Front upper strut brace

[doj]

Hi... Interested in getting a front upper strut brace for my 1.2 Clio.
Dont know a lot about them apart from the improve handling.
Be grateful if someone could point me in the rite direction on good makes.. do they have diff weights and do they all fit in the same way. Also is there anything else i should consider when i have one of these fitted.
Not sure if i want yellow, red or chrome
Thanks for your time
doj

 

[pgarner]

the stiffen up the front end by bolting onto the turrets. if you dont have bolts there then you will need to drill though the bodywork.

make doesnt really matter unless its cost.

another idea if your wanting to improve handleing would be to look at anti roll bars on the rear,
if ive read it correctly then by stiffening up the front you may make the car more understeer

 

[pikey motorsports]

correct, front = understeer, rear = oversteer.

Answer.... DO BOTH!

 

[dpsubaru]

pg: bolted to the turrets? the scoobys are bolted straight onto the top of the suspension mounts, think bolting to the turret directly without fastening the top of the suspension would not have much effect (if you turrets (which are integral part of the car) are flexing then think your screwed!)

 

[pikey motorsports]

(if you turrets (which are integral part of the car) are flexing then think your screwed!)


the entire car flexes, hence the need for strut braces in the first place.

different cars bolt to different things. i have seen them mounted directly to suspension.
To suspension mounting points and also between the turrets.

 

[dpsubaru]

yes, sorry, was being a bit thick on this.
\
But if the strut brace is secured to the top of the suspension mounts surely it is more effect at its job than been actually secured to the body of the car as the suspension has more sideways flex in any case?

 

[pikey motorsports]

The suspension is supposed to flex, the idea behind a strut brace is that you effectively tie both sides together to prevent body roll.

 

[HDi fun]

The strut brace is not to prevent body roll. It's to prevent body flex.

Anti roll bars are there to reduce body roll. AR bars are crude as all they effectively do is make an independent suspension setup not totally independent. If the Ar bar is too stiff then the wheels spend more time without being in full contact with the road.

 

[pikey motorsports]

good point well presented.... my bad

 

[MasterAuron]

But if the strut brace is secured to the top of the suspension mounts surely it is more effect at its job than been actually secured to the body of the car as the suspension has more sideways flex in any case?

Yes I suppose so only just but only because the turrets are usually so thin and flexible. Many rally cars and track cars have another plate welded over the top of the original turrets to strenghten them and stop the whole suspension strut moving when the turrets flex. Like in this picture:

http://www.prepfab.co.uk/Preparation/images/grp4top_jpg.jpg

But since the suspension struts are bolted to the turrets anyway, I suppose the difference is negligable.

 

[old-git]

I am not convinced that strut braces are any more than a fashion item on road cars, like wings and spoilers are.

There is so much complience and compromise in the modern suspension set up that adding a strut brace will make no noticable difference to the handling of a car being driven legally on the highway. You MAY notice a difference on a track but, unless you have improved the suspension set up as well, I doubt it.
.
.
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IMO

 

[MasterAuron]

I think you're partly right, but I think it also depends on how cr*p the chassis is to begin with!

 

[speedy]

adding a front strut brace does make a diffrance even if its very small. it is designed to stop the turrets from flexing therefor puting less stress on the suspension conponents. a strut bace is also used for making the car that little bit stronger from cornering forces.

 

[HDi fun]

If the chassis is well designed and stiff anyway then the brace will make little difference. I suspect that fitting one to my Primera P11 would have made no difference at all. Possibly not much difference to my 406 - they were well regarded in the chassis dept.

However, tka emy 86 Montego and I imagine it would have been like a different car.

Chassis stiffness also contributes to ride comfort massively. Low frequency vibrations can really upset the serenity of a well set up but relatively flexible car when driven on bad roads.

 

[turbonutter69]

Tbh Hdi I think a strut brace would of made a difference to the Primera if it was used mainly on a track. But for normal public roads I don't think you'd be able to push it enough to make a difference.

 

[HDi fun]

Yes - track usage loads up the suspension far harder than road use.

With you, TN69, of course, being the possible exception.

 

[turbonutter69]

Yes - track usage loads up the suspension far harder than road use.

With you, TN69, of course, being the possible exception.

TBH with the way I drove the Primera I probably would of noticed the difference.

 

[HDi fun]

TBH with the way I drove the Primera I probably would of noticed the difference.

That's what I was getting at.

Ladies and Gentlemen; TN69 has the dubious honour of being being only man who has ever managed to snap BOTH front halfshafts on a 2.0 Primera.

Trust me, that is some feat, those cars are extremely durable.

 

[turbonutter69]

Within 3 months of each other too I'll have you know.

 

[HDi fun]

If you really worked at it you might just be able to break both simulatenously. If you're planning on reheasing this let me know and I'll go and buy some shares in Goodyear Europe and Valeo Friction systems.

 

[turbonutter69]

 

[pgarner]

How were the replacement shafts ? mates buggered one of his and was quoted around £120 for one.
he is an ex rally driver so im surprised they lasted this long

 

[turbonutter69]

Well the first time I did it I got a second hand shaft for about £70 and it was fine. When I snapped the other side I bought a new one for about the same you quoted and that was fine too. I gave it some stick after replacing both and was all good.