GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

I recently ran the strut bar group buy and some were adjustable, some weren't. I have heard a few guys swear the non-adjustable is stiffer, so who knows which bar is 'better.'

Glad you got the bar on there, baja. Now take some close up and angled pics to really show that sweet CYM pearl

bajaman

I'm about to go out and see if I can tell a difference and will report. One has to think there will be SOME noticeable difference, but the handling of the FD is so friggin' incredible anyway that it is hard to imagine it being better.
I'll go do my test where I drive in and out of every other painted lane line at 70 mph. I know how that feels as it is one of those deals I like showing people that have no idea what a sports car is all about....lol!

Improved FD

strut bar = placebo effect on the street

adam c

iTrader: (2)

Ther is no reason not to slot the holes (if you need to) for fitment. Once the nuts are torqued, the bar will not slip. I slotted mine years ago to get the bar to sit just a little lower for hood clearance. It has never moved.

If you push the car on the street, it is no different than on the track . I felt a nice difference (on the street) after installing my 97 OEM bar. The front end feels much more solid when pushing the car in turns.

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

YZF = Glass Always Half Empty

Donovan

There is no reason TO slot the holes as they will easily fit with just a little tweaking the angle when you install the bar.




There is a HUGE difference between track and street driving. And if you're driving like you're on a track on the street you need to be jailed.

adam c

iTrader: (2)

The author of this thread did not have a strut bar that easily fit. I had an issue with fitment of my hood. 2 reasons

On the track, or on the street, many of push our cars. There are a number of places in my area that are quite safe to push the car in a turn. I'm not talking about high speed turns. These are fairly low speed turns where an error won't get me in any trouble. During these lower speed turns, I can tell a significant difference in having a strut bar. In fact, you really don't have to push the car very hard to feel the improvement.

I suggest that you take your "you need to be jailed" attitude elsewhere. I doubt that there is anyone on this forum, including you, that has never pushed their car a little on the street. If I was going to drive my car like a grandma, I would have bought a Porsche

Improved FD

um....are you running slicks on the street?

placebo effect....an equal number of people say it makes no significant difference

and I ran a strut bar for well over a year, just took it off

Improved FD

I prefer "healthy skepticism"

I find an increasing number of people in 2006 who say things that are based on nothing but pure subjective thought, especially if it pumps their ego in any way

scotty305

iTrader: (2)

Sounds like a fun test. How did it feel?

-s-

bajaman

^ lol....well, I am sure ImprovedFD will chalk this up to the "placebo effect", and while I have no scientifically measureable data, I truly feel the car felt 'crisper' in this manuever. Call it the '***-dyno' or whatever, but those of us that have owned and driven these cars for years know them pretty well. Dodging lines at this speed IS a pretty violent deal, and if anything I almost felt the car had a tad more oversteer than before, meaning it SEEMED to take less steering input to achieve the same results.
If this damned heat would ever let up, I need to go out on my little 'racetrack' run and REALLY test things out. That road has some nice twisties and is usually abandoned for the most part.

In the end you know what? I just like the way it LOOKS, if nothing else! I didn't buy the bar to try and gain some tenths of a second in some autoX. Obviously the bar IS functional and quite frankly I am surprised all FDs didn't come with one. Most strut-equipped cars DO have them, though I am sure the light weight of the FD makes it more able to function without one.
Mazda put them on the R1 cars for good reason, and millions of dollars of R&D are not usually spent for some 'placebo effect'.....lol!

adam c

iTrader: (2)

What a stupid question!! Of course I am not running slicks on the street. Even if I were, it has nothing to do with the effects of a strut tower bar.

Btw, lots of people run street tires on the track, and at autocrosses

I think that autocross racing against national champions for many years qualifies me to be able to notice a difference in handling after installing a strut bar. "an equal number of people" can't make that claim.

BTW, it appears that you are the only one saying that it makes no difference.

Improved FD

so now you are saying tire grip has NO effect on this equation?

wow.....talk about stupid

adam c

iTrader: (2)

"Talk about stupid"........ !!!! You seem to have forgotten that this discussion is about strut tower bars, not tires. Since you don't believe everyone else that has noticed a difference, I suggest that you PM DamonB. He is a respected member on this forum. He competes at Solo2 Nationals regularly in his FD. Ask him if the car feels different with a strut tower bar. Since you don't believe anyone that has posted here, perhaps you will believe an "expert". If you don't believe Damon, start a thread in the race section, and see what those guys tell you. And if you don't believe them..................... refer to your quote above

BTW, that's a really cute picture of your car with the little trophy in front

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

Improved FD

man, you're thick

does the strut bar somehow exist independently of the chassis, suspension, and tires??

see the FBD in this link, perhaps it will help you understand (perhaps not!)
http://e30m3performance.com/myths/St...bar_theory.htm
(note: I've never heard of a failed FD strut tower, in any application)

also read this thread concerning sway bars
https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/aftermarket-sway-bar-set-worth-205163/

no question a strut bar plays a role on the track, where suspension and race compound tires capable of generating forces on the chassis exceed any street driving application are comonplace

adam c

iTrader: (2)

Guess what moron???? A strut tower bar performs the same function on the street as it does on the track. It acts to stabilize the front end. If you can't figure that out, you are truely an imbecile.

I won't argue that forces are as strong on the street as they are on the track with race tires. I never said that.

The FACT is: A strut tower bar stabilizes the front end for "spirited cornering" on the street, and there is a noticeable difference. Apparently YOU are too thick to admit it ............ when everyone else knows it to be true!!!! Have you noticed that not even one person on this board has agreed with you

Gadd

lol. perfect.

Improved FD

in fact, you did, because you claimed that tire choice has no effect whatsoever on the magnitude of forces acing upon the chassis, which a strut bar is intended to counteract

lets' see....who's the "imbecile" here?

adam c

iTrader: (2)

In fact, I did not. Show me where I said that .......... without any creative editing

Lets see how many people agree with you about a strut tower bar being a placebo on the street

https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/strut-tower-bar-helps-handling-street-yes-no-556054/

Improved FD

any questions?

adam c

iTrader: (2)

First question: What are you thinking????

Answer: You are not thinking about the topic, you are just being a stupid stubborn little teenager. The discussion is about the effects of adding a strut tower bar. It isn't about tires.

It's a simple question. Does a strut tower bar help on the street. Check the poll! So far, the voting is 17 to 2 stating that it does help on the street. If I were a stupid stubborn little teenager, I would put one of those immature "owned" smilies here

dubulup

I was wondering how a thread title, "my strut bar doesn't fit" could last 4 pages.

bottom line, Mazda researched this for a "street car" and put them on aggressive models...what was the question

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

Man, I never knew my strut bar group buy was going to stir up this much trouble.....I say adam and yzk go at it, adam with a strut bar as a weapon and yzf with a tire iron

dubulup

is Improved FD...YZF?? that's twice you called him that...