with this bar for various reasons, but the bar itself is much stronger than the one in your Ebay ad. The higher quality bars have a much thicker cross section, therefor more rigidity, than the thin strip of aluminum being sold in this ad.

As to whether or not ANY of these bars actually work, I can't say. I don't see much, if any, improvement from my bar. The REAR strut bars attach directly to the strut studs, instead of the sheet metal that the studs are fastened to, which is the case for front bars. I think that the rear bars have a much higher likelihood of actually working than the front ones, but that is just my opinion as an engineer.

[fit4kris]

Originally Posted by Fitinside

or it is truely unnecesary???

The question about the bar isn't dumb. But this question does pose a KEY POINT. necessity is all relative. The way your Fit probably sits now, is the way it came from Honda. It has everything necessary for the proper functioning of the car.

If you are wanting to experiment, by all means, I think that the little Fit is a nice starter car for someone who wants to get into the tuning scene. But I do think that you should sit and save before making the purchase. You will be a lot happier with quality parts anyday than you will with an e-Bay branded part. And Quality doesn't always equal expensive either. Shop around, read some reviews, and go from there....But don't buy garbage that has no credibility. I mean, forgive me but the company has to use another's logo to even make it marketable. That is sad in my opinion.

Off topic: How can they get away with putting the Mugen logo right on their bar??!! Unbelievable!

Good luck.

Kris

[manxman]

I completely agree with Kris- RUN away from this bar! Again, my opinion.

[bigtymer8700]

I had a friend of mines tell me that a company makes the lower arm bars that come in the blaze orange color... i forgot the name and this nut aint picking up the phone. Just wanted to see if anyone had an idea of the company that makes them... anyways I am planning on just getting a CAI and throwing my 75shot in my fit and play with suspension for the time being... I would like to get the lower arm bar the rear sway and the front sway. anyone have any input as to which make the best combination. I will be getting 16x7 and a Tein S-tech drop.

[edorwart]

Has any installed the Spoon Lower Front Tie Bar? Just wondering if they like it and how well it fit. So far I like tghe qualirty of spoon products and was thinking of getting one of these bars.

[friends288]

i have a question about Front Strut bar, for being around $100-$200. it is worth having it? how much difference does it make? only high speed turning? high speed as in? 50km/h? 80km/h?

i guess i am thinking should get the strut or LED taillight.

[kentris]

my friend got a strut bar off ebay for like £30. Sure it's cheap (and I've heard bad news about some struts off ebay) anywho he didn't want it so I nicked off with it.

I gotta say, my handling has improved a lot, I can slog my car around roundabouts and corners a lot faster than I did before.

Just that I don't handle so well around the corners due to no bucket seats so I'm having to fight the g's lol.

[tlohman81]

is a strut bar worth investing in? it really depends on who you ask. i think most people would probably say yes. a strut tower bar helps to keep you struts parrallel, during hard cornering, like this | | and when you turn hard, without the bar, your struts will try to do this / / or this \ \ depending on which way you're turning. so yes, a strut bar will definately help improve the performance. whether or not it's worth buying or not, that's up to you. if you're ready to start upgrading your car, then you need to decide where to start. performance or looks? hope this helps a little.

[kentris]

Originally Posted by tlohman81

is a strut bar worth investing in? it really depends on who you ask. i think most people would probably say yes. a strut tower bar helps to keep you struts parrallel, during hard cornering, like this | | and when you turn hard, without the bar, your struts will try to do this / / or this \ \ depending on which way you're turning. so yes, a strut bar will definately help improve the performance. whether or not it's worth buying or not, that's up to you. if you're ready to start upgrading your car, then you need to decide where to start. performance or looks? hope this helps a little.

but strut is both performance and looks.

[Endless]

Can anyone recommend a front lower tie bar?

[Clint@Springrates]

T1R front lower arm bar.

[Endless]

How hard of an install is it? From that pic I can't see where it bolts to exactly.

[Endless]

From looking at pictures of rear strut bars installed, it looks like the back seats can't recline all the way with them installed. Is this true or are the seats able to recline?

[Clint@Springrates]

Until somebody jumps in who has one, i'll just have to say i'll call ben or dickson at aj-racing to see what they say...