strut bar installation

[WERD]

some people told me it was important to lift the car but installing and others said as long as its on level ground it wouldnt be an issue. anyone have any opinion on this?

[twokexlv6coupe]

nope, dont gotta raise the car at all.
the people you "heard" that from are prolly thinking of sway bars.

[CHILLZ_VTEC]

i heard "you should", but dont really have to. when you lift the car, the struts become "loose", if that makes sense....so when you install the bar, and lower the car back to the ground, the strutbar has tension on the struts already...but be careful not to tighten the bar too much, and adjust it accordingly...i dont have one yet, so this is what i read....

[mizlude]

The reason you lift a car up when you put on strut bars is because when the car is on the ground the car is already flexed inward and you want them a the most outward postion you can have them at i.e the car lifted off the ground. So what you "heard" was right.

[Brash22]

The reason you don't lift the car up is that when the car is sitting on a flat piece of ground (ie a driveway) the strut towers sit as they will when the car is being driven. Ideally you would weigh the car down in the way you drive it most of the time (like yourself, your gf/bf (circle appropriate answer) tool box, the stuff that's in the car most of the time you drive) and carry out all the suspension setup like that, since that's the way the car gets driven.

Having the struts at the most outward position possible can result in undue stress on the bar. So what you "heard" was wrong.

I'm not sure it would be a huge issue on a 5g, since the design of the strut tower means that it doesn't matter what angle you have the strut the camber of the wheels doesn't change, but on MacPhearson strut front ends, it results in positive camber in the front end. Now that's not good.

[edge2lyfe]

My strut bar fit perfectly with the car on level ground. Raising it might have made it harder for the brackets to line up, so conclusion would be you don't need to raise it.

[mizlude]

The reason you don't lift the car up is that when the car is sitting on a flat piece of ground (ie a driveway) the strut towers sit as they will when the car is being driven. Ideally you would weigh the car down in the way you drive it most of the time (like yourself, your gf/bf (circle appropriate answer) tool box, the stuff that's in the car most of the time you drive) and carry out all the suspension setup like that, since that's the way the car gets driven.

Having the struts at the most outward position possible can result in undue stress on the bar. So what you "heard" was wrong.

I'm not sure it would be a huge issue on a 5g, since the design of the strut tower means that it doesn't matter what angle you have the strut the camber of the wheels doesn't change, but on MacPhearson strut front ends, it results in positive camber in the front end. Now that's not good.

It wrong really then why do most strut bar Co. say to do it that way?

this is off the Tanabe web site....
A very common error when installing tower bars, It is always recommended to raise the vehicle when installing so that the load of the shock uppermounts on the shock towers is relieved and balanced out. When raised, and the tower bar is placed onto the vehicle, the preload can be adjusted and set. After it is bolted on and the car is lowered, each shock tower will have equal load and will prevent independent movements of each shock. This will provide an extremely noticeable difference after installing. If a tower bar is installed on a car that is not raised, great benefits will be missed.

Like I said raise the car.

[Brash22]

The install instructions for my Neuspeed said park the vehicle on flat level ground.

[mizlude]

The install instructions for my Neuspeed said park the vehicle on flat level ground.

they don't have a preload adjustment.

[edge2lyfe]

they don't have a preload adjustment.

Ah...good point. I forgot that some strut bars have the threaded ends.

[Brash22]

they don't have a preload adjustment.

**Reserving space for smart arse response yet to be thought of**



With the preload adjustment in the Cusco, Spoon etc bars, what exactly are we adjusting? That's something that I've never really understood.

[thomas97]

i have a question, if you have a bar that requiers you to take all three nuts off, wont something bad happen like the tower fall down? i guess im confused as to hwo to do it, will i be in danger if i take all thee off?

[mizlude]

**Reserving space for smart arse response yet to be thought of**



With the preload adjustment in the Cusco, Spoon etc bars, what exactly are we adjusting? That's something that I've never really understood.

Ha ha funny Brash.

preload is the amount of pressure that is put on the shock tower before they can flex. That would be my guess, or think of it like shocks them selfs and you know what preload is on a shock I would think.

[Mdtdnb]

i have a question, if you have a bar that requiers you to take all three nuts off, wont something bad happen like the tower fall down? i guess im confused as to hwo to do it, will i be in danger if i take all thee off?

