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Under body brace vs sway bar for the money; Let the debate begin (if there is one)
Topic Started: Jun 30 2015, 02:52 AM (5,414 Views)
Bannedfonz
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Well, you guys are a bad influence! So my wife says anyway... :rocker

I've been looking into the addition of front and rear sway bars.

My local pull a part doesn't have crap for geo or swift parts. That being said, I found the sway bars on Ebay for around $50 a piece, obviously I would have to buy the end links and bushings and all that to.

I talked to MAC about his braces and he said if I buy all 3 he will give me a discount (Ebay is $90 for the front and $80 for the rear + the under body) but I doubt it will be as cheap as the sway bars.... I also toyed around in the garage yesterday and made a rear brace out of some metal chain link fence posts I had laying around. The mount isn't great, I took a vice and pinched the ends, drilled a hole and used one of the shock mount screws. I know the front will be more work and I'm not equipped to do the under body...

So my question is would it be a better investment to buy the sway bars and parts to do the swap or go through MAC and get the under body brace and front and rear strut tower braces?

I do have 13's on it but no other suspension upgrades. Stock struts and shocks are in good shape yet. Car only has 84,000 miles on it now and I don't drive it like I stole it (yet)!

I'm going to step out on a limb here and say that after reading on here a bunch of info on both, I'm leaning towards the sway bars. Seems like that is the best overall choice but looking for input from people that have one or the other... By the way, not doing both right now! This was bought as a second car since we only had our Camry, budget is very limited...


Thanks guys :thumb

Edited by Bannedfonz, Jun 30 2015, 02:54 AM.
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Dattman
Express Shopper

Front lower brace and rear swaybar, thats the essentials for dialing out the dreadful understeer.
Don't bother with the other braces, complete waste of time and money, Mac's brace is a cheap knockoff copy of the turbine tech, it's not the best design but it's the best value for money by far.

Start with the rear swaybar, get the biggest one you can find, I think the swift sedan and mk3 swift are 18mm(someone correct me if I'm wrong), if you don't have the inserts in the tire well you can just use alloy blocks and giant washers to mount it, I've run the rear bar in my swift race car for 7 years this way with out an issue.
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z34-5speed
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Formerly "Tech Certified"

Biggest difference you will make is with the underbody brace.

The front and rear brace help, but most people wouldn't notice a difference with or without them. The swaybars are personal preference to me.

I've got Metro sedan sway bars on mine, and it feels better overall.

I'd go with just the underbody brace for now, then sways, then front/rear brace last.
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Woodie
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Swaybars from the junkyard, they'll cost you next to nothing. Then you'll have the money for the front lower brace, the other braces aren't anywhere near as important.
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geogonfa
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Just my .02...sway bars first with new bushings, then the front lower brace... :type
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Old Man


geogonfa
Jun 30 2015, 06:47 AM
Just my .02...sway bars first with new bushings, then the front lower brace... :type
:gp :gp :gp :gp
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Murf 59
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geogonfa
Jun 30 2015, 06:47 AM
Just my .02...sway bars first with new bushings, then the front lower brace... :type
Sway bars and braces do different things. Sway bars stop body roll when you take a corner. Braces keep your strut towers from flexing and moving when cornering hard. I installed a front sway bar on my DD, and noticed a nice improvement. I ran that way for several years. Now I have them front and rear. And I a strut tower brace on top, and a under body brace too. It makes the car very solid. It just depends on what you are looking to do? For me the biggest gain was sway bars.
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brsja
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:coche

Question for the suspension and handling experts, I'm not one...

If cost and effort were no factor and we are looking at strictly performance...

Would the front (and maybe rear) strut tower braces make a big impact? :nfs

Reason I ask is just from me looking at the structure of the unibody. Not much structure holds the top front struts together, but the bottom end has lots of metal all around it...it seems like a top strut tower brace would complete the box and give good support to the wheels/steering...very amateur view I know, but as stated above...not a suspension or handling expert....
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solerpower
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I would go sway bars and Energy suspension bushings 9.8105 (G) or (R) for endlink bushings. They are around $13 for front and rear. The swaybar bushings you will have to measure the bar diameter first. 24 mm fronts are 9.5128 (G) or (R), and rears 19 mm are 9.5123 (G) or (R). I can personally say that they are a great investment. I had the fronts put to the test at speed and was very pleased with the handling.
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snowfish
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Basic GearHead

