mugen76

here's a couple of pics on the install. i got one of the first bars from Jim at http://www.jimfab.com. i promised him that i'll take some pics of the install and show it to you guys on HT. but he's really backed up with a lot of people on the waiting list.



this is a traction bar that mounts to your frame (front tow hooks) and to your front lower control arms. they are then connected with an adjustable tie-rod to minimize deflection of the LCA under hard acceleration-thereby eliminating wheel hop. i'm very pleased with the bars. it's gotten rid of alot/all of the wheel hop. definitely worth the money and worth the wait!!

BUT!!! here's the problem: it will only mount to 2-piece lower control arms b/c there are two bolts needed for the jim fab mount. civic cx's/dx's/ex should be ok b/c the LCA's have the two mounting bolts. (99-00 si LCA's and CTR LCA's are only one-piece and do not have two bolts.) hence, if you want a 99-00si front Sway Bar, you can't install these jim fab bars. BUT, if you want to settle for a thinner EX front Sway Bar, you can theoretically install both jimfab and swaybar b/c the EX LCA's are two-piece. (refer to the second picture below for the two-bolt mount found only on CX/DX/EX LCA's)


1. jack up the front end of your dope ride and secure it with jackstands behind the wheels and remove lower plastic splash guards:


2. remove the two bolts on the LCA (lower control arm) and bolt-in the jim fab mount reusing the factory bolts (2 - 17mm bolts):


3. remove both tow hooks (3 - 14mm bolts each side): sorry for crappy pic!


4. have a friend help you mount the Jim Fab crossmember bar in the tow-hook locations using factory bolts: (you may have to massage this crossmember bar to fit in b/c the length of the bar is just perfect with no extra room to spare... a nice rubber mallet helped with the install)


5. at this point, begin connecting the tie rods on each side using the supplied hardware:






6. replace the splash guard and trim to make it fit.


for those of you who are wondering about it's clearance from the ground, rest assured. the lowest point on the traction bar setup will only be as low as your stock tow hooks. so if you don't scrape your tow hooks, you won't have to worry about the jim fab bar.

here's a side shot.. notice that my mugen header actually hangs lower than the bar itself:



SUMMARY:
1. Called and ordered from jim @ http://www.jimfab.com (great customer service )
2. Installed bar
3. Eliminated wheel hop = improve 60' times
4. DOES NOT scrape the ground
5. steering and handling has improved. response is quicker and cornering is snappy.
6. at full WHEEL LOCK (turning the wheel all the way to left or right) the tires and rims DO NOT touch the tie rods (setup: 16" mugen mf8's standard offset rims, 205/45 tires)
7. constructed with high quality 4130 chromoly tubing and oversized steel brackets
8. quality of jim's work?? roger foo trusts him with their race mazda.
9. call jim if you have questions about fitment.


sorry for the sucky pics! i hope this helps.




Modified by mugen76 at 11:06 AM 4/21/2003

Who Said

how much how much....i like

oh and are the Ex and Si (92-95) lower control arms the same?

frankdatank

sweet install albert, i gueass im gonna have to sell the si setup and go with ex. hows it handle on turns?

mugen76

i think jim is only asking a little over $280(?) for this traction bar. similar bars from z10 and others are $389+!!!! the other bars have issues with the tie rods scraping rims at full wheel lock and also poorly designed mounting locations.

as far as the applications are concerned, i'm not really sure about 92-95 ex/si's. all i know are the differences in the 96-00's. call jim for other applications and fitment for EG's, and DC's.




Modified by mugen76 at 9:33 AM 4/21/2003

mugen76

handles amazing... turning is snappier and response has increased - almost like a front sway bar. wheel hop is definitely gone if not, very little remains.

kefka

iTrader: (1)

good write up. is this bar a must, or just for the paranoid? how much is it estimated to improve the track times?

TheJediMex

nice nice

mugen76

i've heard .2 - .5 on the 60'. trust me, it's wonderful on the street. i will take it to the strip run it three or four times with tie rods disconnected and simply connect them for a test run.

