Jump to content
SAU Community

Recommended Posts

Ok, update.

I've received some payments, so thanks very much to those of you who forwarded so quickly. :thumbsup:

I'm currently painting (and trying to dry in cold conditions :rant:), so we should be on track for a mid week post run. This will hopefully see everyone braced up by the weekend, or very early next week.

Thanks again for your support, and if anyone else would like one; I'm planning another run in around 2 weeks.

You can already get the Freeway Dolphin ones, and they do stiffen up the front quite substantially, but if you plan on running a plenum spacer there isn't anything available.

If you were going to get something, you'd have to get it to go behind the plenum. There's a little bit of room back there, but not sure if you could design something stiff enough with that many bends?

hey dale,

Totally off topic but how bout underbonnet strut brace. Would you be doing one or a group buy of these in the future?? If so im in...

You can already get the Freeway Dolphin ones, and they do stiffen up the front quite substantially, but if you plan on running a plenum spacer there isn't anything available.

If you were going to get something, you'd have to get it to go behind the plenum. There's a little bit of room back there, but not sure if you could design something stiff enough with that many bends?

^^^^^This.

The issue ends up being able to get enough stiffness when you applying the forces to the strut tower from so far back.

All of the reading I've done into Double A arm suspensions, suggests that they don't benefit from strut braces in the same way that McPherson strut style set ups do.

Because of the action of the suspension; the forces tend not to push the strut towers toward each other in the same way as a McPherson strut set up. Not saying that there isn't any benefit (there obviously is)just that the improvement is much less apparent.

Also, I can't really see a way to do it without tagging back to the firewall; which I'm really lax to do. I don't imagine many people are going to want to drill holes in their firewall to fit a strut brace.

Also the degree of complexity, and the number of parts; starts to push the price past what people are prepared to spend.

Edited by Daleo

I don't think you would significantly notice the strut brace in isolation, but when you pair it with the sway bars, coilovers, etc, it makes a difference.

Mine turns in significantly better than a number of others, and that was before I changed all the bushes, and before the under body bracing. It feels unbelievable, and I've had guys drive mine, and be passengers, and they can't believe the way it changes direction.

Sure, its no MX-5, but it's about 800kg heavier, and its designed for people who actually have friends/a life.

Just picked up my "Super Deluxe Cool-Style Spec Daleo Chassis Brace" from the post office! :woot:

I think I'll be doing some installation tomorrow morning...

Nice one mate; Auspost finally understand they must deliver MY parts the fastest. :yes:

Have fun mate; let me know what you think of the improvement!

I must say, this is simply and utterly

FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!

All of 10 minutes to fit it including jacking up the stag

Mine is completely standard apart from some really soft Japanese coil overs which came with the car, but my god what a difference it makes, confidently turns in, very noticible

Great work Dale ;)

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • Cheers. Skyline is back on the menu, can’t get rid of it. It’s like a child you don’t want, or herpes 
    • I got back to Japan in January and was keen to get back on track as quickly as possible. Europe is god-awful for track accessibility (by comparison), so I picked up a first-gen GT86 in December just to have something I could jump into right away. The Skyline came over in a container this time and landed in early January. It was a bit battered after Europe, though—I refused to do anything beyond essential upkeep while it was over there. The clutch master cylinder gave out, and so did the power steering. I didn’t even bother changing the oil; it was the same stuff that went in just before I left Japan the first time. Naughty. Power steering parts would’ve cost double with shipping and taxes, so knowing I’d be heading back to Japan, I just postponed it and powered through the arm workout. It took a solid three months to get the car back on the road. Registration was a nightmare this time around. There were a bunch of BS fees to navigate, and sourcing parts was a headache. I needed stock seats for shaken, mistakenly blew 34k JPY on some ENR34 seats—which, of course, didn’t fit—then ended up having the car’s technical sheet amended to register it as a two-seater with the Brides. Then there’s the GT86. Amazing car. Does everything I want it to do. Parts are cheap, easy to find, and I don’t care what anyone says—it’s super rewarding to drive. I’ve done a few basic mods: diff ratio, coilovers, discs, pads, seat, etc. It already had a new exhaust manifold and the 180kph limiter removed, so I assume it’s running some kind of map. I’ve just been thrashing it at the track non-stop—mostly Fuji Speedway now, since I need something with higher speed after all that autobahn time. The wheels on the R34 always pissed me off—too big, and it was a nightmare getting tires to fit properly under the arches. So I threw in the towel and bought something that fits better. Looks way cleaner too (at least to me)—less hotboy, less attention-seeking. Still an R34, though. Now for future plans. There are a few things still outstanding with the car. First up, the rear subframe needs an overhaul—that’s priority one. Next, I need to figure out an engine rebuild plan. No timeline yet, but I want to keep it economical—not cutting corners, just not throwing tens of thousands at a mechanic I can barely communicate with. And finally, paint. Plus a bit of tidying up here and there.  
    • Nope, needed to clearance under the bar a little with a heat gun, a 1/2" extension as the "clearancer", and big hammer, I was aware of this from the onset, they fit a 2.0 with this intake no problems, but, the 2.5 is around 15mm taller than a 2.0, so "clearancing" was required  It "just" touched when test fitting, now, I have about 10mm of clearance  You cannot see where it was done, and so far, there's no contact when giving it the beans Happy days
    • It's been a while since I've updated this thread. The last year (and some) has been very hectic. In the second-half of 2024 I took the R34 on a trip through Germany, Italy, France and Switzerland - it was f*cking great. I got a little annoyed with the attention the car was getting around Europe and really didn't drive it that much. I could barely work on the car since I was living in an inner-city apartment (with underground parking). During the trip, the car lost power steering in France - split hose - and I ended up driving around 4,000kms with no power steering.  There were a few Nurburgring trips here and there, but in total the R34 amassed just shy of 7,000kms on European roads. Long story short, I broke up with the reason I was transferred to Europe for and requested to be moved back to Japan. The E90, loved it. It was a sunk cost of around EUR 10,000 and I sold it to a friend for EUR 1,500 just to get rid of it quickly. Trust me, moving countries f*cking sucks and I could not be bothered to be as methodical as I was the first time around.
×
×
  • Create New...