I have an 82 rx-7 12A and I was wondering out of the triangular strut bar and the regular straight across strut bar, which is better for handling and if there are any drawbacks like understeer for each of them


Thanks for reading and any input would be great

 

The stiff you can make the front end the better the car will handle. The thing to consider is when working on the car, will you have access or will you be fighting trying to get in there and change your parts?

Also look at getting a 1-1/8" front sway bar.


John

 

The triangular bar ties the strut towers to the firewall making it even more stiff than just the straight bar across.

 

Either one will help. The triangular bar would be stiffer, but the key to handling depends on if you have tuned your suspension for it. The suspension will do more of the "work" with the triangular brace than a straight bar. But if you leave everything else stock, you may experience more harshness and that sort of thing. Adding urethane bushings, adjustable shocks and new springs will help get the benefit of the triangular brace.

 

I have yet to talk to anybody who can honestly notice the difference a strut tower bar makes in an FB, but they can't hurt, and they look cool. I have one. Since my car's so low, it makes a nice handrest while I'm working on the engine.

 

haha i just thought of somthing after u posted that.......if u attached a cup holder to it that would be very nice for when u working on the engine...plus no water marks on the paint

 

I seem to be posting this picture a lot here between questions about Cold Air and Ram Air intakes and Strut Bar installation, but here it is again:


This is the Racing Beat triangulated brace which includes the forged aluminum 'risers' that go over the strut mounts, themselves. This is a very sturdy brace which also mounts to the firewall using the hood latch bolts (4x12mm). I chose this bar based on previous past experience with the high quality of RB products - they are true bolt-on installation, and my time and effort is worth a lot to me.

The decision to add a strut brace was made AFTER installation of Koni front and rear stabilizer bars (1-1/8" front, adjustable 3/4" rear), Tokico blues all around, and polyurethanbe bushings all over, including front radius arms, stab bar mounts, etc. The lower control arm bushings were left as rubber to retain ride quality, however. As soon as I installed the brace, within 50 miles of driving, my right front strut mount pillow gave out, forcing the shock rod out through the mount and up into the underside of the hood - leaving a pretty hefty dent.

To say that the brace increases stiffness is certain - you can feel it, and it's pretty evident that the failure of the upper strut mount was 1) age, and 2) additional force on it due to the strut brace. After installation of new mounts on both sides, the car is now very stiff when driving and much more predictable in steering on all road surfaces.

I would only recommend strut bar installation AFTER you've done whatever suspension mods or upgrades you plan to do. It does increase the hassle of working on certain engine components, however - the brake fluid reservoir is no longer a straight shot. Look closely at my picture and you'll see my solution. HTH,

 

If you have any kind of fabrication skills you should be able to make something as simple as a strut tower brace. But my opinion is you should not waste your time unless you are going to tie it into the firewall.

There is a reason that bridges are made with all those little triangles. Eiffel figured that out 125 years ago when he built that "temporary stucture" for the world's fair in Paris!

I can certainly feel the additional stiffness from my strut brace. See the photo on the first page of this site:

http://www.cardomain.com/memberpage/646433

 

I noticed a difference when i put my strut tower bar on. My front end seems to stick to the ground more, and it didnt tweak and make my front slide during hard cornering