ChefRacer Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 I wish I could make $900 an hour doing installs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiskeyTango Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 I put a strut tower brace on my Legacy a couple of months ago and it was the best improvement I can make dollar for dollar on my car. I noticed the difference when I brought my car in for service and they gave me a new Legacy to drive around for the day. My car is much more tighter on the wheel especially at higher speeds and the dip and roll in the front end on turns is much less. I also put a thicker sway bar on the rear end and the rear is less jumpy and much more steady and solid on the highway. The parts were relatively inexpensive, about $300 and I had a shop here on Long Island install it for another $150. The installation would have been more if my car needed an alignment but it did not so the whole improvement cost less than $500. Best thing I could have done to the car for the money...big improvement!! Placebo Effect - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spec B Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 I think most of the improvement was the rear sway.. 49% placebo 51% rear sway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChefRacer Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 i think most of the improvement was the rear sway.. 49% placebo 51% rear sway. +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m sprank Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 Rear sway made a huge difference. Strut tower bar did not. Placebo effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwm5094 Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 I just got new bosch windshield wipers for $50. What a difference!! And the tech only charged me $100 to install. Biggest difference ever! The only reason I know is because I was driving my roommates car the other day and he had rain-x wiper blades. Bosch = must buy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m_dogg Posted February 28, 2012 Author Share Posted February 28, 2012 Nothing like a good laugh with morning coffee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZP Installs Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Rear sway made a huge difference. Strut tower bar did not. Placebo effect. Yuppers. -mike http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/91072632.jpghttp://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/141039922.jpg http://www.pbase.com/paisan/image/133406601.jpg http://upload.pbase.com/image/137566671.jpg 11+ Years Maintaining, Modifying and Educating TriState Subaru Enthusiasts. Call directly as We carry almost every manufacturer now, so before you buy parts call us. AIM: AZP Installs | E-mail: sales@azpinstalls.com | 725 Fairfield Ave | Kenilworth, NJ 07033 | 908.248.AZP1 (2971) | T-1 Certified Amsoil Direct Jobber "Race Tested, Enthusiast Approved!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeD Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Spec B...that includes the new rear sway bar install too which according to the posts here is alot more involved than the strut tower bar... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeD Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Whiskey Tango - no placebo...I guess it depends what kind of strut tower bar you use...even my mechanic was surprised by how much better the car cornered...given that he was a little skeptical when I came in with the part, I call that verification of its value and refutation of any placebo... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spec B Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 When I changed my steering wheel - I swore it handled better too. Placebo is real! Seriously though, IMO as long as you feel there is an improvement, the investment is worth it....regradless of whether the improvement is real or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeD Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 mwm5094 - what happened to online courtesy and decorum? I could come back with a wise ass retort but I figured why stoop to your level? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sschmelcke Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 I don't have a front strut tower bar but grim speed Is making a brace for the brake booster because of the firewall flex. Maybe it does actually do something although probably not noticeable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 mwm5094 - what happened to online courtesy and decorum? I could come back with a wise ass retort but I figured why stoop to your level? strut tower bars make no performance difference in legacy's, this is fact. the proximity of the strut towers with the firewall make it nearly impossible for upward and downward flex with the amount of surface area of the tower attached to the firewall itself. I don't have a front strut tower bar but grim speed Is making a brace for the brake booster because of the firewall flex. Maybe it does actually do something although probably not noticeable. the pressures exerted from braking do not relate to a tower bar or it's function. the brake master cylinder applies a perpendicular stress(like puncturing) on the firewall opposed to a vertical stress like the strut towers would exert. Figure two 2x4's nailed side by side, figure how difficult it would be to slide one up from the other Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m sprank Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 ^ Someone making sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutbackXT05 Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 The only reason i bought the front strut bar was to take up the void of space where my top mount used to be. Sadly it didnt fix the void. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwm5094 Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 mwm5094 - what happened to online courtesy and decorum? I could come back with a wise ass retort but I figured why stoop to your level? It is simply me giving a super sarcastic remark to try to show people how ineffective STB's are. Bosch vs. Rain-x windshield wipers offer no difference. STB vs. no STB offer no difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sschmelcke Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 im gonna buy a bar and pull massive gforces to prove everyone wrong. most expensive STB here i come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwm5094 Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 im gonna buy a bar and pull massive gforces to prove everyone wrong. most expensive STB here i come. Psh... Just talked to the good guys at i-beams-r-us. Just placed an order for this! Needs to be custom fabricated but my strut towers will never move! http://i1110.photobucket.com/albums/h443/mwm5094/images-1.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m sprank Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 I have an uber expensive STi bar on my wifes 5EAT. It looks cooler on her car then it does bent in a V shape over my knee. Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwm5094 Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Betcha can't bend my new i-beam over your knee. I doubt any NVH will result from this install as well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m sprank Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Hope the chassis can handle the load, Lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwm5094 Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Not worried bout the chassis but I had to sacrifice a little by getting light duty tires, but with the superior bracing of a STB tires do not matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m sprank Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 I figured with that brace you would be running white walls purchased from the Radiator Springs tire shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caramall2 Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 I put a strut tower brace on my Legacy a couple of months ago and it was the best improvement I can make dollar for dollar on my car It sounds like you put these both on at the same time, correct? Or did you put one on, drive it around, put the other on, drive it around? If both were put on, you wouldn't have been able to tell which component made the difference. The rear sway is definitely a great upgrade. I have a strut brace and I think that's probably just a placebo effect as many are saying. It's easy for our minds to fool us ;-) For the original poster, defitintely go with the rear sway! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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