GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I was browsing through Freedom Designs' website today and I noticed this:http://www.freedomdesign.com/Merchant2/ ... tbraces4On their own manufacturer website, they show the black original braces on the Matrix car they used to demo the product:I'm installing mine tonight after I get done polishing it. Thought I would just ask if this changes the mind of anyone (I have read all previous threads on this matter, so no need to point me in their direction )Now, is FD just doing it wrong, or as the majority of people here been wrong - and as was mentioned in an earlier thread, one is supposed to leave the stock braces on (as ptuning requested I believe)

hmm I didn't seems like bolts will break off but I am not super mechanic so me don't know lol

Mine are installed - pics going up in just a few minutes

well, I initially started with the stock braces in place under the FD STB. After much commenting in another post http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=4746 I decided to take them off. My honest opinion is that I didn't notice any difference. On further inspection the stock braces are only slightly bigger than the braces on the FD bar so I wasn't worried about the FD braces being too weak. I can't imagine any reason why leaving them on or off would make much of a difference. Anyone else?

I helped Celtic Curse install his bar... and we took them off.... the only difference the stock braces would have is to raise or lower the strut bar. Even if the FD braces were too weak leaving the stock braces on wouldn't help any. My question is did you lay the bar flat (with the freedom designs logo facing up) or did you make it vertical (with the freedom designs logo facing outwards). It made sense to me to lay it flat.... but in that picture the bar appears to be at a 45 degree angle (maybe that was for the picture).

quote:My question is did you lay the bar flat (with the freedom designs logo facing up) or did you make it vertical (with the freedom designs logo facing outwards). It made sense to me to lay it flat.... but in that picture the bar appears to be at a 45 degree angle (maybe that was for the picture).If I remember my bar is fairly vertical. The way I did it was to just keep adjusting until I got a nice tight fit between the two strut towers. If the bar isn't tight, you aren't stiffening the chassis. I think you should adjust for snug fit and first and worry about aesthetics later. My 2 cents.

...quote:....If I remember my bar is fairly vertical. The way I did it was to just keep adjusting until I got a nice tight fit between the two strut towers. If the bar isn't tight, you aren't stiffening the chassis. I think you should adjust for snug fit and first and worry about aesthetics later. My 2 cents....If you sketch out the front suspension and visualize a horizontal inward force at the bottom of the tire, representing the cornering load on say the left tire in a hard right turn, and a horizontal outward force along the control arm, representing the inertia of the vehicle, you'll see that the strut tower would deflect OUT. Not many people adjust their strut braces to pull the towers together though

quote:.......If I remember my bar is fairly vertical. The way I did it was to just keep adjusting until I got a nice tight fit between the two strut towers. If the bar isn't tight, you aren't stiffening the chassis. I think you should adjust for snug fit and first and worry about aesthetics later. My 2 cents....If you sketch out the front suspension and visualize a horizontal inward force at the bottom of the tire, representing the cornering load on say the left tire in a hard right turn, and a horizontal outward force along the control arm, representing the inertia of the vehicle, you'll see that the strut tower would deflect OUT. Not many people adjust their strut braces to pull the towers together thoughSo, in English: We should be tightening the STB inwards to bring the two sidewalls closer together?

QuoteEnd quote.That's my take. Anyone else have thoughts/information on this?

quote:QuoteEnd quote.That's my take. Anyone else have thoughts/information on this?My interpretation of this wasn't so much that I was trying to bring the sidewalls together, but that I wanted a stiff connection between the two sidewalls. As my STB came out of the box it was set way too wide. I adjusted it so that I had a nice snug fit. If the STB isn't "tight" between the towers then it isn't stiffening. It's sort of like having play in your steering. If the two towers aren't rigidly connected without any slop in the STB then you aren't really getting any benefit out of the STB.

quote:If the two towers are rigidly connected without any slop in the STB then you aren't really getting any benefit out of the STB.Don't ya mean "with any slop?"

quote:If the two towers are rigidly connected without any slop in the STB then you aren't really getting any benefit out of the STB.Don't ya mean "with any slop?" oops. should have been "if the two towers aren't" I'll fix it.

yea it holds the 2 struts together so its supposed to be a tight fit.