96 SOHC VTEC

There is an RSX driving around locally with this so called "strut bar".




I don't even see the bar connected to the struts. Would this bar even do anything, other than provide looks?

GreenBean

I don't know...It looks like a Spoon bar of some sort.

It might help, but Isn't there a seam right there...it might flex that seam...One would think that if Mugen or Spoon or Cusco or any other Tuner found a better place to put the bar. It would have been there...This guy must work for a way better company...LMAO...

mhx

not really it doesnt look like its mounted to the sturt mounts... the purpose of a strut bar is to connect the struts.. hence the name "strut bar".. It looks like its connecting the backseat frame from one side to the other.

But again theres really no way to prove its helping or not.. i would assume theres more metal and a new support so its doing something.. it just isnt prob noticiable.

ITR_1211

That looks like the mugen STB

f1nal zeros

That is the mugen rear strut bar. Mugen designed it to go from side to side of the car that would sit right behind the rear seat. Spoon has a strut bar that goes from the strut to the strut. The bar does provide some stiffness for the rear. You may want to see http://www.kingmototsports.com to see the bar in a better picture.
But then again it could be a replica of the mugen rear strut bar.

dc5itracer

Any type of bar that ties down two points in the chassis is great they provide structrual rigidity to the car and beleive it or not protect you in a crash.Mr.Alex is a great suspension company they commission cusco to make their bars but its built to their specs i have my suspension process up next and trying to make the car's chassis as stiff as possible if you ant ill do a little write up on the diffrent bars available and give a breif description of the ones i go for
This is the Mr.Alex front sb

The rear strut bar and c-pillar bar


The Alex Inner Fender Brace provides chassis reinforcement between the joint of the car's front engine section and mid cockpit section. Typically, the greatest strength of the car's chassis will be low, concentrated in the frame. As we move up the chassis, we find there is less reinforcement, especially at the fender area, where the forward section and mid section of the car are joined by a few spot welds. Consequently, under hard braking and cornering there is a great amount of flex and twist at the fender area. The Alex Inner Fender Brace reduces this flexing and the sloppy steering response associated with it. Chassis rigidity is increased noticeably and turn in response is significantly crisper and faster.

f1nal zeros

Nice I have been looking for fender braces. I was looking at cuscos.

dc5itracer

I got some more ill post im looking for the a to b-pillar brace it gives strength to the area of the door if you didnt know the bigger open an area is ex. trunk door the more it needs support

ITR_1211

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dc5itracer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Any type of bar that ties down two points in the chassis is great they provide structrual rigidity to the car and beleive it or not protect you in a crash.Mr.Alex is a great suspension company they commission cusco to make their bars but its built to their specs i have my suspension process up next and trying to make the car's chassis as stiff as possible if you ant ill do a little write up on the diffrent bars available and give a breif description of the ones i go for
This is the Mr.Alex front sb

The rear strut bar and c-pillar bar


The Alex Inner Fender Brace provides chassis reinforcement between the joint of the car's front engine section and mid cockpit section. Typically, the greatest strength of the car's chassis will be low, concentrated in the frame. As we move up the chassis, we find there is less reinforcement, especially at the fender area, where the forward section and mid section of the car are joined by a few spot welds. Consequently, under hard braking and cornering there is a great amount of flex and twist at the fender area. The Alex Inner Fender Brace reduces this flexing and the sloppy steering response associated with it. Chassis rigidity is increased noticeably and turn in response is significantly crisper and faster.





</TD></TR></TABLE> Thats Hardcore

GreenBean

That stuff does look good, I have bought stuff from AJ before, A-1 for them...

B18CXr

Any type of bar that ties down two points in the chassis is great they provide structrual rigidity to the car and beleive it or not protect you in a crash.Mr.Alex is a great suspension company they commission cusco to make their bars but its built to their specs i have my suspension process up next and trying to make the car's chassis as stiff as possible if you ant ill do a little write up on the diffrent bars available and give a breif description of the ones i go for
This is the Mr.Alex front sb



Extra chassis bracing (other than a cage) on the EP/DC5 is not money well spent. The chassis is much more rigid than any before it, if you want "bling" buy bracing, otherwise coil-overs,boost, FW, etc..... is a much wiser investment.


note below:

chassis & sub frame are very stout

http://www.p1auto.com/jack/movies/epchassis.MPG

right click save as please...

