Strut tower braces

[erratic50]

I spent some time today with my son working on our 1986 Mustangs. We decided today was the day to install our strut tower braces.

His car is a completely stock suspension rag to that's a well maintained example with just over 100K miles. It was a strut brace virgin..

Mine is a high miles hatch I just upgraded to SN95 sourced spindles. My car has low miles stock GT front springs, a new stock rack, rebuilt A arms an K member, X2 ball joints, caster/camber plates, etc. it sits around 1" lower than stock,

A few years ago I switched to a Typhoon EFI intake while testing parts before I go forward with tearing my car down entirely and building my dream stang. This meant removing the HPM strut tower brace and buying one that will clear a tall intake. Maximum motorsports makes one that does. It affixes to the pinch welds under hood rather than attaching to the cowl.

We started by taking the convertible out for a spirited drive then switched to installing the HPM brace. This brace is one that triangulates to the cowl. We could tell right away that the bar made a huge difference.

Next we switched to working on the hatchback. Again we went for a spirited drive then got started.

The MM bar easily clears the tall intake and fits great.

MM brace is harder to install by quite a bit because I have added a double adjustable clutch quadrant and the adjuster on the firewall gets in the way of putting on the washer and but if you install the bolt from the top or in the way of the bolt if you try to install it from the bottom. The vacuum line block is totally in the way as are the AC line on passenger side and brake lines both sides too. I moved what I had to and ultimately put in the bolts from the bottom facing up as then I could get a washer and a nut on them.

IMO the MM bar looks great when it's installed.

Be prepared to use an old oils bottle with the bottom cut off as a funnel from now on - especially with the HPM which uses the same bar routing as the Ford Motorsports and BBK, etc, AFAIK

ive had both types in the hatch - which stinks because of all the holes - but i thought the crew here would like to know our impressions.

When we took the hatch out for a spirited drive after the install it was obvious why the bar connects how it does. I had the HPM bar on it from 1994 until the intake swap so I thought I knew what to expect in that car. WOW I was wrong!

In a good better best type view the MM bar is like none other. Absolutely staggering great results from the MM bar.

I would say if you're thinking about getting a strut tower brace, DO IT! Be sure to get the right one or you'll have 6 extra holes in your car when you install the next one.

The old cowl attached braces have impressive results. The MM braces show very impressive results. Night and day better than the cowl style.

[cb650]

can you post a close up of how it bolts to the tower?

[erratic50]

I will snap picts and post went I get back home from another busy week of business trips.

I forgot to mention - I converted my 86 to MAF. On the passenger side the MM brace hit the MAF when it was installed in what I believe to be the 89 and up factory location while using a factory 89 bracket and a 1993 cobra 70MM MAF. I inserted 3/4" plastic spacers and moved the MAF to a height where it lines up directly with the air box. I used a 4" air duct splice with rubber seals to connect the MAF directly to the stock 86 airbox which is the same OD. The MAF now touches the airbox. I used a piece of 4" flex tube and some rubber seals for the MAF to throttle body. After I got it bent to shape I removed it and coated it heavily with undercoating to ensure it would be fully sealed and stay that shape. Thanks to the relocated MAF the air intake tube makes the corner without hitting the strut tower now too- bonus!

[cb650]

Cool no hurry. Something I want to get at some point just looking at the options

[erratic50]

I forgot to mention..... I've helped install a Ford Motorsports strut tower brace in a good friend's 86GT and have put a basically identical HPM bar and the vastly different MM brace in two other 86GT's.

Those like the HPM and FMS and BBK that bolt to the cowl require removal of the passenger side wiper and the cowl cover so you can put nuts and washers on the bolts. Sometimes things on the firewall have to be moved - they did on my car - sometimes they don't. Two of the 86's required nothing to be moved on the firewall.

For the MM bar all three cars would require moving the same stuff. One advantage of the MM is it uses existing stock pinch weld holes.

For both types of bars wires have to be carefully routed around the flanges on each side so the brace can attach to the towers. Three bolts go into the towers. Two on top one from the front. The MAF and airbox will have to come out to accomplish this with the MM bar. Not so for the HPM or FMS. Also this area is a very common location for the siren on aftermarket alarms. If you have one it's also directly in the way. I ran out of time installing mine and ended up not putting in the forward facing bolt on the passenger side for now.

Drivers side the starter solenoid has to be moved temporarily in order to drill the hole. This is the case with both types of bars.

