TEC front strut bar review

[Dielectric]

I purchased the TEC front strut bar from ralliart3000gt on ebay for 299.98 shipped.

First impressions:

The bar was packaged very well. It was completely bubble wrapped, taped up, and protected by lots of crumpled news paper.

Upon removal and inspection of the bar the first thing I noticed was that it seemed heavy. So, I weighed it, and it came in at a hefty 4.5.lbs with the battery tie down.


Unpacked and unwrapped:













Installation:

The bar almost fit. On the most part everything lined up but required excessive force to coax into position. While torquing the bar down it observably contorted into position. At this point the bar was in direct contact with the engine, a sensor attached to the plenum and the corner of the plenum where the bar has a support piece welded on its underside. I didn’t bother moving forward with the installation, I marked the points of contact and removed the bar. Additionally, I required the assistance of a pry bar to separate the strut bar from the chassis.

I am very well aware that over time, usage, and manufacturing variations, vehicle tolerances can vary considerably, however, this should anticipated.

Before removing the bar I took notice of its state and observed a few interesting things. The surface of the strut tower mounting points are not flat, they have a ridge of overlapping sheet metal. Torquing the bar down to spec slightly bends the bar’s mounting bracket but still leaves a gap between where the bolts apply force to the bar and where bar applies force to the chassis. Also, there is a large distance of unsupported area from where the bar actually ends, the bar’s mounting points make contact with the strut tower, and the bolts that hold it down.

Driver’s side




Passenger’s side



Unsupported area, I believe when push comes to shove this area acts more like a spring rather than a solid structure.







Follow up:

I took the bar to our robotics lab at work to make some modifications. I widened all the mounting slots by .010 and extended the slot for the battery tie down stud by ~.050. Also, I milled out a little pocket for the sensor and removed some material for the driver’s side angle brace welded under the bar. Now, the bar falls into place with minimal effort. Furthermore, I highly doubt any of these modifications compromised structural integrity.







Upon reinstallation and re-torquing to spec (if I remember correctly, its 33 ft-lbs) the bar didn’t bend down nearly as far as it did during the first installation ( I was a little surprised by this, but I have some theories). Second thoughts, I could have easily done without milling the pocket or angle brace.


After installation and an exhilarating canyon carving adventure I was hard pressed to notice any structural improvement. However, I did notice the paint was pinched and curling up around the edges of where the bar actually makes contact with the strut towers. This was not present before the drive and indicates to me that there is still a whole lot of flexing going on. This is by no means an accurate or scientific evaluation of effectiveness, though.


Final thoughts:

The bar is entirely too heavy, the mounting points need improvement, and I am not a big fan of the 60 grit swirl finish. I would like to see a complete ring around the strut tower, a step on the underside to make full contact with the chassis, and the bar to extend and connect to a solid flat surface on top of the strut tower. A hollow rigid bar and three point mounting would definitely be a nice touch. I would expect the issues that surfaced during my initial fitting from a 100. bar and consequently feel that this bar is over priced for what it offers. Would I buy again, probably not.



Final installation:

[J-Groove]

Good write up, though disappointing. I have been wanting a good strut bar, but according to reviews the one sold by most of our vendors is not that good and the TEC was supposed to be good, but after your review I can see where the problems are.

Crap, we do need a quality strut bar for our platform.

Thanks for the review though, you have saved me some money.

-John

[GTO Assassin]

Agreed.... Awesome write up. It's a shame it's not a better fit. To me, from the pics and your assessment, it's like they haven't really finished the product. I hate it that I can't buy a torsion bar for my car and have it drop straight in.

Scotty

[94pearlRT/TT]

Who makes a decent bar for the 3s?


Daniel

[Synchro]

Who made that 3-point tube "bar" that mounts to both towers and the firewall?

[linchpinjoe]

subscribed

[J-Groove]

Originally Posted by Synchro

Who made that 3-point tube "bar" that mounts to both towers and the firewall?

It was a collaboration between EK2 and some others. There was a one time run of 10-20 made if I remember correctly.

Unfortunetly I did not have the money at the time.

-John

[Sean3S]

Carbing/Pitroad M

[DennisVR97]

Thanks for the extensive write-up. Of the bars on the market the TEC bar remains by far the most effective given it is not triangulated. Also, given what else is out there it is the highest quality ..... by far. A few points:

It is designed and tested in SolidWorks. Why there are gussets on the underside

There are a number of powder coated colors you can choose from.

The amount of material you removed was minimal. Are you sure your vehicle wasn't the cause? My bar dropped right in.

Although I have the front and rear bars, I'm not certain the front of the VR4 can benefit from a tower bar. Chassis design, under-bracing, bracing of the engine. Has anyone published data on tower deflection under load?

Yes, we're all looking to keep weight down, but 4.5 lbs in a 3600lb car ... that's too much? To potentially stiffen the front towers? How much weight would be reasonable?

The company owner/designer of the bar is responsive to comments/suggestions. Did you talk with him about your concerns/issues?

Yes, certainly not perfect. But compared to other bars for the 3S, this is an effective, quality piece. I suggest people attempt to compare side-by-side before making their decisions.

[DanF]

Originally Posted by J-Groove

It was a collaboration between EK2 and some others. There was a one time run of 10-20 made if I remember correctly.

Unfortunetly I did not have the money at the time.

-John

I don't recall that project ever getting off the ground, although I could be wrong. AFAIK, the Okuyama (rebadged by both Carbing and Pitroad-M) is the only 3 point bar in production.