QuickShortBus

+1000000000000

I had PowerHouse install the CHE k-member brace and torque limiters in my car when they did the turbo install. I don't even think an aftermarket shifter would help much at all now, it would just shorten the shift. Many people even with aftermarket shifters have a lot of bind shifting to 3rd at WOT I have a stock shifter and have yet to miss 3rd gear.

F1Fan

Hi ck,

I disagree with you on the usefullness of the new Steeda 3-point brace. The Steeda 3-point brace is just that, a 3-point bolt on brace. I can see the advantage to a bolt on brace if it's well designed, the components you are tying together actually have the strength to improve the location of your critical suspension point and you need to remove it for servicing access. But the way this brace is designed and based on the attachment points it would be much more effective if it were welded in place. When looking at the connection points and the way the brace is designed this brace should be good for locating the trailing arm mounting boxes side to side and fore and aft relative to their own part of the chassis. The Steeda 3-point brace design offers no improvement in overall chassis stiffness fore and aft or side to side and does nothing to help improve locating the front and rear suspension pick up points and keeping them in the same relationship with each other to maintain good handling feel when the suspension is loaded up. IMO the Steeda 3-point brace is limited in function, namely helping to keep the trailing arm mounting boxes in the right place relative to the rear frame stub on their respective sides. I expect the extra support of the LCA pick up point is a good thing but I doubt that the mounting boxes are all that over stressed really. To make this work better they should have included at least one element that ties the two braces together side to side.

I agree with you on the BMR tubular subframe re-enforcments. Minimal if any real advantage to chassis stiffening here even though they are weld-in parts. This is due to the lack of triangulation and the fact that they only have two points of chassis contact so all forces are taken by a single tubular part with nothing to support the tube except the end points welded to the front and rear chassis frame stubs. A better design would have include a way to weld a number of points along the fore/aft tube to the frame rails which would support the connecting tube and stiffen the chassis much more effectively than the unsupported tube. Also an additional tube connecting the rear part of th frame rail to the trailing arm/torque box would have made this a much more effective design.

Ah, the BMR HD boxed subframe, momma! This is a pretty good design that can be improved by moving the rear triangulation piece closer to the torque box welding point and by adding a supporting element to the actual K-member subframe mounting points. The BMR HD boxed subframe connector is pretty good as is but these minor changes would make it undisputedly the best. Wait a minute, it's already the BEST because there is NOTHING else on the market like it. To complete the picture BMR offers a brace that spans the tunnel and offers additional support of the chassis side to side. IMO this is the most effective of the three braces currently available from a major player for the S197 chassis.

Yes the BMR boxed subframe connector is heavier slightly than the Steeda 3-point brace, it NEEDS to be to do its' job and the BMR boxed brace offers support that neither the tubular BMR or Steeda 3-point simply can't provide. The boxed BMR brace is the best of the three for handling by far and provides the best support for a drag racer too when combined with the BMR tunnel brace. The amazing thing is that the BMR boxed brace is also about the same price as the Steeda piece so IMO it's a no branier as to which one to buy.


Cheers/Chip

chevykiller

^^^^ well we pretty much are in agreement...lol Because I specifically mentioned the steeda is useless if bolted in. The fact you can bolt it in though before welding to get a 'semi-feel' for what you're going to get is a nice touch IMO. And I do disagree about street application. With the corrections/additions you mentioned, the box connectors would be perfect but I was giving feedback on how they come as-is. The steeda with the triangle design (when welded in) seemed to me to give better cornering ability than the cars I have drove with the box connectors. I have a lot more stuff than simply the steedas and they complimented my set-up nicely but I do admire your train of thought as with a little tweaking, they can be made awesome. Most here will not be requiring the subframe connectors at all IMO as I really don't see a need for them under 500 rwhp IMHO.

I'm surprised that no one but quickbus even commented on the CHE performance k-member brace and torque limiters. These are 1 of a couple suspension mods that will GREATLY help many of the people on this forum. So many are focused on mods that are way out of their cars league and will not give much benefit. I think I am going to start a thread for 'must have mods' based on horsepower. I think that would help a lot of people from wasting money.

I do respect and enjoy your comments and keep them coming.

Mark

1. The squeaks/rattles that you experienced while the brace was bolted in--do you mean you heard squeaks come from the brace itself, or the car?

2. In your opinion is there any downside to welding in the brace right from the get-go? (I guess I am wondering what would make me not like the brace, and regret welding it in.)

Again, thanks for the great feedback!

--Bob D.


1. It will sound/feel like it coming from the middle to the rear end of the whole car.
2. Part of the brace covers your fuel line and can actually pinch it if not installed properly. It is a good idea to bolt it on and run for a few days to make sure the placement is right. The placement had to be tweaked slightly on my car and I would not have figured that out had I not been able to bolt it in and test drive first.

classj

Well I do know that if you are not going to weld supports like frame conns in, they are pretty useless. I am doing the G-trac brace as that makes sense to me. Maybe a strut brace mostly for show. I am planning to crawl under the rear and see what the deal with the panhard brace is as I hear the stock one is a little flimsy.

As far as the other bracing is concerned, my coupe feels pretty stiff as is. No complaints here with the stock suspension. Though, with other cars I have, I generally only notice the chassis flex after putting in stiff shocks and springs. But in general, the car seems pretty stiff and comparable or better than some german stuff I like to play with with regard to chassis flex.

Bracing is good, but weight is worse IMO unless the braces really make a huge improvement.

Bob D.

Between the stiff Saleen suspension, no roof and life on the bumpy and pot-holed roads of the Chicago area. I feel that my car could use some additional structural rigidity. As a sort of "can't hurt" first step, I am installing a FRPP strut tower brace today, but I have a hunch that is not going to do the trick.

From the posts above it sounds like the Steeda triangular brace (welded in) or the BMR Boxed subframe connectors would be the best bet for me.

This is not a subject area I know much about, however, so if I am off the mark here or anybody has any better suggestions given my goal of increasing chassis rigidity not for HP but for chassis stability and rattle reduction, please let me know.

W1ldcat

I have the Steeda tower brace and already ordered the frame brece from Steeda that I'm going to bolt in till I make arangements to have it welded in. I'll let you know if it helps my Vert. I too think it needs a little improvement. The roads in SW Michigan are the same as yours.

Bob D.

Thanks W1ldcat, definitely let me know how it goes.

Also, if you end up having a local shop weld in the frame brace, if you don't mind, maybe post or PM me with their contact info. I drive a couple times a month to East Lansing and/or Petosky and ramble around MI quite a bit. I am a little bit uncomfortable with the idea of someone welding on my car, so it might be a good thing if I used a shop that had done the identical task before.

TIA and enjoy the top-down weather that seems to be finally making it our way.

Birdieman4

ANY mid to full length subframe that can be welded in will do the job.