The MM bar hits exactly one hole that is in the same place as is required by the HPM. Top drivers side bolt nearest the engine if I remember correctly. All other bolt holes must be drilled when switching from HPM to MM.

In my case I'm running old school HPM caster/camber plates. The bracket that holds the plate to the strut tower on the passenger side has to be drilled through along with the strut tower to put this bolt in place. This is the case with many caster/camber plates other than MM plates. Putting this bolt in will make the plate backer unmoveable so don't install this bolt if doing plates and brace at the same time until after the car is aligned.

You will need to jack the car up to max droop to get to the strut tower bolts.

Some kits tell you to set the brace in place and mark the holes with a center punch then drill them oversized and bolt up firewall/cowl first. I disagree with this approach for a couple of reasons that all boil down to tolerance. Snug fitting holes simply hold things where they are better.

On the cowl attached brace be sure to attach it high so it's right by the hood but not so high that it hits. If you don't keep it high the bolts at the front of the brace will pull the strut towers forward and put upward preload on the brace at the cowl which can forces which over time crack the cowl. It also pulls the struts forward if only a little bit and steering geometry wise you really want them more towards the firewall to improve caster settings.

[jules]

I ended up using the Maximum Motorsport STB-2 Strut Brace on my convertible. Along with their K-Member Brace and (for now) BBK bolt-on Sub Frame Connectors, my vert has really firmed up. I just wish they made that Strut Brace in Chrome.
Fitment on my carbed car was simple. Only thing I had to really move was my Brake Proportioning Valve.

[erratic50]

Picts of MM attachment points

In the last pic you can see the holes left in the cowl by removing the HPM brace. Left strut one is reused. The rest are concealed by the MM brace. I'll mark them and weld the extra holes up and bodywork the fender aprons and strut towers when I redo the body. It's solid enough for now.

[brianj]

Interesting. I may have to fab my own, since MM doesn't make one to clear a blower! Lol

[erratic50]

I think it depends upon the blower. A Kenny bell goes right under the hump towards the middle of the brace afaik. A crank sensor is required for spark as the dizzy gets replaced with a pump drive snub. Side mount belt driven units likely won't be a problem but it may depend.

you could always buy one then cut it up and fab what you need.

[cb650]

Thanks for the pics.

[jules]

Here's a quick pic of my brace installed. You can see how tall the MM Caster-Camber plates are.
The MM Strut Brace cleared them just fine.

[Fastlane]

Here's a quick pic of my brace installed. You can see how tall the MM Caster-Camber plates are.
The MM Strut Brace cleared them just fine.

Very nice engine compartment, but without the ugly wire harness, it looks like the Strut Brace is missing a piece, although I know its not and actually mounts to the strongest part of the firewall. The MM Strut Brace does seem to work better then most.

[jules]

Very nice engine compartment, but without the ugly wire harness, it looks like the Strut Brace is missing a piece, although I know its not and actually mounts to the strongest part of the firewall. The MM Strut Brace does seem to work better then most.

Thanks! It's a work in progress but it's getting there. I really like the MM stuff. I want to add a rear shock tower brace (not sure if MM makes one) but have to do some homework to see what fits a convertible. It would suck to break my back window lowering the top! hahaha

[wraithracing]

Thanks! It's a work in progress but it's getting there. I really like the MM stuff. I want to add a rear shock tower brace (not sure if MM makes one) but have to do some homework to see what fits a convertible. It would suck to break my back window lowering the top! hahaha

There's little to no benefit to a rear shock tower brace, especially on a street car. That is one of the reasons MM doesn't make one.

Personally I wouldn't waste the time and money unless you just want one because you do. If your car was an all out road racer and you had a full cage, then there might be some advantage, otherwise see my first statement.

[jules]

Good Point Trey. You talked me into saving my money!

[ZephyrEFI]

Erratic, i see in your last pic, your adjustable proportioning valve is off to the side. How did you decide to put it there? On my car, i just had to move mine because my A/C line coming off the receiver/drier wants to live right over that pinch-weld hole on the firewall (it's a non-stock kit). Originally, i put my PV there (over the hole) because there was a union there I could simply remove and add the PV (although, i think i did still have to shorten one line). Anyway, i moved mine to pretty much where yours is, only tucked under the pinch weld. I suppose since your car is an '86, you don't have the line to the rear running through the firewall into the car though...

I hear you about the extra holes from different brands of STBs though. I switched from Steeda to BBK (another long story) and i've got a bunch of extra holes.

