i have 220 to from my birthday to spend on my car,so im thinking about getting a strut bar. i will probably just get one off ebay. my question is: is there a preferred brand of strut bar? i was planning on just buying the cheapest one i could find, because they seem simple enough that an expensive one wont be any better than a cheap one. i appreciate any input, thanks!

 

Go to HondaSociety, pm game4lif, offer your $220 for my old Cusco AS type strut bars front/rear. They are probably the best you can buy.

 

oh wow. i didnt plan on spending all of my money. i could bid on an aluminum pair for $10 on ebay.
i would need a much better offer to consider your's, themuffinman

 

buy off ebay where they give you all 3 front, rear upper and rear lower struts they dont go more than $100 !!! and they all stiffen your car so u turn sharper and better anyway i dont see the point in buying a $200 1 its just a metal bar they all do the same thing

 

I would beg to differ in saying that they all do the same thing... The design of the mounts and the materials used vary significantly between cheap ebay products and brands such as Cusco, Tanabe and DC...

I went with Tanabe front for about $80... I doubt you will be willing to spend that much though..
Personally, id forget the strut bar if you are looking for performance and put your money into sway bars... Will make a MUCH more significant difference..

For reviews of various products www.horsepowerfreaks.com is always a good source

 

YEA i guess ur right depends on what its made out of too

 

get this.

While you're at it get a rear swaybar MUCH BETTER handling response then a strut tower bar

 

get a rear sway and the FFC front strutbar

 

in a way it does matter. You want some strut bars that are strong and stiff so they don't bend when you make hard turns. If you want to go cheap and save $, then 3 bar combo off eBay haha

 

You're better off saving your money, I had one of those way back in the day. The aluminum strips easily and makes it worthless, it really doesn't help at all and looks cheap in the engine bay. I pay like $70 for each of my ACTUAL strut bars from eBay that were Cusco AS type. The whole idea is the less moving parts the better, those eBay ones have a bunch of nuts, bolts, threads, etc and make them literally worthless. The Cusco is a solid bar with just two bolts on either end. And they were mine, I sold that Accord awhile back. Gamer4lif was parting off some pieces and for $200 it's a pretty damn good deal for front and rear strut bars.

And they are worthless, trust me. The aluminum used is crap and there is more flex than you want for something supposed to stabilize the chassis. And it is 2 for $200 , not each. And the shape/style of the strut bar DOES matter.

 

I will add the FFC one is pretty good as well, also keep in mind you should install the bar with the load off the front of your car (i.e. have it raised up in the air.)

 

kidcool1977- that looks pretty solid on there. can you give me some more info on it?
im pretty sure i already have a rear sway bar? its a 92 manual lx

 

If you have an LX you do not most likely. The 94-97 did not come with a rear for the LX or DX models, only the EX.

Adding a rear strut bar and rear sway bar in addition to a beefier front sway bar and adding a strut bar changes the handling drastically in these cars.

 

May I suggest these

http://www.racinglab.com/ho90ac46cyal2.html

Most people seem to like the ST solution for sway bars, I added a rear Progress bar (thickest available) and left the front stock to try to get some more rotation. That was in addition to the two strut bars (front/rear).

You can also (and probably should) replace your bushings with some polyurethane ones (like from Energy Suspension)

 

I'm really thinking of getting that FFC strut tower bar but $220.00

I have the ST sway bar and there is still chassis roll (minimal) around the corners but it's definitely not the same feel as stock, another issue I have is the exhaust hitting the rear sway bar **** gets annoying.

Any case Konis yellows are my next handling upgrade, that is if I can get them for $450.00 including shipping
I bought mine from Auto anything.com with free shipping and 15% off with a grand total of 146.16 (exact price).

I am also getting my Konis from there so far the cheapest price I can attain is 492.00 and that's with 15% off and free shipping.

 

how much work would it take to put a new front sway bar in? also dont really care about the rear as much as the front handling. in fact some over-steer sounds like a good change of pace.
btw,i really appreciate all of this input.

 

ha, jack stands, six bolts and a beer. Reverse process for the install. Not hard. Just don't drop it on your chest.

 

also, what is the difference between LX, DX, and EX?

 

DX and LX had 22mm front sway, no rears and drums.
DX has softer springs (less weight)
EX had 25mm front sway, 15mm rear and discs on the rear.

There was other stuff too like the motor, ABS, a/c sunroof etc.

 

A lot, probably just best to hit up Wikipedia or MSN Auto's website.

LX/DX have same motor (F22B2) and the EX has the F22B1

VP is a 'special' DX
SE is a 'special' LX

etc

 

ok so since were on the subject of sway bars somewhat and i have a question (im aiming this question mostly towards muffinman since i just came up on a post about it)

Will a prelude rear sway bar fit our accords

 

With stock mounting points and stock trailing arms, subframe, etc - no they won't. I looked into getting a Progress rear sway for a Prelude. They look similar but mounting positions and everything are different. I'm sure you could custom do it but it wasn't worth it to me. And by custom I mean figure out end links and the mounting brackets/bushings.

 

well, i would like to keep this project as cheap as possible, so i was thinking about just getting a DX sway bar. will the extra 3mm make much difference?

 

The DX does not have a stock *edit* REAR sway bar.

Just pick up a ST set of sway bars front and rear. Save up and get both at same time.

 

What I and many others have done is replace the rear bar with an aftermarket and just upgrade the front to the EX with poly bushings.

Its a sad attempt to fight under-steer but it still makes a world of a difference.