I just recently purchased an 88 gxl and have decided to work on the suspension before moving to any other part of the vehicle. I replaced the bushings and I am going to put in strut tower braces next. I was hoping someone could tell me what exactly they do and which ones are ideal for a street driven car?

 

CorkSport Why? The prices and the quality are the best. No need to spend more for a big name.

A bar is a bar is a bar. No need to spend a lot for them uless you want something fancy to show off. They make the car stiffer which makes the suspension do it's work. I have the front stb, rear stb, and lower arm bar in my car. All were installed at different times. Each one made a difference that was felt right away. Both the front stb and lower arm bar made the steering feel more positive while the rear stb made the back end more predictible when steering with the right foot.

 

I am waiting for my mazda speed sway bars and cusco strut tower bars from corksport. I like to go with race proven mazda stuff (MazdaSpeed) and I have heard nothing but good things about the Cusco stuff. It does take awhile when ordering from corksport due to the fact that some of the parts are ordered from Japan. I like the fancy stuff you can show off, but it has to be functional. I will not put anything on just because it looks good.

 

We have JIC bars in stock for the FC I believe. They are just like the CUSCO bars. I've used them and they work great. I have the dry carbon shaft for mine in the rear. An aluminum bar for the front.

Rishie

 

Got a link to the corksport bar??? I saw one at my friends and was impressed. But I'm kinda hazy on it again.

PEace, Rishie

 

i think the mazdatrix sway bars are best (FC)
they incorporate an engine torque brace and also it can be a firewall/strutower brace.

but they are big time $$$$$

 

I don't think a bar is a bar is a bar.

With a "quality" bar, you know that it is a top notch product. Brands like Cusco & Mazdaspeed don't differ too much because, they are "quality" bars.

But, there are some inferior bars that are (for example) commonly sold on Ebay. My best friend learned that lesson the hard way. The bar that was sent to him, was too long. The bolt holes on the bar, are generic holes, not necessarily vehicle specific. The bolt holes are "stretched", so that it would be easy to adjust the bolts to "fit" w/ the car. (Think of a rather LONG oval shape, as opposed to an exact circle).

With a quality product, like Cusco or JIC, the bolt holes are exact. There is no room for "excessive freeplay".

I was so disgusted at seeing my best friend w/ a cheap strut bar, that I gave him my Cusco bars when I sold my car. It only took him a few hours to decide to put the Cusco bars on his car. Gee....I wonder why?

To say which bar would be the best, it would be hard to say. There are a number of factors involved. What qualities are you looking for in a "ideal" bar? Quality of materials? Metal vs. carbon fiber? Weight? Price?

 

I agree with the eBay point. You stuff cheap, you get cheap stuff. But CorkSport items are not cheap in quality, just in price. I got their catback and for half the price you get 100% of the quality of a big name part. From what I hear, the rest of the stuff they offer with their name on it is also top notch in quality. Plus their place is just 2.5 hours away in Portland. The next time I'm in Portland I'll drop by to see their place.

Here is the link again - CorkSport This time, click on it.

I don't get the big deal about using carbon fiber bars. They cost a lot and only are about a pound lighter. Carbon fiber is tough to beat with it's outstanding tensile strength. Too bad, as far as I can tell, strut tower bars don't encounter too much tension stress. With carbon fiber bars it seems the epoxy that makes them stiff is what is at work on them, not the carbon fiber. I might be way off base here, but that's just what it seems to be like for me.

 

I use Cusco front and rear tower bars on my 88 TII and they fit just great and work just fine. No clearence problems even with an FD alternator. I also use a Cusco lower arm bar that seems to help flex.

 

I got my "eBay" special today in the mail. It's apparently made by ASpec Products. It fit perfectly, and there were no rubbing problems with the alternator or alt bracket like I'd heard some people had.

So far, I'm happy. For $43, if it goes to crap, at least learning the hard way wasn't that expensive.

For the rear, I'm probably going to go with Cork Sport, and for the lower arm bar Mazdaspeed, from Cork Sport. I know these pieces should be fine.