Ok, so when I did searches on this before it seemed pretty straightforward, as it should.

I just spent the last 45 minutes trying to get the brackets to sit flush so that I can screw them down but have had no luck at all. It seems the fit isn't right on and needs a lot of forcing to get it to sit correctly. Since it's metal on metal, there's really not anymore forcing that I see I can do.

I had to remove a few screws on both sides, outside of the 3 screws on each side of the tower, in order to be able to lift the hoses and get the brackets underneath. That's about as far as I could get though since now 2 of the 3 holes line up but the 3rd one won't match up. This causes the bracket to have a 1 cm or so clearance and isn't sitting flush.

Attached are some pics...

Have you guys had this much trouble in getting these to sit flush?

Driver's side:



Green circle is the bracket on the car I had to unscrew to be able to get some clearance. Blue circle is the part that I had to tuck the GTSpec bracket under in order for it to fit. This required some pulling as the metal tubes barely budge.



As you can see, the bracket still has some clearance on the bottom and it's not sitting flush. I've tried pushing it down with no luck.

Passenger side:


Bracket is getting roughed up quite a bit trying to shove it against the black metal bracket in the car in order for it to fit.


Major clearance issues on the passenger side where the bracket is far from sitting flush.


Blue circle is the screw that had to be removed to get some clearance to fit the bracket under. Green circle is where the main problem is (I think) for this side. The bracket can't fit with that black bracket in the way. I've tried shoving it in which is causing the GTSpec bracket to get roughed up big time, but there's not much room to get it to fit with all 3 holes lining up....

Am I missing something here?? No way I thought this install would be this much of a hassle. It just doesn't seem like the brackets are made to fit correctly and require a lot of forcing.

 

Fix your pics dude They're not opening I think you chose the wrong code Choose the BBC forums one

I'll try helping you once I can get a better glimpse of what you're dealing with

For me the AC lines on the driver side had to be nudged a bit (be careful) and then the black lines on the driver side had to be forcefully pushed aside, carefully as well to make the brackets fit in.

 

Brackets on this strut bar look way to thick which is a real problem! I installed a Rickie strut bar 9 years ago, it fit perfectly and didn't need to move or force anything! My only issue was I dropped a nut which disappeared into the black hole never to be seen again...which I replaced!
Gary

 

Not sure if the pics are fixed or not but instead of doing a URL link, I did it as an image. Still can't figure out how to get the images to just show up without having to click on a link to do so...

Hopefully you can see it now. I did have trouble with the AC lines (is that the metal tubing) but managed to get it to tuck under. It is having trouble hitting the wall close to the windshield and won't budget to fit.

That's what I thought too...I just don't see how this is supposed to require so much force in order to fit. After applying that much force, either the bracket or something in the car has to bend to fit it.

Every thread I've seen on the GTSpec one being difficult to install just mentioned that you have to use brute force and it will fit. I don't see how that is possible without chipping away at the metal.

 

I installed gtspec this summer. I had to start the bolts on both sides with the bar attached. A buddy helped keep pressure on the bar and I had to put mucho force & leverage my weight and height. Once you get one bolt a side the rest is cake.

 

This is kind of a stupid question but when you're applying all that force, isn't the bracket or the metal in the car going to get scratched up or chipped big time?

I just don't see how it's possible without doing that which is why I haven't applied as much force as I probably should. The black bracket on the passenger side has to get bent or something to get it to fit.

The firewall on the drivers side has to be bent in for that side to fit...

 

Consider this, if you need to apply massive force to anything to make it fit there's a problem...it's a trash part! Hood clearance has always been an issue with upper strut bars, now you have a bracket that already sticks up an extra 1/2" it shouldn't. I'd send the part back or sell it and buy an upper strut bar that fits!
Gary

 

Do the brackets fit fine without the bar?

Mine were fine, had to loosen the AC line on the right & remove a couple of little brackets around it and replace afterwards.

Putting the bar on with the brackets in place was impossible for me. I read a previous post on here & got the tip to do it how I did.

If your brackets don't fit, listen to Gary.

 

Would help if the pics were working. Mine was a PITA to install as well. The AC lines can be moved if you unclip them and remove the brackets. I do remember having issues with one of the AC line brackets but I think I bent it a little so everything sat flush. That strut bar requires some work to install properly. And yes, you will scratch up the paint.

 

Fixed the pictures guys, sorry about that. Hopefully it's clearer now what my problem is.

I agree in that I don't think I should need a lot of force to get this thing in properly. But aren't these all pretty standard?? I mean I don't think GTSpec could've manufactured a lemon in my case that is harder to install than normal.

I took the bar apart and am installing it with the brackets separately before I put the bar back on. I figured it'd be easier to do it this way...

 

There is nothing wrong with your GT Spec bar, dont listen to Gary. You need to move a couple wire looms and hoses, and install the brackets separately, then install the bar into the brackets. I installed my GT Spec bar about a year ago with no issues. A few months ago, I had the brackets powder coated, so had to re-install it, again with no issues.
I can take some close up pics showing how they are supposed to line up if that would help.

 

If you can take some pics that'd definitely help. The main problems I'm running into here are that there just isn't any more wiggle room to make it sit in place correctly. The passenger side bracket is having trouble fitting due to it coming against the black bracket shown in the pics (it's the black bracket that screws the hose down).

On the driver side it's the firewall that needs to budge so that the bracket can sit flush. All holes are lined up on that side and it is tucked under that metal hose. Just need to push it down to fill the gap but I'm afraid the pressure will snap that tube since the GTSpec bracket is tucked under there.

 

Will do. give me a few minutes.

 

Thats kind of a tricky spot to get pictures of. Hopefully these help somewhat.
And sorry for the wait, I think Photobucket is way slower than it used to be...

First is the passenger side. Are you sure that little tab that's in your way hasn't been bent? Try to bend it slightly towards the front of the car to see if that frees up some space. I guess the same could go for the drivers side.





Here is the drivers side. Are you sure you don't have a hose under the front of the STB bracket keeping it from going down all the way?




Good luck, and let me know if you need any more specific pictures.

 

Thanks Scott, really appreciate it! I'll take a look and compare tomorrow but it's possible the things you pointed out could be why I'm having trouble. At first glance though, the positioning of my hoses and that tab on the passenger side do not look like the setup in your car. I don't recall ever touching those so not sure why it'd be different...

I'll report back tomorrow morning after checking it out again. Thanks for the help!