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02-16-2017, 12:30 AM | #1 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 210441
Join Date: May 2009
Chapter/Region:
RMIC
Location: Longmont, CO
Vehicle:2002 WRX 6MT RA-ish PSM |
Rear chassis strut triangulation brace - GD chassis - bolt in
Anyone interested in a bolt-in rear chassis brace for their GD chassis? I only made 1 model to test in my car and it works wonderfully. If anyone is interested I will need to spend some time fabbing up some jigs to cut and weld the parts. I'm not a pro welder and MIG it in my garage. The welds may not be 100% perfect and pretty but are fully functional for the stress that this rig sees.
My first model is using 1.5" OD 0.120" thick wall DOM steel tubing but the thickness is overkill so I plan on sourcing thinner stock for future builds. The downside is the need to drill through the inner trunk sides and floor to bolt it in. I plan on supplying rubber washers on the outside of bolt mounts to inhibit water and the elements getting into the car. The bottom plate mount is setup to drill and mount via 3 bolts where 2 panels are spot welded, so it mounts into a double thick area that will provide enough support. I did set up a test to see how much stiffening it provides by mounting a bar to the top seat chassis area to the floor. I tested the chassis flex by jacking 1 corner of the car up at a time, in the rear from under the tire to mimic force coming from the tire through the suspension only. The original flex was about 1/4" and with the support installed decreased to 1/8". I know that doesn't sound like a lot but for chassis flex in the area that the test bar is mounted that sounds like a lot to me and is likely more from the top to the bottom of the car. Photos of that are on my facebook page in the link below. I know shipping won't be cheap but I can figure that out if anyone is interested. The cost of the raw steel is not that much and I wouldn't charge an arm and a leg to fab it. At the moment I do not have a plan for paint/powdercoat but can get to that in the future if enough people are interested. I have stiff coilovers, 25mm sway bars, rear subframe lockout bolts, and GroupN rear suspension bushings installed so everything in the rear was ready for this. The rear of my car is very stiff and highly predictable. I autocross and ran a track day with this installed and the car feels like a go cart, with every turn highly predictable with nearly no flex or play in the rear. https://www.facebook.com/pg/Stiff-Fa...34524586858784 I'm located in Longmont, Colorado. Anyone local is more than welcome to contact to meet up to check it out.
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Last edited by rideAC1; 09-06-2017 at 01:21 AM. |
02-17-2017, 01:03 PM | #2 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 305358
Join Date: Dec 2011
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I really hope you have mount plates underneath or you're going to tear the sheet metal...
Also I didn't quite understand where you measured 1/4" of deflection. Can you take a photo please? |
02-17-2017, 01:36 PM | #3 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 210441
Join Date: May 2009
Chapter/Region:
RMIC
Location: Longmont, CO
Vehicle:2002 WRX 6MT RA-ish PSM |
I did not mount plates on the other side of the mounting plates, other than washers. I used 4 bolts on each of the side plates. I do however plan to remove the brace to make a jig for further builds and I will see if any of the holes got ovalized because of that.
The support can ideally be welded in but without stripping out the interior and oem undercoating I didn't want to chance causing any fires, especially on the bottom near the gas tank. I have to compile the photos of the measuring device to show the flex and changes with-without the brace and post some day soon. Here is how I mounted a bar to the seat top area and a ruler to the floor area to measure the flex between the two. |
04-13-2017, 01:14 AM | #4 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 210441
Join Date: May 2009
Chapter/Region:
RMIC
Location: Longmont, CO
Vehicle:2002 WRX 6MT RA-ish PSM |
Bump. Any interest? Any constructive criticism? I know the brace would optimally be welded in but unless your chassis is stripped that's difficult and unsafe to do.
I found a noticeable improvement and for the low cost it's a nice upgrade. |
04-14-2017, 06:34 PM | #5 |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 335538
Join Date: Oct 2012
Chapter/Region:
South East
Location: TN
Vehicle:2007 STi - Kornluvr WRB |
Oswald and TIC have really good ones that require no sheet metal damage or hole drilling. I have the Oswald and it's well worth the entry fee.
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04-16-2017, 01:15 AM | #6 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 198108
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Australia
Vehicle:MY98 WRX Blue |
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04-17-2017, 12:23 AM | #7 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 210441
Join Date: May 2009
Chapter/Region:
RMIC
Location: Longmont, CO
Vehicle:2002 WRX 6MT RA-ish PSM |
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04-17-2017, 12:23 AM | #8 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 210441
Join Date: May 2009
Chapter/Region:
RMIC
Location: Longmont, CO
Vehicle:2002 WRX 6MT RA-ish PSM |
|
04-18-2017, 03:17 PM | #9 |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 2692
Join Date: Oct 2000
Chapter/Region:
TXIC
Location: SoCal & TX
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Pretty cool.
If you made something for the GC/GF chassis you may have less competition. Then again who said competition is a bad thing. Plenty of cars out there. |
09-06-2017, 01:21 AM | #10 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 210441
Join Date: May 2009
Chapter/Region:
RMIC
Location: Longmont, CO
Vehicle:2002 WRX 6MT RA-ish PSM |
bump!
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09-06-2017, 10:51 PM | #11 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 209401
Join Date: Apr 2009
Chapter/Region:
NWIC
Location: Kennewick WA
Vehicle:2005 Sti Silver |
How much are you selling these for?
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09-08-2017, 01:13 AM | #12 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 210441
Join Date: May 2009
Chapter/Region:
RMIC
Location: Longmont, CO
Vehicle:2002 WRX 6MT RA-ish PSM |
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