Strut brace

[Gavla]

So I am considering a front strut brace for my cabby...

Will it make a big difference? Which brace to buy? Dont want to spend a fortune but am gathering the cheap fleabay ones are no good...

[German-Whips]

Fitting a front strut brace and a hardtop made a huge difference to ride characteristics of my cabby.

Made it feel a lot firmer and settled on the road and less wobbly/twisty/noisy with the hardtop.

Made the steering and the front end feel a lot better planted and a lot stiffer with the front strut brace.

I remember before having either of them fitted, when giving the car some welly on a slightly uneven road with even the slightest of bends, the car felt unstable.
With a good suspension set-up, I can imagine an even better ride performance.


But yes, it will make a noticeable difference.

Mine looks like so, but has H&R branding instead of RPM branding, same shape/design though:

[Motorhole]

Avoid anything with a hinged mount like so:



Kind of defies the point. Otherwise, any one piece tubular steel strut brace should do the trick. RPM and Ultra Racing are reasonably priced.

[ImysE30]

I would recommend fitting one

[zaust]

Eibach one is hinged ! Have they got it wrong ?. I know the adjustable ones are a no no but why not hinged if done correctly...

[appletree]

If its hinged the struts can move one way or the other and the distance between them will stay the same.

/ / or \ \

As the hinge will just pivot, if its welded then it can't pivot so will stop this movment.

[Gavla]

Thanks all

Eibach one is hinged ! Have they got it wrong ?. I know the adjustable ones are a no no but why not hinged if done correctly...

Mmmm, would like to know the answer to this one...

[Simon13]

/\ appletree just answered it in one /\ A hinged strut brace kind of defies the point of it.

[Andyboy]

Hinged ones are okay as long as the hinge bolts can be done up good and tight. To be fair, modern shells are so stiff you don't really need one. I've never noticed a difference on a track day with or without one fitted. I have a one piece Ultra Racing one that does the job.

[Gavla]

Looks like the 1 piece ultra racing is the best value for money...

Thanks

[Simon13]

They probably said the e30 was a stiff shell when they were new before they got to 25 years old and got rusty!

The strut brace on Oz's old tech 1 sport was structural years ago!!! It had to stay on when he had it welded to keep the strut towers in place. He took it off for some reason and i remember it took about 2 hours to get it back on with a jack on the subframe and a 4 foot pry bar to get it back on.

To be fair i've got the underbody X brace on my e36 touring as they flex especially the coupes/rag tops

[Andyboy]

They probably said the e30 was a stiff shell when they were new before they got to 25 years old and got rusty!

The strut brace on Oz's old tech 1 sport was structural years ago!!! It had to stay on when he had it welded to keep the strut towers in place. He took it off for some reason and i remember it took about 2 hours to get it back on with a jack on the subframe and a 4 foot pry bar to get it back on.

To be fair i've got the underbody X brace on my e36 touring as they flex especially the coupes/rag tops

Pete will reiterate the story but back in 2002(!) when I bought the white C1 2.3, the left had inner wing was so rotten it detached from the bulkhead. So back at Pete's massive the inner wing was portapowered back into place, a strut brace fitted and the car driven to Oxford.

12 years ago and the car still hasn't been completed. The shell was rebuilt and finally painted in 2007.......

Still, you can't rush leather.

[DanThe]

Ultra racing bars are shit! Oval holes and hobby mig welds?
Sparco M3 bar is what you need, the RPM bar pictured above is a copy of the Sparco M3, but I bet its not significantly cheaper than it

[Simon13]

this is the kiddy sparco job, they used to be £50 new. i expect more, they foul the cruise control cable on M20 is there only blight!

[Demlotcrew]

If its hinged the struts can move one way or the other and the distance between them will stay the same.

/ / or \ \

As the hinge will just pivot, if its welded then it can't pivot so will stop this movment.

This is true when the sparco brace is fitted correctly with all three holes attached at each side.

Most just fit them with the top mount nuts, to do it properly would require drilling holes and adding spacers, have yet to see anyone do this!

[Gavla]

Oh dear...seems this is quite a hot topic with varied opinions...now I am confused!!!!

I have also come across an M3 one that says left hand drive only...are they not uniform in shape?

[steve_k]

how come no one has mentioned the twin tube sparco brace? ala hartge?

also no one has mentioned about fitting a rear one aswell.

[polsta]

I fitted an RPM one to my old 318is , made a hell of a difference you instantly feel and notice, particularly at times like... Comming off a roundabout on to a motorway slip road where you give it some with more weight to one frint corner , it made the car feel solid/rigid/awsome

Need to get one for my tech 1 , ideally want a chrome twin tube hartge but not seen any for sale for ages, the sparco twin tube are £250 odd I feel a bit steep compared to the Rock solid £70 rpm , might get the rpm and powder coat it the same as the rocker and inlet manifold

Glad it was pointed out the White dynamic racing ones are no good as I was concidering trying

Any other options ?

[steve_k]

anybody know if you can get a underbody X brace for an e30??

[polsta]

Just looking on eBay , there are now "wiechers" from Germany for £80 odd, not seen them on there before ?

And Omp for a ton but hinged

[steve_k]

Just looking on eBay , there are now "wiechers" from Germany for £80 odd, not seen them on there before ?

And Omp for a ton but hinged

cheers carl

i'll have a look.

[zaust]

anybody know if you can get a underbody X brace for an e30??

Again ultra racing do one for the e30, however the thing will catch on a small pebble as it sits so low down. That's assuming you have standard ride height.

[steve_k]

anybody know if you can get a underbody X brace for an e30??

Again ultra racing do one for the e30, however the thing will catch on a small pebble as it sits so low down. That's assuming you have standard ride height.

just seen one on ebay, ride height is about -40mm so could catch.

still tempted though.

[pacerpete]

If you want something that works rather than something shiny, the fixed Sparco is the boy.
I would not be bothered about a chassis brace as the front crossmember does a pretty good job of keeping everything tied together down below.

[steve_k]

the current price of the twin tube sparco brace is beyond the joke, £250 for it??

i paid £180 for the front one & a rear one over 8yr's ago, thats some price hike,

pete, just trying to find over ways of strengthening the chassis without going for a cage, as the car will be used for road & track.

[kam-325i]

also no one has mentioned about fitting a rear one aswell.

Rear ones don't do anything, the "Stress's" go through the rear axle carrier mounts.

[pacerpete]

The twin tube Sparco / Hartge brace is decent but pricey and shiny.
Unless you have rear coilovers, a rear brace is not necessary as there is very little load going through the rear towers and any slight movement will not affect the geometry, unlike the front .

[steve_k]

pete, keith. i fitted a rear one as at the time i was running coilovers on the rear so had it to spread the load/stress.

[uvels]

Can offer front and rear braces brand new delivered for 130£
100% the same as ultra racing,just different sticker....933 motorsport
PM

[johnono]

Heard good things about the Sparco single bar brace.
Race skids do a fixed version also.
And that ultra racing do also

[mikemike]

hi from mike , I fitted the hinged type to both of our cars and they do make a difference for everyday use , even the guy who does work for us says it does help , mike