Ok after almost a month of sitting in my garage, I finally got some time to install my strut-tower brace from CP Racing. I looked pretty good when I first got it and looked like it would fit good, that isnt really the case.

First you need to hammer the brace into place just so you can screw it on. After I got one side on I noticed that the brace runs right into the stock fan, awesome. So after a little bit of trimming of the stock fan I got it to clear the brace. Little hammering on the other side and got the nuts on. Bolting it to the firewall was easier than I thought after you find bolts and washers that will work.

Reaction: Drove it up to QT and no real noticable increase in handling, but never got a chance to take it to the limits, so it might have a noticable increase. Not too many nice curves from my house to the gas station.

 

Wierd. Thats the first Ive ever heard about a fitment issue. Has your car ever been in an accident?

 

or was it on jack stands or blocks or something?

 

Ya I got in an accident about a month ago, but I dont think the damage from that messed anything up. What about the fan issues? Common?

I did buy it off ebay, but it has a CP Racing sticker in the middle of the bar, so I think its genuine, or a good knock-off.

 

I dont think anyone would bother knocking off a CP Racing bar lol. People do that to help them move their products- last time I checked CP didnt have a big name. It may have been taken off a car that was in an accident and it bent the bar.

 

I dont think that is the case, because the bar is in perfect shape, and isnt bent anywhere, it looks it came right from them. I just think that the bar they make doesnt fit well, or maybe mine is just a fluke.

 

Ill be ordering one from them sometime- Ill let everyone know how it goes.

 

I've watched them make these bars. Every one is EXACTLY the same. EVERYONE would have these fitiment issues if that was the case, and nobody does.

Either a: Your car has been crashed
or b: your bar has been crashed

 

heheh my bar went on ok, but one of my pullies rubbed it if the engine torqued at all and had to be adjusted. besides that no problems other than the 30something dollar extra shipping charge ups gave me when they delivered it...i was quite steamed about that.



oh and at the time i was too lazy to connect the brace to the firewall . what did you use for that?

 

Yeah I bought the rear brace for my vert and it doesn't even come close to fitting. Looks like it might fit a coupe ok but not a vert.

 

Ok I figured out the fan problems. I got a different crank pulley from the junkyard, alittle smaller than stock, so Im guessing that maybe it moved the fan back just enough to get in the way. Oh well I should get an E-fan for it anyways I guess. Im sure having a trimmed fan isnt a great thing to have.

 

Ive never heard of one for a vert heh.

And bingo, thats why you never EVER use UPS when cross border shipping.

 

fwiw the mazdatrix bar doesn't always fit perfect either.