Looking forward to pictures and opinions.

 

How did you get the tower bar already? I just looked this morning and it still shows as a stop sale from Toyota on the Strut Bar?

 

This is where I got it from...

http://www.trdsparks.com/displaypart...&parts_id=3877

 

I just finished installing the springs and the tower bar...but it's raining and it is dark out...oh well, I got to wait for the morning.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by vickat

Tower bars make difference in most cars.

I would say to all cars...

Quote:

Originally Posted by vickat

However, TC2 as-sold has 2 brackets, each bolted to strut tower and cowl (just like in Mazda3). That already helps to increase body rigidity and make turns sharper.

They do not mount to the cowl, they only hold up the drip pan/tray under the windshield. They are not there to stiffen the chassis, but to hold up the drip pan.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vickat

I doubt that removing these brackets and installing bar would make much of a difference.

There is a significant difference in construction between those drip pan brackets and the tower bar.

 

Here are some shots of the TRD Tower Bar...

 

looks nice, was wondering if it would cause ony clearence issues with an intake. since it looks kinda low and forward.

 

I don’t think that there would be any issues with a CAI or an SRI…I’m a little concerned because I’ve just ordered the Descendant CF Engine cover and think that it might be tight installing it.

 

if in doubt of specific mod, ask somebody who has done it already, and that's what I's doing. some cars show no improvement from bar,
good example are Imprezas, where tower brace adds nothing to performance, as towers are very inflexible to begin with.

still, have you seen tangible steering improvement from having addedd TRD strut tower bar? what was it like?

thanks, Vickat

 

I've done two mods at the same time...so, that is NOT the way to make good evaluations. You've got to make one change and then evaluate that change. Since the tower bar and the springs require a duplication of work (up front only…but that is the major part of the work), I did it all at once. The springs lowered the car 1" (I measured before and after from the garage floor to the chassis) and these two mods transformed the car. It's like a completely different car…handles so much more precisely. Now I can’t wait for the sway bars to be released.

 

Looks good. Thanks for posting pictures.

 

many a thank. I'll go for the bar, for starters - Vickat

 

When we measured, we used the centre line of each of the fenders to record a 1.18" drop both front and rear. I'm not disagreeing with your results, simply providing an alternative measurement for people to use.

 

That's some tape measure you've got there...to 0.01"!

 

Well, it measured just shy of 1 3/16"...

3/16 = 0.1875...

round to 0.18"... (because it wasn't quite 3/16")

total drop of 1.18"

 

Interested to see how it fits when it arrives! Let me know if I can provide any measurements of mine to help before yours arrives!

 

looks good! i want one!!!! lol

 

I like it!

 

Man was it ever tight! I had to remove the nuts for the front tower brace to install the CF engine cover…my suspicions were correct. There are bumps in the back that just clear the brace. Engine vibration is probably enough to bang the two parts together. Two paper towels thick drags and three will not pass at all.

 

Got strut tower bar from TRDSparks (thanks for the tip!) installed in my Gen2 TC.
first impression being that car feels better composed on bumpy roads (less body flex?).
steering felt a bit livelier, too, but still not as it did in my dear departed RSX.