I have some concerns with the hotchkis kit. my first concern is why would you replace the front sway bar that is exactly the same size as the stock bar but the hotchkis is hollow which means it is weaker than stock. I think the endlinks are the only thing that needs to be changed to polyurathane. 2. My second big concern is a hollow rear sway bar that has a small diameter even though it is an addon bar it seems to me it would be more prone to breaking. I know local machine shops can fabricate and weld on a one inch around cold rolled solid steel bar for about 50 dollars. This seems to be the strongest way to go with rear sways and the cheapest I love mine. and my third concern is why are the springs offered not cold rolled. I have read of numerous sagging failures and bouncy rides. I am just wondering if this kit is a wise choice for people who are into handling. The one thing I will say positive for hotchkis is there upper strut tower brace is extremely well made and far surpasses any of the others I have seen thus far in quality and workmanship. I am not bashing hotchkis so don't flame me I just have some valid concerns I thought I would ask about.

 

Forget the Hotchkiss kit and get the springs you want and the Progress,Whiteline or TRD rear bar. Then if want a smoother ride also pick up a couple Monroe rear shocks for a 2002 Echo.

 

i have hotchkis full TVS setup, all of the bars are solid, and the handling is far greater than and xb i have ever driven. People who drive my car can't believe how great it handles. The car is tight, the only thing i can say is that the ride is not that great...but i am getting some new shocks and shruts so hopefully it will be better.

 

The Hotchkis front bar is a larger diameter than stock and I assume it is hollow to
reduce weight (about half) I certainly see an improvement. I think a one inch diameter solid
bar will be excessively heavy. The hotchkis rear bar is only supplemental to the
existing torsion frame. Thats the same for all the other brands as well. None are
true rear sway bars. I believe we have the wrong suspension for that.

Myself and one other car in Scinergy Georgia have both front and rear Hotchkis
bars. Ours cars handle incredibly well. Mine is on S-tech's and the other is on
Tein basics.

 

Yes, The Hotchkiss bars have been discussed in length and they are hollow.

 

thanks guys I thin you covered all my questions I appreciate it.

 

While I wouldn't personally purchase any of the Hotchkis parts for the xB, I think they are a great company. And they have a great track record with the products they make. One of the big misconceptions is that their hollow bars are weaker than solid bars. This is not the case. The hollow bars actually resist the torsion (twisting) loads better than solid bars. They also have the added advantage of being lighter than a smaller solid bar in most cases.

Take a look at this...

http://www.hotchkistuning.com/bin/Mi...SwayTech-D.pdf

Yes, I know it comes from Hotchkis, but it doesn't make it any less valid.

 

your point is well taken Rton20s and I like some of their parts I love their strut tower brace. but for a scion I think your right. For my WRX I snap hollow bars like twigs of course the car is in the 400hp range I wish I had a more accurate reading but it's hard to find a 4 wheel dyno. I wen twith whiteline on that car. I don't think a scion will snap one of their bars. I did go with solid though for sway it was cheaper to have it fabricated and welded plus I learned alot in the process from an SCCA champ just like I learned something from you today thanks my respect goes out