New bar weighs more, but look at it this way.... engines weigh lots too

 

There are a few of us here in Calgary now that have either the front BE sway bar or the rear progress bar. We are all hitting the AutoX course together for fun this year, will be interesting to see how these bars perform. It is pretty funny, almost nobody has the same setup... every person has different wheels, different intakes... ect. I am pretty sure between all of our cars we have the entire collection of Fit aftermarket parts!

We may have the opportunity to try out a setup with both installed just to observe what kind of results it produces.

 

HEMI-Fit is right that a larger front bar by itself will tend to increase understeer on a front wheel drive car like the Fit. But there's another theory on this that may have the opposite effect. Apparently in some cases on FWD cars, a fatter front swaybar will reduce understeer because by reducing lean in corners, it allows the front tires to remain more perpendicular to the pavement, thus increasing grip and reducing understeer. This might be the outcome on the Fit because there is so little camber adjustment up front (assuming mods that are legal for H Stock). But experience will tell the tale.

We'll all be watching Mr. Froge to see how the new swaybar performs -- and we expect a FULL report after your event this weekend, dude!

BTW Froge, it looks as though you were able to squeeze 225 Kumho V710 tires onto the front of your Fit. What kind of wheel are you using and how hard was it to get those tires onto a 6" wide wheel?

 

Supposedly, WRX's have a similar issue and the larger front sway bar didn't reduce understeer, but did increase cornering speeds by keeping the contact patch flat.

 

Coming from the FWD turbo Dodge world, I'm used to thinking of reduced (or outright removed) front sway bars to hit the autoX course. It'll be interesting to see how this project plays out over a few trips to the track. If some decent aftermarket shocks come out at a reasonable price, I can see this being a nice addition to my HS wannabe, too. If the shocks continue to be milled from billet unobtanium, I'll probably stick with them as my main go-fast mod. Then again, if there aren't going to be any shocks for another year or so, this might make a nice first upgrade.

Hmmm...

 

I've been thinking about going with aftermarket rear shocks only, due to budget reasons and the fact that the aftermarket is still sorting itself out on adjustable front struts. My thinking is that stiffer rear shocks may have a similar effect to installing a rear swaybar, and might be more effective for our cars than installing a bigger front bar, and would be legal for stock autocross.

I'm also pondering ways to make the front bar adjustable. If there was a way to make it softer, such as by lengthening the bar's effective lever arm, this might reduce understeer while still retaining some benefit of a front bar.

Any thoughts on all this?

 

mrFroge,

How does the bar perform at the auto-X?

 

[quote=ldweng;255819]mrFroge,

How does the bar perform at the auto-X?[/quote

I'll give you my observations from the first two events that were held on dry tarmac. I have two modification which have contributed to my comments.

I have installed the crash bolts and had the camber adjusted to the most negative setting allow by Stock rules. This made the steering more precise. I feel the setting that came with my Fit made the car to quick to respond at high speeds. This caused me to "saw" at the wheel in long sweepers. This problem went after the alignment. (yea!)

The sway bar addition was most noticeable when traveling over uneven surfaces. The bar softened the response to bumps in the road. It was more like the car was glued to the surface. As far as the turning, I noticed no additional under-steer. I have always been happy with the steering in the Fit. I think it is fairly neutral or a FWD car. I think the more consistent tire contact area has helped in the turns and stopping. I'm still testing the handling but I can say that I have been very happy with the change to date. (yea again?)

How do we measure the changes in autoX effects?? Well, I have noticed that my times have moved closer to the faster cars, both in and out of the h-stock class. The last event, where I placed 4th in class, had the best time (57.3xx) set by a 2007 Mazda 3. The top four cars were within 1.5 sec. This was a long course that favored horsepower. I felt it was a good day, as I was in second place until the last run. I wasn't able to find that additional 1.5 sec that I needed. I did finish ahead of 100 cars based on my PAX (handicap) time.
A personal best! Don't expect miracles when you are running against experienced drivers with a .5L/60hp engine advantages over the Fit. But it is great fun and I sill have more room for improvement in my driving.

 

Thanks man. Sounds like you'll have a good season. Enjoy.

 

Hey Froge, it was great to meet you at the autocross on Saturday! Just curious: with that front swaybar, did you have any problems with wheelspin coming out of corners on Saturday's track? It was a pretty big problem for me with my stock swaybar.

 

Howdy, howdy Skimmer.
It was great meeting you also! Did you run at Sacramento on Sunday also? I couldn't get up that early in the morning. So, I went to Golden Gate Fields for the SF region event.

I didn't have a problem with wheel spin in Sac, but there was a large amount of gravel if you got out of the line. I think the front sway-bar does keep the wheels down on the pavement and thus improves the size of the tire contact patch. (The new, front mounted Kuhmo A710 tires didn't hurt.)

Are you going to the Regionals at GGF in April? I was disappoint in Sac canceling the two Stockton events.

 

Yeah, I went to the Sunday Sac event. The turnout was smaller but that was fine and it was a great day.

If you mean the new divisional event at GGF on 4/26-27, I'm thinking about it. The problem is that Sac region moved its two May events to that same April weekend, so they're in conflict now and I'll have to choose! Sac didn't cancel any events, but you may be thinking of the ProSolo at Atwater, which was scheduled for that same April weekend but was canceled because national SCCA lost the site for all future events. Bummer.

Glad to hear the front swaybar helped limit wheelspin. I may have to try one of those after all.

 

My bad!

I was thinking that the Sac region would use the Regional run times, like the SF region does. The total of the two events count as one event for members of the SF region, separately from the Regional placements. So we earn Championship points as if it was the normal Round #6 event (only held over two days).

I'm really disappointed that it has been six days since the Saturday event, but the Sacramento Region has been unable to get their scores and standings posted. And that they changed their schedule to conflict with the Regional where participation will qualify drivers for the Topeka Championships.
Getting the scores out would be part of my decision making

 

Just an update bump on an old thread:

A few shot of a tight corner;
my final word on the bar is that it is an excellent product well worth the investment and install cost.

 

Nice pic. I love to see moving shots. Quick question tho, did you do the hood washer trick? Your hood looks a bit taller in the rear and i wasnt sure.

 

I was looking into doing it but never got around to it. I did remove a plastic guard that was blocking air from coming in through the grill. Illusive was there for that, after he saw the piece he took his out too

A few more

hehe, look in the bushes in the first pic

 

You and Mr. Froge have the BE bar only? You said some others there have just the Progress rears. Any comparisons on the 2 set-ups or a chance of a front and rear together?