Mark A Ellis

ANYONE GOT A STRUT BRACE FITTED ?

IF SO DO YOU THINK ITS A WORTHWHILE UPGRADE

AND WHAT MAKE IS IT

Stef

Mark.
I've got a new Sparco one (alloy, not steel) fitted, and I can certainly say that it's stiffened the front up, which I suppose is what it's supposed to do isn't it?
Whether or not that's a good thing very much depends on your driving style I suppose.
I've certainly noticed that the car feels more 'planted' going into sharp bends, but it is less forgiving on very uneven surfaces.
It looks pretty cool too though, which is a bonus.

Stef.

Mark A Ellis

WHERE DID YOU GET IT AND HOW MUCH DID IT COST

alistair

Demon Tweeks have them as do Graham Goode.

STi's have them as standard so I'm sure someone out there sells those. They're carbon and are badged STi.

AlexM

Hi,

I used to have one in a R5 GT Turbo, and that did benefit as it had an extremely flimsy body sub-structure. After a season of R5 Cup racing, the body shell would have gone so soft that it would have to be scrapped, and that is without any shunts!.

The Impreza is much stiffer torsionally, and all strut braces for it are bent to clear the intercooler, which reduces it's effectiveness (stiffness) considerably. Unless you are running a suspension kit with high spring rates, you don't really need it IMHO. On the other hand, it can't do any harm, unless you bugger up your geometry when you unbolt the suspension strut tops to fit it.

Something in favour of the Sti brace is that it is made by Fuji Aerospace, who make all wing spars for the F16!, and it looks well enough engineered (in Carbon Fibre) to be more than cosmetic. Whether that is enough to overcome hassles with insurance etc. is up to you.

Cheers,

Alex

Stef

A mate got it for me from a place called 'Dread' in Milton Keynes. It cost £55, and is aluminium with red turret doo-daas!

Stef.