Definitely Sway Bars, with new bushings and end links, and the Front Under Brace. :thumb Money well spent. :deal And don't skip the under brace. :shake A 4 point Turbine Tech would be best choice. I think the MAC is only a 2 point. :hmm

Upper braces Do help. But they need to be a 3 point to work the best. MAC's are only 2 point. A true 3 point will cost substantially more. :deal If you can find them. :news I made my own 3 point uppers. :gamerz

In my signature, Extreme make over......SnowFish Addiction, is the link to my suspension mods,
and other shenanigans. ;) Handles more like a go-cart than a Metro. :nfs :cheers
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Mythstae
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snowfish
Jun 30 2015, 10:45 AM
A 4 point Turbine Tech would be best choice. I think the MAC is only a 2 point. :hmm
No, the MAC brace is a 4-point, as well.
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snowfish
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Basic GearHead

Mythstae
Jun 30 2015, 10:49 AM
snowfish
Jun 30 2015, 10:45 AM
A 4 point Turbine Tech would be best choice. I think the MAC is only a 2 point. :hmm
No, the MAC brace is a 4-point, as well.
I stand corrected. :ashamed Then Yes! :thumb Still like the Turbine Tech one better, though. :wub:
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Mythstae
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snowfish
Jun 30 2015, 11:08 AM
Mythstae
Jun 30 2015, 10:49 AM
snowfish
Jun 30 2015, 10:45 AM
A 4 point Turbine Tech would be best choice. I think the MAC is only a 2 point. :hmm
No, the MAC brace is a 4-point, as well.
I stand corrected. :ashamed Then Yes! :thumb Still like the Turbine Tech one better, though. :wub:
:) I have a Turbine Tech brace on my car.
I may get a MAC brace for one of the other, numerous, Metros around here.
Compare and contrast? :hmm
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banginmetro64
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would be cool if there was a group buy again for the underbody braces. i would like to get one. or just a link of where to get one now
Edited by banginmetro64, Jun 30 2015, 11:30 AM.
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perfesser
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Elite Member - Former Metro owner

You're asking about two completely different things. As Murf said, the brace is structural and the sway bars are handling. What is your objective? They both work to improve handling, but what they do and how is totally different.

If body flex is a problem, you either have a very aggressive driving style or a weakened chassis. The Metro's design is not intended for high performance driving. The frame horns stick out forward with no lateral reinforcement, and the lower control arms are attached to them. Perfectly okay for normal driving, but your question implies you're thinking of going beyond that.

If body roll is a problem, you have a very aggressive driving style that is pushing beyond the suspension's limits. You can get as deeply into a discussion of spring and damping rates, cornering efficiency, g forces, load transfer, etc, etc as you can handle. This is an area where every fanboy on the Internet has firmly held opinions, some (not many) grounded in reality, but the vast majority aren't worth the pixels they're printed on. At the University I teach a junior level course in chassis engineering and performance handling. I am continually amazed at some of the stuff my students spout!

Sway bars work by transferring load across the axle when cornering hard. Without getting all technical here, they improve available traction and reduce body roll. They make a significant difference that can be felt immediately (until you get used to it!) You can use the sway bar spring rates to adjust your over- and under- steering. With the right rates you can also use softer rates on the suspension springs for a more comfortable ride.

Braces work by stiffening the chassis and eliminating deflection in it. The forces that cause these deflections are focused back into the suspension where you want them. The underbody brace stiffens the control arms. You can also get a top brace that ties the tops of the struts together to stiffen them.

Sway bars address dynamic handling. Braces are static. They both have a place in getting the best performance from your car.

Many people use a front underbody brace to get a few more miles from a rusting-out frame. That's not really what they are designed for, but they work (sorta).

Your choice should be made based on what you want to do with the car, not what someone else thinks you should do. I added a front sway bar to mine and it really perked it up. Since then I found a front and rear set at a friendly pnp (thanks Jeff!) I haven't installed them yet, but they're on the list. I have no plans for a brace (at this time!)

I used to live in Jasper back in the 80s. First place was on Newton, then we moved to the top of Main Street right by the golf course. I was working for a company whose name starts with a "K", but I was not genetically qualified for higher advancement (if you know what I mean!)
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