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Post by Rickster on Sept 12, 2016 12:41:26 GMT
I wonder if you could get frame rails, butterfly, front and rear upper and lower subframe/suspension braces, wing braces, roll bar and one more that ran down the sills and linked front and rear subframes and the frame rails altogether you could replace all the panels with plastic and never worry about rust ever again!!? Some one is going to tell me that this is already been done now! None of the panels that can be easily replaced are structural though so you could replace with plastic anyway  yup the wings etc but thats what i meant by a brace that runs from front to back down the sills, then the moth-eaten old sills can be rust free! I think basically i am designing a kit car! |
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Post by V6 on Sept 12, 2016 12:42:46 GMT
The Cusco front to rear door bars were hardly intrusive at all. But as some say they may not work with a glass rear window. Door bars shouldn't be anywhere near the rear glass window lol. They might be once I've been near a track  |
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Post by V6 on Oct 7, 2016 14:09:41 GMT
Can you guys please help me write a wish list of chassis braces for ALL areas on my car? There are so many options. Which items offer very decent build quality without going totally daft on prices? Please put them in the order of importance and I will start buying items from the top of the list, when I can afford to do so. Thanks all!!  |
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Post by Horney on Oct 7, 2016 14:21:52 GMT
I wouldn't bother really. I've sen no real hard data to back any of them up. The only ones I would be comfortable recommending from an informed position is door bars like the ones Vindi (Russell) is producing. The door openings are the biggest weak point on any rag top car. After that I think the rest are blingy editions that add very little to the chassis stiffness. It's also worth noting the Mx5 was set up from factory to cope with it's own chassis short comings. An ultra stiff chassis and suspension set up will be brilliant on track and bone rattlingly dreadful on a British B road. Don't make the mistake many people (and I include myself in this) make of thinking stiffer is better. I will guarantee my old VR Ltd on Gaz dampers set to soft would be quicker point to point on a twisty B road than my supercharged car because the supercharged one is so stiff it tries to dart off everywhere nd you loose grip over the bumps as the suspension can't cope with them. Put simply to go fast you want all the wheels touching the ground all the time. Super stiff suspension and chassis means in a bumpy road the car just can't do this. On a billiard table smooth race circuit it can. An interesting point to add to this. The current Civic TypeR has adjustable dampers and engine modes etc. In RACE mode everything is super stiff and super sharp. In RING mode it's super sharp but it drops the dampers down to comfort. Why? Because the ring is bumpy as Canoe. |
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Post by V6 on Oct 7, 2016 14:35:55 GMT
Thanks Horney, I totally agree with you when it comes to dampers. Not that I have anything like your experience. But I have had a play and I soon discovered that my car is slower when it is either set up too hard, or too low. My car is definitely quicker when it is set up to be more compliant over bumps. So I have sensible ride height and softer springs and settings.
But sometimes I feel the chassis does flex a bit. It must do, as my dash rattles like canoe sometimes over poor choppy roads. So I wish to sort this out! I fully accept that door bars are top of the list as your previous explanations described this well. But I thought more products will help as well?
So far the only thing on my list of possibilities are the roll bar and possible door bars by:
- GC fabrications
- TR lane GPV
...not that I have researched them or anything else yet! Other product ideas most welcome!
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Post by V6 on Oct 7, 2016 19:31:38 GMT
I've just been looking at the door bars. The TRL bars stop short, while the GC extend way further forward. Therefore I expect the GC set up to be stiffer. So based on nothing more than looks I think GC looks good.
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Post by Vindi (Russell) on Oct 7, 2016 23:01:27 GMT
Just a heads up, I'm doing a group buy on my door bars, they are an original design, and attach pillar to pillar so will work better than most designs out there. Any questions, ask away!
Russell
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titch
Chats A Bit
Posts: 149 
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Post by titch on Oct 8, 2016 2:44:25 GMT
I had a roll bar, hardtop and frame rails...
The frame rails made the most notable difference IMO, got rid of a lot of scuttle shake on the road over bumps. Naff all difference for handling, but massively reduced shake and shudder over bumps.
I noticed bugger all difference with a roll bar tbh, although a hardtop also made a massive difference in reducing shake and shudder too.
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Post by V6 on Oct 8, 2016 10:03:57 GMT
Well it makes sense that the door bars (which go the full length) and frame rails must add some strength to the chassis. It is the other parts which I have no idea on. I guess most of them may add some side to side stiffness, but does it need it? Back to front would seem to be the real issue.
Edit:
Can you mix and match door bars with another companies roll bars? I have never looked to see how they all fit in. Do the bars bolt to the chassis or to the rear roll bar vertical tubes?
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Post by V6 on Oct 8, 2016 10:07:24 GMT
Just a heads up, I'm doing a group buy on my door bars, they are an original design, and attach pillar to pillar so will work better than most designs out there. Any questions, ask away! Russell Sounds interesting. I want something which is going to make the biggest improvement possible. Even if that means having to climb over a bar. Some of the ones which stop short must be limiting their effectiveness. |
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Post by superdan on Oct 11, 2016 20:49:35 GMT
Just a heads up, I'm doing a group buy on my door bars, they are an original design, and attach pillar to pillar so will work better than most designs out there. Any questions, ask away! Russell Have you a link to more info, pics and cost? |
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Post by Horney on Oct 11, 2016 21:03:09 GMT
Check the group buy section of the forum.
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Post by myothercarsa2cv on Oct 12, 2016 9:41:23 GMT
On the subject of braces, is there anything better than OEM to replace the rear chassis braces between tub and subframe? These ones:  |
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Post by Vindi (Russell) on Oct 13, 2016 8:24:36 GMT
On the subject of braces, is there anything better than OEM to replace the rear chassis braces between tub and subframe? Auto exe make some nice ones, the OEM ones are very thin but do the job fine Russell |
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Post by myothercarsa2cv on Oct 13, 2016 9:14:52 GMT
Oof not cheap are they! I think cleaning these up and painting them will suffice then |
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le sigh
Jul 15, 2023 20:03:52 GMT
le sigh
Jul 15, 2023 20:03:52 GMT