We like to stay on top of our customers desires. In an effort towards this we are requesting feedback on a particular item.

I have noticed a number of threads lately about strut bars. I have noticed a number of guys showing interest in bars begin made. We have although had very little support for a strut bar we manufacture.

The few questions I have about our strut bar would help us to understand our customers and/or potential customer desires.

1) Are you familiar with the first generation strut bar we offer
2) Is there a particular reason you would not purchase this bar


We always appreciate feedback and would like to hear from anyone who has an opinion.

These are links to the product listings:

http://www.mrcmfg.com/respeed/catalo...981b1ae96a1d7f

http://www.mrcmfg.com/respeed/catalo...981b1ae96a1d7f


Thank you,
-billy

 

i like it and would buy it
but i already have a firewall/strutbar.

that does look nicely designed..

 

It's on my list of things I still have to buy from you, it is much much better than the pos CP racing bar I have on there now. Maybe people don't realize you have them available? With all the threads about big brake kits and rack and pinion steering there wasn't much publisized about these bars....

The one question I have, its hard to tell from the picture is how easy is it to access the brake fluid cap to put in more fluid? The CP bar blocked the cap and I ended up cutting the firewall bars off....

 

I intend to buy a firewall bar along with the R&P kit before April, if everything goes as planned. I haven't seen any others that look as well designed as yours. Save for maybe the RB brace. And for the price, why bother.

On a side note, I'm sure this has been asked, but have you ever considered doing Datsun style flares? There seems to be an awful lot of interest in some that would actually fit, but no offerings at a decent price. With your reputation for workmanship, I think we could expect something really decent from you guys.

 

Great feedback guys! Keep it coming. I will let this fester for a day or two and try to address all questions and concerns then.

-billy

 

Would need to have the firewall ties eliminated, to be autocross legal before I would buy one.

 

http://www.mrcmfg.com/respeed/catalo...981b1ae96a1d7f
the second one is legal (and cheaper

 

I do like your setup and I intend on buying one.

 

We're all cheap skates and the only folks that will really notice an improvement in handling is a serious racer (autocross or track). So its not high on the must have list for a street car when compared to better steering, brakes, etc. A lot of the bars I saw at the old guys meet this weekend were from ebay for like 50 bucks or whatever. Seriosuly cheap. Not sure you can compete at a price point like that. Also its a simple enough application that a lot of folks decide to fab they're own. I don't know how many home built ones I've seen.

Get it below the magic $99.99 price point by removing the adjustable turnbuckle and offer it in any color as long as its black. Maybe then it will take off. Just my 2 cents worth (after inflation). Don't get me wrong it looks like another well designed and executed product from your shop. If I was doing a serious track car I would probably be buying a lot of stuff from ReSpeed.

 

This is great you are asking for feedback. Very very cool.

Here are my 2 cents....I have to agree that MOST people...myself included dont really NEED a strut bar. It is totally for looks. Most people dont cant and wont even feel the difference. But a nice engine "enhancement" that will only help the car hey why not. My two things are:

- Price point
exactly as the above said. Sadly the Rotary crowd is a tad more shall I say "budget conscious" then other tuners. I dont know if $99 is a good price, kinda low IMO. I would think under $200 or better yet $150 is a great price. As stated above, maybe you simplify the design make them all BLACK or all RED or...make 2 colors and thats it.

- Ease of install
looking at the pics...it kinda looked intimidating to install. Especially the bars that go to the rear firewall. do I need to cut any holes? It just looks a little more involved to install than others on the market.

I admit I am an idiot...and when I had a BMW 540i I bought a $200 strut bar for that sedan and I was able to install it myself with a wrench and a 12 and 14 I think. DONE in 30 mins in my driveway. Is your product as easy to install as that?

and lastly...my background is in publicity and marketing. I think there needs to be some more PR! And in this community WOM (Word of Mouth) is everything. Maybe you can offer a group sale of 10 people to sign up for a very low RE-INTRO buy price and take some off your margin..or maybe even lose a little very little...of course...but it gets your product out there in the hands of 10 more people. If you get even ONE new customer from the 10 you know its working. Those are my thoughts. Either way good luck!

