First, I installed Racing Beat front and rear swaybars. I completely overlooked the fact that plastic bushings squeak, and no one along the process of buying/installing bothered to mention it. Now my car handles great but squeaks like a box full of styrofoam over every bump.

Then I received a triangulated strut tower brace from CP racing. It looked good and was relatively inexpensive... but the two rear mounting points (it's a 4 point, not a true triangle - a trapezoid maybe?) are about 3" out of alignment with each other in the vertical plane. Installing it will either be asymetrical (annoying) or forcing it into place, pre-stressing the frame to be misaligned (dangerouns AND annoying).

It'd be nice to have bolt-on mods with no downsides. I hope I don't discover negatives to the RB exhaust system I'm about to put in...

 

The swaybars come with a lubricant you're supposed to put in the bushings that hold it in place.



It may be too bad you bought the rear one, are you going track racing with it? Most racers (of all kinds) usually leave it stock or remove it altogether.

 

No racing for me in this one.

Are you saying the rear one is worthless? RB told me installing the front one without the rear can cause nasty rear end handling problems (hopping, etc)

is the lube a dry lube? wet will attract dust which becomes an abrasive paste. The kit was incomplete and RB has been VERY apologetic - to be sure I get everything they're virtually sending up a whole new kit, minus only the bars themselves.

Errors happen and I'm floored at their level of customer service. I was expecting a Hennesyesque response.

 

Yeah, Ive had a good experiance with RB. I definatly will order from them again. I was wondering about some stickers from them, I was thinking they would be in the kit, but when I got the kit, it didnt have any. I called them up, and the guy looked me up in the computer and sent me some stickers. I was expecting maybe one or two, but they sent me SIX of there "Racing Beat" stickers in 3 different colors (so 3 sets)!!! I was shocked. I know its a little thing, but it just shows good customer support if you ask me.

~T.J.

 

Yup - they went so far as to have the guy who talked to me the first time written down and had him on the line with me 2 minutes after I called a second time, so I didn't have to go through the usual re-explaining.

I wonder if I can swap 'em some stickers... *L*

 

None whatsoever. I feel like I have a NEW Car.


A Dry silicon based Gel. Only inside the bushing where the bar is in contact with the bushing.

Racing Beat has an excellent reputation for quality of product and great service. Although some have complained (not me) about their shipping delays.

 

No delays here. They shipped it 2 hours after I asked for it, and that's international

Does their exhaust come with the "Racing Beat" engraving on the tips, or is that only on the new Protégé? Anyone? I admit I like it - a bit of tuner logo showing off without plastering stickers on the car. Subtle.

 

the headers are stamped with rb, but that is all

they do make great products, and are very helpfull.
they are forgetful sometimes , though.. when i got my exhaust through them, it took something like three weeks. everytime i called someone checked and said that all the peices were there on the shelves, but for some reason noone bothered to put it into a box and send out..

 

directfreak: have you done any intense driving yet , with the new suspension set up (mountain type stuff)? no handeling problems without the rear bar?

 

Is the rear bar adjustable? If it is just install it at the softest setting and you should be fine.

 

greetings,

manntis, if you don't mind telling a fellow canadian, how much did all the stuff cost you? when i ordered my rb exhaust system, the $540 nearly doubled.

also how did you ship? i asked r/b to ship usps but they made an executive decision and sent it through ups -extra $100.

my next big investment is in upgrading the suspension, for street driving. i am looking at the rb set up. sounds like yours is for daily driving too. i hope you update us on the new performance and feel.

regards,
norman ng

 

I'm driving to Calgary to RX7-Specialties - the RB exhaust, landed in Canada with taxes, duty, etc comes to $1,200 but they're installing it for $100 (To Americans listening in, this is Canuck Bucks not greenbacks)

I'd like to know what your RB exhause cost you to know if this $1,200 is on par or not.

Whenever I have stuff sent from the US I either adamantly insist on USPS (I'll return UPS shipments unaccepted and tell them to try again) or, for less blatantly automotive stuff like film related materials I have it sent to my LA address, then forwarded as an interoffice transfer.

