Anyone have any experience with these?

I noticed them on the AJ-Racing website, and they said they would be in soon. It says that it stiffens the chassis up. I dont want to waste my money if they dont do anything.

Here is a pic of the bar from AJ-Racing


The part circled is where I am assuming they mount

 

that doesn't look like a very weak spot on the chassis. to me, it doesn't look like it'll make a difference except added weight

 

I have them..on my EK.
Do they do something...probably. BUT, I haven't taken my car to a track to find out. So, sorry buddy..no help here

 

less wheel hop, better turn ins

going on my coup-de-crap very soon......

and i have them in stock also

 

wheel hop and turn in.... riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight

 

jdm placebo?

 

It provides rigidity in the longitudinal direction (braking and accelerating). But not much in cornering.

 

*rigidty

*provide for better steering feedback.


(Yes, i have a J's Racing version installed in my car)


[Modified by Fuuma0083, 6:39 PM 1/20/2003]

 

http://www.a-t-s-usa.com sells what Fuuma has

 

Anyone have any pics of the J's bars?
I cant seem to find them on the ats-usa site.

 

you won't find it on dere site.

It's basically the same thing but its all chrome. Beside it doesn't matter what it looks like because when installed you can't see it at all.

And the only warning is that you'll have to use a heat gun to remold the wheel wells.

 

lol...do a search. this was covered back in the day. Different system.

 

I was thinking of getting this for my car since my frame was bent in the past. But after thinking about it, I figured that it would lower the effectiveness of the crush zone. That would allow more of the energy to be transfered into the main structure. Remember those NHSTA videos of the cars hitting barriers and the crush zones deflecting and the main structure remaining fairly intact? Well, that would not happen. The structure would deform forward of the brace and the structure would then buckle at the a-pillars. Looking at the shape of the braces, they look like they would increase the bending strength about the x-axis. IMO, I would not recommend this.

 

Looks ok but not a weak spot really.

 

Steve,

Aren`t you rocking the clear fenders so everybody can see your`s?

 

I've used the Jspeed one on a EK chassis 3 years ago and I also use one now on a EG chassis. What I have noticed is better steering response.

 

How hard is the install, what is involved? What do you mean by remolding the wheel wells?

 

I couldn't find that J's Racing part on the ATS site.
Where did you see it at?

 

A WAYYYYY cheaper option would be to just fill the structural body cavities with expanding, 2 component foam. Ive done it and it really does improve the rigidity of the car.

http://www.itwfoamseal.com/auto_aftermarket.htm

$163 for five kits. Fill the 'A' pillars, the rocker panels, and the rear cross brace (bellow the rear seat, in front of the gas tank) and you WILL notice a diference.

Mike

 

Mike,
Thanks again for the help at VIR! About the Foam, if I have done the math correctly, the foam added 10 pounds to the car......worth it? I am looking for some ways to improve the Type R's rigidety wothout compromising weight. In fact, I have REMOVED the brace that connects the sides of the car located beneath the rear seat, in addition to other braces. And couriously enough, a wet noodle seams to go faster arounda track than an uncooked one. Meaning: the 60 pounds of braces I have removed = less weight on all four tires and less accelerative or decelerative mass. Yet, the foam really catches my interest. What is the life of a polymer like they use? Does it begin to breakdown and crack?

I agree with what has been written earlier about the a-brace..... It is one of those, placebo type upgrades. I am not completely downing it.... however, it may not ofset the weight disadvantage with a ROI on the advantage of stifness. I would love to test one out! There really needs to be a commercially avalaible chassis rigidity tester. Or at least centers for testing!

That's enough simplexicated comments for now. - Blake


[Modified by ppihctyper, 2:57 AM 1/24/2003]

 

Back when SCC and Option mags inroduced foam filling, i was attracted to the gains it would provide. However, i opted not to try this. My major concern was thinking what might happen in a case of an accident. Is it gonna crack the foam into a million peices? Is the repair gonna be a pain in the ***?
Another thing that questioned me from doing this was from the lack of information and popularity of using foam to increase the rigidity of a chassis. I dont here about this at all these days....or maybe i just havent found them.

 

Jun's tuner DC2 uses it.

I still am reading on it myself...the SCC magazine seemed a bit vague. They wanted to support it (sponsorship money = money in their pockets), but they didn't go as far as to overwhelmingly think it was a wonder-product.


[Modified by Tweakmeister, 11:06 AM 1/24/2003]

 

On my first integra ('96 RS), I took off all of my a.market reinforcement bars prior to selling it. The car handled like something else. I loved it.

That being said, when I bought the GS-R, I couldn't stand the way it drove. Adding the bars back on made it much firmer, responsive, etc. I wouldn't have it any other way.

For a drag car it doesn't matter (to a point), but for road racing and the likes, I prefer a vehicle that feels solid. I may remove everything on the GS-R sometime and see how my feelings change on reinforcement....but for the time being...everything stays.

If the foam is really good...there won't be a need for the bars...

 

I only have experience with the civic but its a CX chassis exactly like yours. It did make the car feel a lot more solid and yes, you will notice it. Particularly when you loose all the weight of the extra bracing. The foam was really easy to use and like you said, 10 cans only adds about 10 to 15 pounds. I went hog wild with the stuff and filled the 'A' 'B' and 'C' pillers with it as well as the sills, rear cross brace and the voids in the members above the front wheels. It was probably over kill but it really made the car feel more rigid. Particularly since I don't have a cage and want to keep the car somewhat street friendly.

If you are ever up this way again I would love to show it off to you. I'm taking it to the HPDE at VIR in February, it'll be the first time I've had this one at the track and I cant wait to see how it performs (although I have a nasty part-throttle bog from the supercharger that I can't seem to figure out )

Mike

 

The foam is somewhat flexible once cured. I have a couple of blobs of it that squeezed out of small holes and the stuff is surprisingly strong but slightly resillient. I'm pretty impressed. From a structural standpoint it makes any hollow member much stronger laterally and much more resistant to buckling. Picture one of those inflateable 'moon bounce' tents, thats the effect. As an architect I have to know about this kind of stuff

PS. I don't have a clue how it would react in a crash or what it does to the crumple zones and I hope never to find out

Mike


[Modified by 92sleepR, 6:26 PM 1/24/2003]