I would like to upgrade the handling of my 09 xB, but I need to keep the ride height pretty much stock, I travel many back roads. I also want it to still ride fairly reasonable. I'm guessing the TRD rear sway bar would help, but is it worth the extra money to get the Hotchkiss front and rear set instead? Will the TRD shocks make the ride very stiff? Is a strut tower brace worth while? Will the car still ride decent with 18" or 19" rims? I am willing to put up with a fairly firm ride, but I drive this car every day over 150 miles, and want at least a little comfort, but would enjoy decent handling also. Can anyone recommend a good exhaust system that is not too loud? Thanks in advance for any help that can be offered.

 

Back roads, huh? Sure you want to do 18's or 19's?

IMO, I'd go with the Tanabe NF210's and go from there. If you like the way the NF's handle, and you feel that they're suffecient, then you're set! If you want some more handling goodness, hop to the Hotchkis sways. I'd do some 17's with more beef than some 18's with decent beef or 19's with teeny beef.
A strut brace probably won't effect ride (I actually highly doubt it will) and from what I've read, the handling difference is marginal.

Just go one by one until you like how it handles. I have the Hotchkis TVS (springs and sways) and I'm pretty low and I really like the way it handles and rides. Granted, I wish it handled like a modified 350Z, but that's not going to happen.

 

you'd probably have to do some research on some shocks that are rated for stock height and just change those. I'd imagine the stock springs would hold fine plus youll want a bit more comfort.

You'll probably want some 18's setup to grip the road a bit better. 17's if you really are concerned about driving but because that wasn't an option I didn't recommend it.

I would pass on the strut tower since you won't even tell if its there. Most people who think they feel a difference are more psyched by the new mod then actually being in tuned to the driving characteristics. You may want to look into under bracing.

 

so are you saying its better just get the under brace instead of the strut bar? i'm still debating should i get both or either one of them will work fine coz i still have my hotckis sway siting around and i'm still waiting to see what other springs and shocks going to be available of course i'll prefer the cusco coilover setup that you have. do you know when is it going to come out?

 

OK, here goes...

#1. Like severedvegan said, get the NF210 springs; they offer the best ride for a mild drop (1"F/1.7"R) and are FAR better than the stock springs. The NF's both handle & ride better than stock.

#2. A couple of tire & wheel choices. 17x7 wheels as close to +45 offset as possible with 215/55-17 tires. These will give you a tiny bit more sidewall than the stock 16's, and you'll get back 3/4" of the ground clearance you lost from the spring drop, but won't handle any better. The other choice (which I favor for looks and handling) would be 18x7.5 wheels as close to +45 offset as possible with 225/45-18 tires. These will give you a little less sidewall than the stock 16's, and you'll get back 1/2" of the ground clearance lost by the NF springs. They will also handle significantly better than the 17" set-up at the cost of a small amount of ride comfort.

#3. It's hard to beat the Hotchkis sways (front & back) for handling, but I would only consider their $280 investment worthwhile if you go with the 18" tire & wheel combo. Regardless of 17's or 18's, if you're not willing to spend the $$ for Hotchkis, then I would definitely recommend the TRD rear sway bar as a lower cost benefit to handling.

#4. As already stated above, a strut tie bar will only have a noticeable difference if you drive really hard (which few do in the xB) and have a tire/wheel/sway bar set-up that promotes very aggressive driving. I would consider it the last of the above mentioned handling mods.

#5. Due to the very restrictive "scuba tank" cat/resonator, none of the after-market axle-back exhaust systems are very loud. Heck the Borla single & dual exhaust axle-backs don't even have mufflers.

Hope that helps.

BTW vegan, did your cat give birth? I see you're giving away free kittens...