NOSpeed97

Looks good. Nice write up and pics. I guess I'll be adding this to my "list of parts I want", hehe.

tonyxcom

aren't you supposed to adjust and attachthe tierods when the car is at normal ride height?

EgSick

sweet investment...

i have a cx with a H22a , which means the motor sits lower.. you think it still can go on my car?

mugen76

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tonyXcom &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">aren't you supposed to adjust and attachthe tierods when the car is at normal ride height?</TD></TR></TABLE>

that's a great question. i haven't had the chance to fine tune tie rods, but i do know that the tie rods swing freely as much as your suspension travels without limiting any of it's movement. all i did was adjust them to be the same on both sides. they seem to be doing it's job!

mugen76

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EgSick &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">sweet investment...

i have a cx with a H22a , which means the motor sits lower.. you think it still can go on my car?</TD></TR></TABLE>

i'm not really sure about the oil pan or trans on the h22 but the tie rods clears the b series pan and trans by 1.5" - 2" inches on either side. that's the only part that might affect your install. the large crossmember bar sits under your radiator - across your frame so that shoudn't affect it.

for this i'd probably ask jim: jim@jimfab.com

SpoonEK2

Looks good. Take it to a road course and tell us your findings!

RoaringTurtle

great thread
I was put off by the z10 bars because of those very same issues
great to know that there is something out there that fixes all these issues
thanks for the info

mugen76

anything to help fellow EK owners

RoaringTurtle is probably referring to this guy who bought/reviewed the z10 bars:

http://hybrid2.honda-perf.org/tech/z10.html
(Z10 bar) "On my car at full lock I can just touch the tire to the radius arm. With my fat 205s on skinny 6" rims its no big deal. When I was using some 195s on 7" rims, then i had to be more careful because I could get a light metal to metal scrape. But that is only at full lock. At 98% of full lock there is no contact. And Z10 reports that mine is the first car they know of that can touch the bars with the tires. WOOT, lucky me"

deftones0817

what is that bar made of? I have z10 and I have no rubbing issues? never heard of that oh well. So what is that bar made out of and are their different options for different weights? I got the z10 out of chromoly steele ? Well looks nice man.


DEF

BERT-O

Great Writeup, , I'm too on the waiting list

Takeoff

I met jim this weekend and he is great guy. The traction bars are really nice. I met him because I have the 99-00 si lower control arms and he wanted to see if there was any way to attach them. It doesn't look like it is possible without welding something to the lower control arms. I bought the mounts off him for my civic and they are really nice quality. I would recommend his parts. http://www.jimfab.com

EG6owner-T

great install, great tech

any fitment with a/c lines?

Did I hear a groupbuy on these? hehe

I will order one soon, though.

IS3Fifty

nice... let us know how it works out.

mugen76

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by deftones0817 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">what is that bar made of? I have z10 and I have no rubbing issues? never heard of that oh well. So what is that bar made out of and are their different options for different weights? I got the z10 out of chromoly steele ? Well looks nice man.
DEF</TD></TR></TABLE>

the complete traction bar that i got is chromoly steel as well. he has lighter aluminum mounts and radius arms that come standard with the kit now. yeah i've heard that z10 has improved their design to fix that rubbing problem. correct me if wrong, doesn't the z10 only mount to the front drop down fork bolt where the shock is? the jim fab mount looks a lot stronger in my opinion.



Modified by mugen76 at 9:51 AM 4/21/2003

mugen76

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EG6owner &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">great install, great tech


any fitment with a/c lines?


Did I hear a groupbuy on these? hehe


I will order one soon, though.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah, lately there's been very little tech in this forum. i thought i'd add my contribution...

great question about the A/C lines. i can't believe i forgot about this. if you can tell from this picture:



i had to massage the a/c line about 1.5" inches upward to avoid the swinging of the tie rod radius arm. just becareful not to put any kinks in the line when you're bending.

shorty

my friend just put one on his crx, he loves it.

Hatchy-Ownzjo0

Looks damn good.. Get to the track and report those findings! I wanna know if i should get this or not!