I am currently a bum now...but I plan on picking up a strut bar soon...when I get some money. Soo..keep me posted on whatever your plans are! If the price is right and an idiot can install it...I am there!

 

If you look closely at the pics (it is kind of hard to see) you can see that it would take drilling 4 holes (two per side) which takes only a couple minutes tops, then 4 14mil nuts on the strut tops. Once the strut nuts are tightened, you just drill right through the mounting tabs on the firewall. Should take no more than 30 minutes, less if your handy with a drill. I am because my gf and mom are always getting me to hang pictures, shelves, racks, take this apart, put that together, blah blah blah.

If anyone is looking for sub-$200 bars, they sell them without the firewall reinforcement for under $200. Always remember, quality costs money. The usual cheap, fast, reliable - pick 2 mantra applies here. If price is a problem, rent a welder and make the bar out of steel tubing for a couple bucks. But these parts are well engineered, and saves you the headache of cutting the metal to fit, welding it, grinding it off and doing it again because you messed up, etc.

And for those that say there will be no noticeable effect on the street, obviously aren't taking corners as fast as they should be. This bar adds rigidity to a large open square space. Not exactly stiff. For perspective sit behind a big rig on the highway as they go over bumps and bridge joints and whatever and watch how the back door frame will sway from side to side. Its square, open and has little to no reinforcement (ie gussets). The door bars don't do much to stop this as they are the same as hinges, to keep the doors there and closed. The same is going on under your hood, only not nearly as noticeable due to size and the horizontal, rather than vertical layout. The only extra bracing there is the hood latch and hinges, which aren't designed for bracing, but just to keep the hood attached to the car. Put on the right bar and you'll notice. Try hitting up an autocross and run with and without a bar. I'm already sold on this bar because I've seen the quality of the crossmember for the R&P kit. dj55b's crossmemeber actually. It's good stuff.

Sorry to add so much to a simple feedback thread Billy, but I just couldn't stop myself. And correct me if I was wrong about the install, I'm only going by what I could see in the picture.

 

Sorry, I just looked a little closer at the pictures. It's four bolts per side for the firewall brace.

 

I have always been a fan and supporter of Respeed right from the time I bought the big brake kit from them. After that it was the race coil over kit and camber plates. If it was cheaper to ship something of this size, I would probably buy it, but being that shipping from the united states to canada is SOOO expensive on a larger part, I'm limited in what I can buy affordably. If the quality is anything like the other things I have bought, its second to none, thats for sure.

I had actually designed my own strut bar much like this that I was going to build, and may still build. The only thing I don't like about this bar is the fact it looks a little flimsy, just like every other one out there. I haven't gone through the calculations for the forces between the towers though, so this bar may be more than enough.

 

I plan to get one of your bars once I finish the turbo conversion.

 

Looks like an awesome product and I would pick one up, except for the fact I already have one of the old CPracing strut tower bars.

But I do intend on getting some more goodies from you Billy in the future (one thing at a time here though, I guess getting it running comes first).

While it's on my mind, the only recommendation I could make on one of your products is to have the bolts for the camber plates pressed into place (or tacked) in order to make installing and removing the strut tower bar easier. Besides that I have had nothing but great experiences with the rest of your products you have put out some awesome stuff.

 

Only thing keeping me from buying one is the price tag. It isn't unreasonable, I am just poor.

As soon as I win the lotto or get a better paying job, there is alot of stuff I plan on buying from you.

 

Oh yeah, the strut bar... how'd that fall off my list?



For the guy that said he needs PR, I get the feeling that this thread will serve both the purpose of offering valuable feedback on his existing product AND reminding people that it exists. Good thing he's an authorized vendor or I'd have to smack him one for that !

It's on my list, I'm an autocrosser.... but steering kit, paint, swaybars and engine are all higher on the list right now.

Jon

 

I agree, either tacking them in place, or simply threading the plate so the bolt stays in place would be nice, once the strut itself is in there its hard to get at the bolts if you want to install a bar....

 

Looks like a fine product billy. I will buy one as soon as I receive and install your steering kit. Then get the S5 mounts done like we talked about. I think a kind of a girdle will be best shaped like a c kinda with the mouth facing towards the front of the car. We'll see when I have it all. The rack and steering joints already showed up. My palms are sweating in anticipation.

