I got leave from the 'honey do' list this weekend & installed the GTSpec rear braces.

The revised 'M' brace has considerably more exhaust clearance than the old one.
I have lots of room with my FI system.
I was happy that I could slid this in place w/o having to lower the exhaust to get it in. ....bonus

One tip for installing the 'M' and rear tie;
Since these use the rear toe & camber bolts to mount,
make a coupe of marks on the alignment cam, so that you get the alignment back where it was.

For installing the 6 point brace;
One of the mounting points requires a threaded chassis insert. (provided)
You NEED an impact gun to install these inserts to the chassis,
they will not install with a normal socket set.

...a few pics

Revised 'M' brace & 6 point


'M' brace clearance 1.



'M' brace clearance 2.
also note cam alignment marks at the rear tie brace.


This the location on the 6 point that requires the threaded chassis insert


front of 6 point clears X muffler, no problem.
the new plate is slightly larger than the OE

 

....IIRC, someone else commented that the rear 6 point provide the most improvement of all the GTSpec braces.

I agree completely!
The change in the car is very dramatic.
I noticed the extra stiffness just rolling out of the driveway.
A couple of minor creaks that I had, are gone.

After installing this, I can see why the 6 point does such a great job.
Basically it braces across the gap in the chassis caused by the gas tank.
The 6 point closes the bottom of this gap under the tank and connects directly to the rear suspension.

The car has a completely different feel just driving down the road.
It is so much more solid, unified and refined.
I could feel the rear suspension working so much smoother now.

Another benefit, that I didn't figure out right away....
When I got on the power, i.e. pulling away aggressively, everything seemed so much smoother.
I think what is happening is the rear tie & 'M' have reinforced the key suspension points,
and the rear cross member that supports the rear diff.
The extra bracing has minimised torquing of the rear powertrain,
letting the power get transmitted to the wheels much smoother.

I couldn't really push the car this morning with the cool wet roads,
even so, the handling improvements are significant.
I can't wait for the chance to get this baby out to the track.

All in all, I highly recommend these to anyone considering them.

 

Very nice Ian.
Now you will be wanting some track time to try out all these great suspension and handling mods.

 

definitely!!!

 

Sweet write up Ian, thanks it'll help me out once I've come around to buying a set of these. One question, did you have a hard Time re-installing the cam arms? I mean did you have to use a lot of force to get it aligned well with the hole it was in? Or was it smooth and easy to move around?

 

It was no problem at all.
You only have to remove the nut itself.
The cam and bolt stay in place.
Also, I needed a long breaker bar to get them loose on my car.

I tried to keep the position as close as possible w/o moving it at all.
But, it will shift a minor amount as you loosen.

Now that my JICs are settled in nicely & I have finished playing with height.
I'll be going in for an alignment soon.
I wanted to get these braces installed before that too.

 

WTF Ian?!?
I can't keep up with this rate of modding.

 

Hey Ian!

Nice mods!!!

Where in the TeeDot do you get your GTSpec products from?

I'm thinking of getting these bars also.

 

I ordered from rick at Riverside.
I don't think you'll find them in the T-Dot, unless someone like Speedstar would bring them in.

 

How long did it take for your order to arrive?

What kind of costs are involves once it gets to your door? Duties? Taxes? Brokerage?

 

I had a load to pick up, so I shipped to Niagara Falls & brought it across myself.
Saved the duty & brokerage, just paid local taxes.

Shipping time is ~ 5days; if they have stock.
They sell out quickly with this stuff.

 

Nice review. It convinced me to get the 6pt brace--good price from site sponsor B2AutoDesigns. I would get the M brace but don't like the idea of messing with the camber bolts.

BTW, noticed your custom wood jackstand pad. You are definitely legit!!!

 

That's a great write up Ian and even better sounding results!

I can only imagine how much better your car performs with this and the difference over an X.

 

Please pick an acorn from that very fruitful money tree in your back yard and send it my way I swear you spent like 5g's in the last month or so

I was wondering if this would actually benefit our cars. Seeing as our setup is almost the same, now it's on my long list of parts to buy

 

Congrats Ian!

btw, did you end up finding out if the 6pt brace works for the x?