[wraithracing]

Good Point Trey. You talked me into saving my money!

No problem! Glad to help. We have all spent money on parts that either just don't work or aren't worth the money and the effort. Any help we can give one another to prevent those mistakes is a benefit to us all IMHO.

[erratic50]

I have to wonder if there is any advantage to the rear brace on rear coil overs. Not that I'm a fan......

I'll say it again - I am NOT in favor of coil overs on a street car as an owner who has blown out a strut tower big time on a stock suspension car under the loads of daily driver duty. Look closely at my drivers side tower. That's after many many hours of cutting out tears and cracks, pounding it back into shape, and many more hours with a welder and a grinder. Really sucked when it was my daily driver! Yuck!

hopefully this thread will benefit others. Thanks for the posts and replies and additions all. I really like the pictures I see of some of the other cars.

I will say running nearly 2 degrees of negative camber on the street car gets very interesting without a strut brace.

I need to look at welding reenforcements to my lower K member or buying a brace (or - Lordy - can't believe I'm saying it after all the work I just did to restore a factory K and A-arm setups- picking a tubular setup).

Anyone have lower braces? Please start a thread to discuss them.

[wraithracing]

Maximum Motorsports offers these for rear shock mounts: http://www.maximummotorsports.com/MM...unts-C105.aspx

I still doubt any major benefit to a rear shock tower brace, although in a full cage car used for track purpose, why not! Not a huge amount of weight for a single tube IMHO. For the street, again not worth the added headaches and rear cargo space loss IMHO.

I would like to know more about your strut tower issue with coil overs. In 25+ years of playing with and being around Fox Mustangs both track and street cars, I have never seen anyone have strut tower issues due to coil overs. I have seen plenty of damage due to rust, crash damage, etc. But I have never seen a coil over cause issues.

I have lower K member braces, both the two point and the 4 point.

[Alex98sc10]

I too would like to hear about said coil-over issues as that may be a future mod for my newest project.

[erratic50]

One of my good friend helped me do my brake conversion. We put the adjustable valve in where the factory line union is - that's how he had done it on his 86.

If I had to do it again, the factory pro portioning block would get removed instead of tweaked with a plug. I'd add a line lock in front and put the adjustable beside it on the frame rail to join the master cyl to the rear hard line.

[erratic50]

Trey - I should clarify

I did not say the problem was due to coilovers. What I'm saying is the strut tower totally failed on a stock suspension car that at the time was NOT rusty. The strut towers are weak and not designed to carry the weight of the car.

I did a few times remove the front sway bar and launch the car on slicks but it wasn't a violent thing. It felt like the tire might have came up ever so slightly the set back down.

Honestly the pot holes on city streets around here are a more likely source of the cumulative punishment that allowed it to get to a point where somethibg could break it. When it let go I was on a gravel road and just hit some small bumps- and what ride it was trying to keep control of a car while the strut flopped everywhere it wanted to.

That problem happened in the summer of 1995. The car was only 9 years old and had 145K at the time.

pretty much the whole front side of the tower on the top where the strut attached blew out. The strut was loosely held in by the one remaining bolt which had cracks from metal fatigue all around it.

[erratic50]

I was under my 86 this weekend fixing a hung up 99-04 dual piston caliper on the passenger front.

I got a chance to look really closely at the hardware that mounts the MM strut tower brace and its position in the tower. I was mistaken - one of the top bolts did not go through the backer plate for the HPM plates. It was really close though.

I had been driving my car without any sway bars connected after the suspension changes I made while converting to Sn95 spindles and brakes.

I wanted to find a sway bar link that would allow pretty free frontend droop. I tried longer ones designed for a 2008 Mercury Mountaineer. They were a bit much as they didn't allow proper suspension travel on bump.

I went back to stock length from sway bar connectors for now which is still longer in relationship to the sway bar compared to a car at stock ride height.

Ultimately I envision using long 1/2" grade 8 bolts or ready rid and washers and nuts to solid mount links at the sway bar then nuts I can spin up or down with urethane bushing's on the A arm end.

perhaps we should build a sway bar and sway link thread to discuss what works vs doesn't.... My car handles shockingly well compared to stock already- getting things dialed in is always a LOT of little things though.

after driving it for a while this weekend the biggest thing is that I need to get my panhard installed and find the correct rear sway bar setup. The car stays very level in corners but even with the soft 4 banger springs out back the rear wants to bind under side load and cause it to step out more than I'd like. Way better than stock but room to improve.