I would have to say billy is one of the best customer service types I have talked to in a long time he answered all my questions and was able to spend a small amount of time discussing my particular application. This guy is one of the few people that actually deserves to make your guy's money that your spending. This is of course my opinion.

I will be doing more business with him in the future without a doubt.

Stephen Sheppard

 

Its a great product but from all the other goodies on your site, I think people are more concerned about getting the other stuff before this. Curious here Billy, but why not put them up on ebay for a while. It would help boost up the RESpeed name, and sales hopefully. Usually when people hear about a new company offering a good product, they will go on google and find out more info about them and other that have tested them which would then show up a few RX7club threads of them. Just a thought though

 

I'm going to be ordering one soon. Can you say group buy

The bar looks fine. As someone that's had the Racing Beat one, yours is a better design as far as simplicity goes.

For those that have not tried RE Speed products they are really great. Camber plates, coilover kit and the tubular sway bar is a very nice piece. All are highly recommended. Billy is high on customer service and will make sure you have what you need when you need it.

 

I have ordered a few parts from Billy, and EVERYTHING is top quality! I have already committed myself to fabricating my own strut tower bar, but I'm particularly **** about my projects (Billy should know-I ask him enough questions). His bar is really what I was looking for before I stuck my foot in my mouth about strut bars a few months ago, I'm just shooting for something a bit more "centered". I want the adjustability in mine to be a bit more even from side to side, rather than offset to one side. Seeing the pics made me think it wasn't fully adjustable at first-I saw the threaded part but didn't think it could be adjusted once installed (I was wrong).

Point is: you get what you pay for. The price isn't too high for either version, I would've already ordered one if I hadn't committed myself to building my own. At least I'll have Billy CNC laser cut the pieces I need for the one I'm building so it'll match up to his camber plates. If the quality is the same as the other parts I've received from ReSpeed (and I'm sure it is), then it's well underpriced-Billy's parts are more than just quality, they're art! The best thing is really the customer service-Billy has ALWAYS been there to answer my questions and correct me when I've had doubts or concerns about certain things regarding his products. You don't find customer support like that just anywhere-the owner of the company has to truly CARE about his customers and products to give you the level of support that you get even before you order from ReSpeed. I could go on and on about how happy I am with Billy and his products, but you get the picture. You won't be disappointed with anything that comes from him...

-Adam Collins

 

Great stuff guys. I did not intend for the thread to seem like a commercial of our products. This just seems to be the one item that had not seen our normal amount of support.

The feedback helps a great deal. The following is our interpretation of the posts.

1) Product launch may have been hindered by other product launches at same time frame. Some just did not know about the availability.
2) Questions about the installation requirements. Possible intimidation factor.
3) Unsure of the clearances once installed.
4) Did not know the part was available without firewall tubes. Makes product seem illegal for IT and CSP.
5) Price point of unit. Design puts the product price into a special market. Whereas other brand units may be marketed to a less expensive market.
6) Canadian Shipping Cost.


Other feedback:

1) Fiberglass Flairs
2) Camber Plate Mounting Bolts


We were not looking to produce a product that was not designed and manufactured to our current standards. We were not really shooting to compete with the less expensive, fits all product market. I realize these bars are not for everyone.

I have a few ideas from the current feedback and will be looking into solutions during the holidays. Thank you all for helping us move forward.

-billy

 

I bought my RB strut brace in 1995 which is before your company was founded. It was also a lot cheaper than the $298.00 their asking for it now. I liked it because it utilized the existing hood latch mounting holes and strut mount bolts for mounting. However, I will have to respectfully disagree with AsianImage's remarks that it's for "looks only and no one really needs one." Once you install a strut brace (one that ties in with the firewall) and take your RX-7 for a drive it's like driving the car on a "slot car track" and looks have absolutley nothing to do with this upgrade for me. Coupled with the larger RB front sway bar the handling characteristics are just amazing in my opinon. If your offering would have been available when I bought mine I would have seriously considered it.

 

Yeah, the RB strut brace is amazing.