iRRATiONAL

where it is mounted has alot to do with how much it could help. from the looks of things the guy is going for looks over function. looks semi-worhtless to me. the wood bracing of that speaker box probably helps more.....hahaha

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by f1nal zeros &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">That is the mugen rear strut bar. Mugen designed it to go from side to side of the car that would sit right behind the rear seat. Spoon has a strut bar that goes from the strut to the strut. The bar does provide some stiffness for the rear. You may want to see http://www.kingmototsports.com to see the bar in a better picture.
But then again it could be a replica of the mugen rear strut bar. </TD></TR></TABLE>
if it is a strut bar then why is it not mounted between the chassis and the struts?

sjracer

Do people not realize that the stock DC5 already have a "strut tower bar" stock? It's not a full bar that connects both the rear strut towers, but if you look, there are silver end-links that connect each individual strut tower to the center chassis. They are not the strongest thing in the world, but they do their job.

The first picture up above is a Mugen Replica bar. You can tell the difference between the real and fake, but compared to the real deal it's a pretty close match. Of course the Mugen has cleaner welds and are made out of lighter material. The replica is around 5lbs, while the real deal is around 2-3lbs. I've had both and can tell the difference in finish.

Second, the location of the Mugen rear strut tower (more of a chassis brace) bar is a good one. Before i installed said bar, going over speed bumps and large dips in my Type S, i could feel the chassis flex quite a bit. (The hatch area is the best place to brace.) Of course the DC5 chassis is a lot stronger then previous generation honda chassis', but you can always improve upon it. After installing the rear bar, my chassis doesn't even creak over the same bumps and dips. If that doesn't make a difference, i don't know what does. I think of the bar more as a torsional stiffener, then a strut tower brace.

Of course a 4pt roll bar will do a better job "stiffening" the rear chassis (other then providing roll over protection), but that's not a viable option for a mainly street driven car who's back seats are still used. No padding in the world will save a rear seat passenger from the hard metal tubes of a roll bar in an accident.

But i have to admit, most of these "chassis braces" out here now a days are getting out of hand. If you're going to place braces near the passengers head, then why not just actually install a 4pt race roll bar?

PS: I have no sub to tie down to this bar.

f1nal zeros

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

if it is a strut bar then why is it not mounted between the chassis and the struts?</TD></TR></TABLE>


Well last time I checked I was not a mugen specialist.

You may want to go here and see what you can find about it. And let me rephrase my comment. It's a mugen "tower" bar.
http://www.kingmotorsports.com...3.jpg

96 SOHC VTEC

Interesting. I would think a strut tower bar would produce less flex than the bar in the picture. I thought me might have fabricated it, but I guess it's on the market. Oh well, interesting.

Thanks for the replies.

sjracer

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 96 SOHC VTEC &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Interesting. I would think a strut tower bar would produce less flex than the bar in the picture. I thought me might have fabricated it, but I guess it's on the market. Oh well, interesting.

Thanks for the replies. </TD></TR></TABLE>

A true strut tower brace is designed to keep the strut towers from flexing inward towards one another. This bar is designed high and basically has nothing to do with the shock tower. The rear shock tower on the DC5 is very strong. It mounts flat on the rear tube unlike older integras that have a high mount shock tower.

The mugen bar, or it's replica, helps more for torsion flex. That point on the DC5 is one of the weak points on the car. There's a large gaping hole there, something only covered up by the back seats. (That is why honda added large stock chassis L braces at that location also.) Has anyone else noticed how much of a difference it makes to drive with the back seat in the up position and not folded down? Maybe it's just me again.

MueveloNYC

it'll probably help some but not as much as my Cusco rear strut bar which connects between the two structs AND bolts to the frame.

EMI

that is what I am talking about!

dc5itracer

I want a carbon fiber trunk ill give you my old hatch if i can get a nice deal

rated_r

i only see a red X

DC5RK20A

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by MueveloNYC &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">it'll probably help some but not as much as my Cusco rear strut bar which connects between the two structs AND bolts to the frame.</TD></TR></TABLE>

And your basing your comment on what? The reason Mugen designed their bar at this point, the stock Integra R already has a factory strut bar in place in the rear. Just like they designed their front bar to work in conjunction with the stock tower bar. I have no idea if the RSX has a real tower bar in the rear stock.

Chris