 

Cp Racing's Triangulated bar should line up, it did look like it fit when Chris put it on my car. You should call him up and ask him. I'm sure you guy's could work something out.

 

i ordered a suspension techniques sway bar set and am still waiting for it to arrive,,, my friend told me that poly bushings squeek pretty loud,,, but i just ignored him and went ahead and bought the kit anyway... will that lubricant prevent the squeeking???? is the squeeking annoyingly loud???

 

Only "hard" driving is me eating **** on the (empty) streets, trying to see how fast I could take turns of all kinds without spinning out. With Power, without, freeway entrances, exits, everything. I don't know it it was that my old suspension was that bad, or that the new suspension is that good, - but it handles like a freaking cat.

I am glad I put the running gear on her, because in a short time, with over 350 to the wheels, I am gonna need every bit of grip she can give me.

Sad to say, (but actually quite happy about it) - No Mountains here. South Florida is as flat as pancake.

I have the stock rear bar in place, but I did upgrade all the bushings to polyurethane. The only ones I kept with new stock rubber, was the rear bushings, to keep the tail end with a little flex.

 

$1200 canadian sounds about right. i seem to recall the exchange made it $975 or so, and then the ups shipping $100 and any customs/miscellaneous taxes another $100. i installed myself though to save and learn.

i would take shipping charges any day over exchange rate issues! hope all this is relevant.

regsrds,
norman ng

 

I've hung plenty of exhausts in my day on Italian, German, and US made vehicles. Now I'm willing to spend $100 to let someone else carry the liability.

 

UPDATE: I went to install the strut tower brace today. Someone from CP racing emailed me saying their products are welded on a jig and any distortion must have happened in shipping.

However, the two tower top plates are at two different angles and the heavy,thick tubing is welded so it ends up on two different planes at the back where it triangulates to the strut bar. When you see how stiff it is there's no way purolator could have bent it that much out of alignment without kinking or noticeable curving something.

In addition, I told 'em it was going specifically into a GSL-SE and they said it'd fit no prob. But it comes forward and tries to occupy the same space as the stock airbox that I just bought a K&N filter for.

That, and a surprise fee of $32 for shipping, has kind of soured me on their stuff.

 

TEFLON TAPE. Forget the polyurethane grease, it just makes a mess and gets squeezed out by the bushings after the first few hundred miles. Wrap the sway bar with a piece of teflon tape that covers the area where the bushing sits. Pretty much eliminates your sqeaking and lasts a long time...

____________
derrick
Pro7 in process

 

I've always used silicone brake lube. It's the same stuff they give you with the bushings, except you have a 5 or 8 ox tube to slop all over the place, instead of one of those tiny little packets that's almost enough to do ONE bushing.

I have never had a poly bushing squeak. Ever. WT had roughly 15-20,000 miles on the rear poly bushings, and prior to that I had poly stabilizer bar and front suspension bushings on my '72 Ford. The strut rod bushings made the most difference IMO.

 

I'll try that. Thanks pj & derrick

 

Okay, the reasoning behind removing your rear sway bar (so far as my understanding goes) is that it reduces body roll, reducing the amount of grip the outside tires need to maintain traction in a corner. Too tight and an understeering condition is induced. Especially in the front. Although, that might be cool if you're trying to drift.

 

Okay, the reasoning behind removing your rear sway bar (so far as my understanding goes) is that it reduces body roll, reducing the amount of grip the outside tires need to maintain traction in a corner. Too tight and an understeering condition is induced. Especially in the front. Although, that might be cool if you're trying to drift.

 

actually it is opposite, jay. the thicker the swaybar the less roll and the more load placed on the outer tire. with a big front and no rear, turn in will be crisp followed by major push (understeer). the thing is that the 1st gen is pretty tail happy from the factory so many just upgrade the front to give it a more neutral attitude. the only people actually fully removing the stock rear bar are us open diff guys that turn into one wheel wonders on very tight corners (autox) or launches. this is dangerous and annoying as you're never sure if the one tire will just spin or the rear will actually break loose. basically try it, if its too tail happy for you, step back to the stock rear and it should become more neutral then stock.

 

Oh, yeah. I knew that when I wrote it. silly me... ignore that