Well someone asked me to do this so i am doing it. Its actually quite easy and straight forward but here it goes anyways. This is kind of the lazy version walkthrough because i didn't feel like removing the strut bar from the car so here we go.................




1st the link...this is the strut bar i puchased (it was 20 bucks including shipping......WEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/86-92...99606112QQrdZ1

(excuse the engine bay its a little dirty) The first pic is the actual strut bar mounted on the car...




Ok there you go the laziest walkthrough ever.





















..................im just kidding i have a few more pictures.......


Here is the plate that needs to be drilled/sanded down......i made the holes bigger and more into an oval shape.



This is my "dremel" it works really well and it was cheap (i got it from home depot for 20 bucks...it was on sale!!! WOO HOO!!! )


Closer pic of the mounting hole after it was sanded down..


Ok well after you drill all 8 holes (4 on each side)...it will slid in perfectly....Next i am going to show you TWO problem areas i ran into but i worked around them ....1st one: I had to chop a piece off of the air filter housing so that the strut bar could fit. Yes it (the air filter hosing) is still resting on the strut bar, but it works!!!


Next problem area (though its not a huge problem cause it clears it but its DAMN CLOSE)...is the alternator! I would say the clearance is about an 1/8th of an inch...but it does clear it!!!

 

Ok after you address those issues you basically tighten up the stut bar using the NUTS it came with (on each side)
and then its ready to go!!


Another pic of the engine bay with the strut bar on..



Well thats it folks...easy enough...i hope i was clear...if not then im sorry.....before i go i want to post a couple more pics on my FB....i have never posted pic of the interior so here ya go





another shot of the car





and a random pic:

 

your too funny bro! lol...........I'm trying this one next!!

 

Nice work!! I had a feeling that second gen strut bars would work! Thanks now I will try it myself!

For your alternator, upgrade to a second gen and atleast you won't that those blades due to the different design of the alternator. PLus you get the added amps

Awesome!!! Vote for placement in first gen how to section!!

 

what the hell do strut bars even do. half the poeple take them out the other half put them in. do strut bars help with handeling

 

They make delicious breakfast...............................oh yeah they help with the handling of the car too.....i feel the sterring alot more responsive!!

 

yes it tightens the 2 strut towers together, therefore the body cannot flex as much. Since it cant flex as much it improves your handling.

btw props to onlyonthursday for makin the thread!

 

tight i posted that this can be done awhile back its great to see some more ppl with this

\greg

 

Now i must go buy a strut bar... I was woried about it just beinga rumor that it worked andi wasnt sure if it would, but now i know..., thanks for the write up.

 

You have done a nice job up to this point. Now you should finish the job by adding some bars back to the firewall. A properly designed strut brace must have triangulation to the firewall. You certainly won't see any serious racing sedans with a tie bar like that one and no triangulation. It does not make sense from an engineering standpoint.

It is not that hard to do the job right . I designed and built my strut brace using Heim joints for all the connections, allowing me to preload it. I used the attach rings from an MR-2 strut brace, and the bars are solid aluminum. I made a bracket from 1/8 inch plate that is sandwiched between the hood latch and the firewall.

The bars should be straight if at all possible. Some of the ones you see have a major bend to fit around the engine, and are not likely to provide much stiffness.

 

^^cool nice add on to this write up........very nice job btw!

 

im going to use that pic as my avatar

 

Haha

 

They look neat I guess. Reduce chassis flex, how? If you look at those bars they'll just let the chassis move at the same rate, look at how the bar is made to understand. The one made from hemi joints, wha? Hemi joints are used in pieces that move, so your "brace" moves.

 

it allows it to rotate, but it doesnt shrink or extend, it ties the chassis together, making it more rigid

 

stiffer = less flex

these strut bars = "tieing the chassis together" to flex at the same rate. The bar would have to look more like a "K" if your looking at it from dead on front to stiffen the chassis. Or I hate to say it, but cp racing's seems to do the job.

 

Triangulation back to the fire wall is usually prohibited in production-class racing. It is more effective than simply tying the strut towers together, but don't do it if you plan to autocross or roadrace the car, unless you are sure it's legal. Depending on the car, just a 2-point strut tower brace can have a noticable effect...but it's more of a feel thing; not something you measure with lap times.

On the BMW racing team I crew for in Grand Am Cup (M3 and M-Coupe), we ultimately decided to lose the strut tower brace because whatever handling improvement there may have been seemed about as marginal as the benefit from removing the added weight. Oh, and the damn thing was always in our way.

 

I can't see how that strut bar would do any good, I would think that you would be better off with a solid piece. Does that strut bar actually pivot on the screws that connect the aluminum rod to piece that the holes were enlarged on?

 

it was 20 BUCKS!!!!...i know it's not going to be the best or most effective thing out there....i just wanted to see if gregs theory was true..........about making an FC strut bar fit into an FB.
(https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/where-do-i-buy-strut-tower-bar-461748/ at the bottom of the page!!)

Guess what? IT WORKED!!!......mission accomplished! I am not in any race team..this fb is my daily driver...i am not trying to impress anyone...

 

Properly used, that's not true. Heim joints (aka spherical rod ends) allow movement radially, but are absolutely rock solid in tension and compression. That's why they are used in suspensions and other similary demanding applications. Ideally, they would be mounted in double-shear, but the single-shear mounts used in the photos is probably fine for what he's trying to accomplish...it's not a race car.

 

I don't think you have anything to appologize for or defend. There are certainly more questionable mods in the universe and many people swear up and down they can feel a qualitative difference with a strut tower bar, irrespective of quantitative measurement. I think you did a Good Thing (TM) by documenting the mod and allowing people to make their own decisions.

 

its been a long day...im not one to get defensive....but it happens......thanks for the back up!!

 

Yea I guess you are right, it is only $20 bucks. I think I will try this one out. Good work on the DIY by the way.

 

Great work on the cheap MOD Onlyonthurs!





CP's is all solid. Works GREAT... the extra bacing even helps in a crash. (Ask how I know that )

 

It was great seeing this car in person! Even though I'm a purest that car was an engineering marvel. And what blake said is correct. the bar will only rotate where it will not effect the purpose of the bar because they will not move radialy.