Sway bars w/o strut bars?

[Civicboy10]

Hey guys,
I've read that before you install sway bars, you should first at least install a strut tower bar to decrease the likelihood of chassis twist. Is this true? Is a strut bar, or any other braces necessary (or highly recommended) before installing sway bars?

 

[JohnS.]

No, not at all. Strut bars hardly do anything anyways. Some people will argue that statement (ie - saying the Neuspeed 4-point actually gave noticeable changes to driving) but for the most part, strut bars don't do all that much.

You'll be fine with a sway bar alone. But depending on how big you're going, you may want to consider a subframe reinforcement brace.

 

[TheWingMang]

A sway bar alone will do wonders. You don't need anything else. I used an Integra Type R sway bar (22mm) for half an autocross season. Eventually I started to notice the rear of the chassis feel a little weak on corners. I got an NRG solid rear strut tower bar, and it felt a lot more secure. So basically, you don't need a strut tower bar, but a solid one for the rear does actually help.

Oh btw, if you go with a sway bar bigger than about 13mm (which is what came stock on the Civic SI), you'll need some kind of reinforcement for the subframe. This doesn't need to be more than few blocks that go where the sway bar bolts to the subframe. Beaks sells a kit with the ITR sway bar, SI endlinks, and the reinforcement blocks. Thats what I got, and it works great.

http://www.beaksproducts.com/EK_Quick_Swap.htm

 

[JohnS.]

I've never been a fan of the Beaks subframe reinforcement braces. It looks too weak. It's just what, 2 or 4 small metal brackets? The ASR brace ooks 100x better and would seem to do more functionally because it's one solid brace that goes across the entire length of the subframe.

 

[TheWingMang]

I've heard from some people that it really doesn't do too much. I don't really care what it looks like. I was going to get the ASR brace originally, but I didn't have the money, and I wanted it before the big race

 

[TheWingMang]

I've never been a fan of the Beaks subframe reinforcement braces. It looks too weak. It's just what, 2 or 4 small metal brackets?

Yeah, that's about right:

The reinforcements are the black pieces between the mount and behind the subframe (probably can't see that one). They don't look pretty, but they prevent tearout, which is all I needed.

 

[JohnS.]

I don't care what it would look either... But I would definitely care about one of them being able to "perform" better and prevent subframe tear out more than another.

 

[jonyg98civicex]

si rear sway bars will not cause a problem if installing it on a 98 ex, correct?

 

[TheWingMang]

Oh of course, but the Beaks kit is fine. There isn't any more risk of tearout with it, even if the ASR is sturdier.

 

[TheWingMang]

si rear sway bars will not cause a problem if installing it on a 98 ex, correct?

Nope, no problem

 

[JohnS.]

si rear sway bars will not cause a problem if installing it on a 98 ex, correct?

No, no problem. Just remember you'll need SI end links.

 

[jonyg98civicex]

sorry for thread pirating but does anybody have the si rear sway bar on their ex or dx

im just wondering if you felt a diffrence?

 

[Evan.]

sorry for thread pirating but does anybody have the si rear sway bar on their ex or dx

im just wondering if you felt a diffrence?

Everyone will tell you something different. There was a thread on it a while back, but yes you can feel a difference. Heres how I look at it:

Street / DD: Get the 13mm si bar (enough for DD)
Auto-X: Get the 23mm ITR / ASR brace.

 

[Civicboy10]

Good info so far...so if I'm getting it right, I don't really need to put strut bars in the back unless they're larger than 13mm....what about in the front? This is more of my interest b/c I need to know if I should upgrade my Y7 intake mani. to make the strut bar fit under the hood

 

[JohnS.]

No no no...

You need a subframe reinforcement brace if you go larger than a 13MM sway bar. NOT a rear strut bar. Strut bars aren't almost useless but some actually do serve a function and well, the more bars, the more you stiffen up the chassis.

 

[c_diddy]

sorry for thread pirating but does anybody have the si rear sway bar on their ex or dx

im just wondering if you felt a diffrence?

i have one on my ex. I was able to tell the difference. Just driving around town I noticed the rear was stiffer. It's a lot more noticeable on mountain roads.