The strut is "pressure fitted" into the frame of the car. in fact, the bolts holding it on really just keep it from sliding around. As long as your suspension is mostly in tact, that thing won't even budge, regardless of if it is lifted or not. Strut bars are one of the easiest parts to install.

The reason you don't lift the car up is that when the car is sitting on a flat piece of ground (ie a driveway) the strut towers sit as they will when the car is being driven. Ideally you would weigh the car down in the way you drive it most of the time (like yourself, your gf/bf (circle appropriate answer) tool box, the stuff that's in the car most of the time you drive) and carry out all the suspension setup like that, since that's the way the car gets driven.

Having the struts at the most outward position possible can result in undue stress on the bar. So what you "heard" was wrong.

I'm not sure it would be a huge issue on a 5g, since the design of the strut tower means that it doesn't matter what angle you have the strut the camber of the wheels doesn't change, but on MacPhearson strut front ends, it results in positive camber in the front end. Now that's not good.

they don't have a preload adjustment.

This is very interesting to me...i don't know which of you is right. It SEEMS like if you install the bar with the car lifted, it could actually cause a flexing or bowing type of pressure on the struts as well as cause pos camber. On the other hand, i am unfamiliar with preload adjustment (and how to tell if my strut bar has it) and it could be that all it does is increase the tension without any negative stress on the rest of the suspension. I would like to hear more about this...

[Prelude13]

This should explain some:
http://www.worksperformance.com/html/tpl_desc.html





quote, "100,000 g stacks pushing bullet proof E-class."

[mizlude]

The strut is "pressure fitted" into the frame of the car. in fact, the bolts holding it on really just keep it from sliding around. As long as your suspension is mostly in tact, that thing won't even budge, regardless of if it is lifted or not. Strut bars are one of the easiest parts to install.





This is very interesting to me...i don't know which of you is right. It SEEMS like if you install the bar with the car lifted, it could actually cause a flexing or bowing type of pressure on the struts as well as cause pos camber. On the other hand, i am unfamiliar with preload adjustment (and how to tell if my strut bar has it) and it could be that all it does is increase the tension without any negative stress on the rest of the suspension. I would like to hear more about this...

Go look at the Tanabe web site that will tell you. Also think of it this way you dont want inward flex of the towers and when you lift if the strut towers go neutral ( from what tanabe says along with other web sites )

I bet this thread goes on and on and Ill still stay with lift the car.

[Mdtdnb]

I'm not saying one way or another b/c honestly I dont know, i am just speaking how i see it in my head. this is an interesting thread though b/c it's breaking down a very simple upgrade and all of a sudden everyone gives their analysis and then we all learn stuff.

[WERD]

Haha yo all of this would have been ill when i was actually doing the install, but it's still always good to learn something new i guess.

[thomas97]

jesse told me to lift,
i figure ill go for it and keep an eye on it.

btw, thanks for the info mtd.

[Honda4Life]

It wrong really then why do most strut bar Co. say to do it that way?

this is off the Tanabe web site....
A very common error when installing tower bars, It is always recommended to raise the vehicle when installing so that the load of the shock uppermounts on the shock towers is relieved and balanced out. When raised, and the tower bar is placed onto the vehicle, the preload can be adjusted and set. After it is bolted on and the car is lowered, each shock tower will have equal load and will prevent independent movements of each shock. This will provide an extremely noticeable difference after installing. If a tower bar is installed on a car that is not raised, great benefits will be missed.

Like I said raise the car.

I have always had the understanding to raise the car also.

There was a thread on a site recently, guy couldn't get his Neuspeed Ft upper straut brace on. Once side was off by like a half inch. He posted on a site.

Was told to rasie the car. He then did and it went right on with out problem.

With the car on the ground the weight of the car sitting on the wheels is being transferred the to the strut tower's where they mount causing them to be pushed together. By raising the car it takes off that tension. Then put the bar on.

Nice one being the only one to point out the facts. Rep. for you.

Mike (H4L)

[InvaderTrax]

Strut bars don't make a whole lot of difference in our cars anyway. Doesn't mean I don't have one, but they're not particularly useful in any car with a double wishbone setup. Not like a car with a MacPhearson front suspension (like 01+ Civics, 240SX's, and plenty of other cars)