I'm looking to get a strut bar or sway bar next. What do you guys recommend getting and which brand?

 

Strut bars are offered by all and not much feedback on any particular one so I guess they all work.

As for Sway bars the only one I've heard of and personally experienced is the TRD. It's a really upgrade to the Scion and for the price it's definitely worth it.

 

the JIC is a must have for a strut bar!! And as far as sway bars, I didn't know trd had some available, I am using the Hotchkis swaybars for the front and the rear. They feel great and my box never sways at all, but they are a _____ to install. The strut bar is fairly easy to install though. Hope this helps! :D

 

How are the DC strut bars. I'm considering them because they are inexpensive.

 

I haven't heard anything about a TRD rear sway bar either, there's a TRD rear member brace.

Hotchkis and Whiteline (Aussie company) make rear sways for the echo, if the mounting is the same, the Whiteline should work (it's pretty nice too, a nice powder coat silver).

You guys should look into the echo TRD strut bar, it bolts into the firewall and probably offers a little more stability than the 2 point scion model. Of course, there might be engine bay complications.

 

Just get BOTH! or then again put a full roll cage in the box!

 

In all honesty--strut tower bars do almost nothing to enchance handling--they do minorly make the chassis a tad bit more rigid, but that's about it. Most of the feeling is psychological.

Sway bars however play THE biggest role in changing how your suspension feels--even more so than actually lowering the car with springs/coilovers.

I would definately go with sway bars first, then if you feel that the chassis is not stiff enough, you can go with the inexpensive strut bars.

 

I just installed the Hotchkis Sway bars and noticed a huge difference. I have been thinking about a strut bar, which I think I will order a red hotchkis one, but mainly I think it will be for looks rather then function.

It is true the sways will do more then the strut bar will.

Jason

 

how hard was your install? or did you have someone else install it. I am using the JIC strut bar and it feels great, as i grab the trd strut bar it flexs and the JIC feels like a part of the frame

 

Where's the cheapest place online to get the hotchkis sway?

 

I have the DC Sports strut brace. It's a very well made piece.As far as looks..........It's kick a$$. But I didn't notice any real gains in cornering performance. But I still love the damn thing :D

 

Only when you have a suspension that really works well will you be able to realize the benefits of the strut tower bar. The shocks are really the biggest single adjustment to any suspension. They are what conrols the ride, the contact patch of the tire , the amount of travel, and also the way the car behaves in both high speed and low speed situations. Adj shock are invaluable if you want to go fast , when the shocks no longer have the ability to control the roll of the box is when the sway bars take over. Try to find adj end links if you can..(for the sway bars). so ...... get the sway bars first....

 

Are there any technical downsides of getting these thicker sway bars? ie. Is there a greater possiblity of an abrupt loss of grip rather than a gradual push? I'm thinking about getting sway bars but want to keep the handling as predictable as possible... you know, I want to keep my box right side up. :D

 

The only comprehensible downside to having larger swaybars on a front wheel drive car, is if you go with too large of a bar in the rear, and no or not a large enough one up front.

This won't cause any damage, and some autox and roadrace people actually love doing it--this creates more oversteer, which can be a good thing in most cases, but for street driving a dangerous thing can occur called "snap oversteer", in which the car becomes semi uncontrallable in a sticky situation...which is why for normal street driving, understeer is usually prefered when it comes to safety.

The Hotchkis bars are available as a tuned set, as to not compromise the steering characteristics...they should remain streetable as well as enchance cornering when needed!

Jackmott on this forum looks to be an avid autox participant--you should really ask him about this stuff, i'm just a poor college kid who can't afford lunch, let alone going to autox events.

 

we are having a very similar conversation about this in the topic auto x set up. If you were to use an adjustable rear bar you can keep the antics on the street very predictable while allowing your self the ability to "free" the car up should you ever choose to auto x .

 

thanks for the info.
Hotchkis sounds good then... now if only I can find someone to help with the wrenching! I hear the front can be difficult for just one pair of hands.

 

Is there something I should get before sway bars or can that be my first mod? Do I need sway bars if I haven't done anything else yet?

Also, went for my free oil change yesterday. The sign on the parts shop said "TRD products sold here" so I went and asked the guy what they offered for the xB. He told me TRD doesn't make parts for the xB. Can someone explain this to me? I told him I heard about all sorts of parts and I didn't really understand his answer.

 

where do you recommended buying such bars? Ive look at the scion life store, and they seem a little over-priced (*no offense!)? Any store or website recommendations?

 

Try trdsource.com

 

Also... you can go to trdusa.com and look up all the parts available. write down the part number of the item you like..... call your dealer and just ask them to "look a part number up for you". If you have the number , the part will show up! The dealership i work at is very excited about the scion cars , and I have noticed that my parts dept has been keeping up with the parts available for the xb in particular.