Hey again guys, I'm taking my Sapphire out to my first trackday soon and I was wanting to buy a Strut brace before I take it onto the track to help stiffen everything up.

Living in New Zealand makes it hard to shoot down to thte local performance shop and have a look at some smaples as all we have over here are braces to fit the many thousands of Japanese performance cars

Im quite keen on a Silver Aluminium Sparco brace but I cant find any pictures of them installed on Sapphires.
I'm hoping the brace wont restrict my access to and of my spark plugs as taking the brace off every time I needed access would be a pain in the arse, I'm also praying that one will just bolt straight in and I wont have to move anything in the engine bay like my turbo heat shield for instance.

Any suggestions on good brands etc?.

Cheers

 

Hi Oliver....look at this website...

i guess this one is the best to buy...
http://www.randbmotorsport.co.uk/sho...?ProductID=120

 

Cheers Wim

I'd definately prefer something like you posted in that link, as having one that actually helps with handling rather than looking "bling" is a must for me.

Obviously having a bling looking one that works is always a bonus :P

 

Hi Snow,
I have a sparco aluminium strut brace on my sapphire access is ok for everything. The original heatshield will need a small amount taking out of it though to clear it.

CheeRS, Mike.

 

Do you notice the difference with it Mike?.
Are Sparco braces just bling or do they actually stiffen things up mate?
The one on RandB motorsport lokks like it certainly does the trick, but it's twice as expensive as the sparco one

 

Hi Snow,
I dont know if it makes a real big difference on normal day to day driving, I should imagine it would really help stiffen up the front end if you are a bit of a speed demon on the roads or doing regular track days though. I cant imagine not having one fitted now as it was already on the car when I brought it, and I have just got used to it being part of the car!
Looks good too

CheeRS, Mike

 

Hey Mike, do you have a pic of your engine bay mate?.
I cant find f@#k all pics of Strut Braces on Cosworths.
All I can find is tiny thumb nails from websites, nothing very big though

 

Hi Snow,
I will try and get a picture of the engine bay put on tomorrow mate, its a bit dark over here now to be taking piccies , watch this space.

CheeRS, Mike.

 

That's the one you want

 

hi snow mate
we usually chat on the rsoc bb mate
here is a pic of my 500 engine bay with a omp brace mate just to give you a idear it works on my car and remember my 500 is running just over 450 bhp dyno proven mate
the brace cost £81.00 mate if you like the look of it go on e-bay and put in omp sierra cosworth strut brace
they post world wide mate

 

Hi snow,try http://www.philloy.co.uk/stock.asp?cat=Cosworth
notice how the brace goes down the side of the suspension turet for added stregth.
Heres a pic of mine


cheers ARY

 

Cheers Darren & ARY.
Both with very nice engine bays
I guess it's decision time now

 

Hey ARY is the philloy Single Strut brace adjustable at all mate?.
I've looked at there website but it's a bit hard to tell by the pictures mate?.
I like the look of it, nice and shiny , the only other question is... Does it actually work well mate?. Having the brace come down the side of the suspension turret would definately be helpful in my opinion.

 

Hi Snow,
as promised a couple of photos of the strut brace, this is fully adjustable using a turnbuckle arrrangement:





CheeRS, MIke.

 

Hi snow,as far as i can see they are not adjustable.
You would have to go with something like the 1 vyper developments has in the pic above.
As for your last question you've answerd it yourself,yes i think it does help.
Cheers ARY

 

oliver...you need a strutbrace which also fix on the inner struts....the group a one and the philloy one do that...the others dont...

btw...very nice engine bays i saw...

 

There's some seriously effeminate buftyism in this thread

 

You're jealous aren't you Stealth

I know I am

 

pj motorsport do a nice billet alloy one at about £250 i think. fully adjustable & looks the nuts

 

Ideally you need one that pushes the turrets apart, rather than bolts on tpo of them. As on Mike Rainbird's site it's stated as "A strut brace that actually works" and he is correct.

 

Yea mate, cheers.
That's now the plan, Im probably going to get one of the philloy ones.

http://www.philloy.co.uk/stock.asp?cat=Cosworth&id=29

As it's bling but has the side turret fixings also
Cheers for all the help guys

 

I have a brace made by a german company that wors well. and looks nice to. cant remember the name though right now. I just wish it were adjustable.
I noticed a good difference after install. I upgraded my sway bar later and this helped even more. however I run a 2.0i pinto motor not the cosworth motor.

TF

 

Excellent choice, Philloy are the nuts!

 

[quote="smidsy"][quote="snow*"]To bad the Philloy doesnt fit the OHC model sierras. :-( I do like the looks, but, ohh well.

TF

 

Sorry to bump this thread lads...
I'm curiuos ARY as to where you buy all your bling from mate as that's one of the nicest if not the nicest engine bays I've seen.
Living in New Zealand all I ever see is Subarus and Evolutions and other Japanese crap.

 

hi snow, all the tanks are from http://www.spec-r.co.uk/
the hoses are fom ROOSE MOTORSPORT
you can email paul roose at roosemotorsport@aol.com or phone him
01522787187
another pic of the stainless steel hoses by roose


cheers ARY

 

Shit mate, very nice.
Can you PM or just post here some more pics of your engine bay and also your car mate

 

hi snow,some more pics for you






hope these are ok for you
cheers ARY

 

Holy sh!t, I think I need some tissues to wipe up mate
That has got to be the nicest Sierra I think I've seen,

Well done mate, Im sure you've put in alot of time and money into your car.

 

hi snow,to be honest i was very lucky to buy this car last year with all the hard work done.
all i've done is added a few more bling bits and bobs,changed the wheels
(came with oz super t's).have sold the wheels in the pics now though ready to get some different ones over the winter for next year show season.
i have also upgraded to stage 3 (t34,greens,etc)
the underside has been like that since 1997 when it was concours
thanks for your coments
cheers ARY

 

3DOOR ARY

 

*bump*

Sorry for the late thread revival guys.
My new Philloy Strut Brace has just arrived from the U.K as I'm chuffed.
Before I fit it I thought I'd ask a quick question.
Once you've drilled the M8 holes through the tops of the Suspension turrets how the heck do you tighten up the nuts from up under the suspension turrets?. I'm a pretty lanky guy with thin wrists and I'm hoping there's an easy way to reach up under there to get a socket or spanner on the nuts to tighten them up.
Please don't tell me you need to remove the front suspension to get your hands up in there?. Perhaps I just need to remove the front wheels for a bit more hand clearence.



Any ideas or help would be greatly appreciated
Cheers guys.

 

Took the wheels off to fit mine, ive got coilovers, which give a bit more room. Rekon you'd need pretty nimble fingers if you have standard shocks.

 

if its any help, i have the omp strutbrace,access all areas but is not adjustable