BMP part question - BMW Forum

R_Atkinson · 05-14-2007, 11:33 PM

Tonight in a BMP catalog I saw a bar that goes across both strut towers to keep them from bowing in. I was wondering if anyone here had these and if they
really made any difference at all.

SpeedInfusion · 05-14-2007, 11:57 PM

yes, i had it in my 325 and im going to get it for my m3, i had the sparco strut bar from bimmerworld.com and it really made a difference to me....

Starmavin · 05-15-2007, 06:36 AM

Actually there has been no definitive testing that prove strut tower supports do anything, positive or negative....

gotKRAUT · 05-15-2007, 06:44 AM

except for that video that was all over the net of an in car video of a A1 rabbit...

Edit: damn i cant find the video...ok anyway

they pulled the hood off and mounted the camera on the windshield facing into the engine bay...they put another one on the inside of the rear hatch facing the rear strut towers...

they then proceded to drive it around a basic road course...the amount of flex was MIND BOGGLING....they then did the same run again with a set of front and rear tower braces and ultimately found that hinged braces are ussssssssssseeless and the solid welded 1 piece ones make a GIGANTIC difference..there was almost no movement at all..

Problem with that scenario...The A1 is a notouriously weak chassis so thats one of the main reasons for making such a huge difference...

Some Hope: It proved that there is flex and bars do make a big difference...will you notice it? maybe, maybe not...

but i do know that Before and After with my E30 and the Ireland Engineering Front Strut Tower brace there seems to be a tad more high speed stability in turns...so who knows...placebo? i dunno