AHH!! stupid Strut bar...or...car?

[hk240sx08]

Hey Zilvians!!

I have a stupid issue/question, i just bought a front strut bar(one of those cusco looking ones) for my s13 fb, and for some reason it WONT fit!!, i tried installing it with jackstands/no jackstands but for some reason the bar is roughly 1/2-1/4" longer. Right now im assuming my poor car is probably bend by the previous owner!!

Anyways, is there anything i can do to make the bar fit?? i was thinking about taking it to a shop to bend it a little, but im not sure. or should i just buy one of those adj. length ones?

Appreciate the help guys

[cc4usmc]

Maybe it's not for an s13.

[enkei2k]

so it's a cusco look a like? get a real cusco one. do what i did, loosen one of the sides first (giant screw looking thing if i recall) if possible, and adjust accordingly. kinda hard to explain but that's what i did to get mine to fit.

[I10cruiser]

yeah i think you can twist the middle bar and adjust the length

[hk240sx08]

thanks guys, but i tried all that...and i cant adjust the strut bar i have right how, i cant twist the bar, the bar is a one piece, damn...i wish i can just install it and get it over with....:(

[cc4usmc]

Maybe it's not for an s13.

[I10cruiser]

pictures would help

[enkei2k]

Maybe it's not for an s13.

pictures would help

:stupid::stupid::stupid::stupid::stupid::stupid: what they said

my opinion, sell that bar and get a legit piece, REAL CUSCO or other brand and not a look a like.

[hk240sx08]

yeah, its for a s13, i double checked with the seller lol, pictures..ehh, ill probably have to take some tomorrow...ill try posting some tomorrow

HAHA i would gladly buy a real cusco if i wasnt in a budget, but what if the same thing happened with the cusco? my car? :X

[mbmbmb23]

Slot the bolt holes with a dremel and make it fit. You bought a knock off to save money....now its up to you to make it work.

[enkei2k]

highly doubt it's your car...lol that would be sad if you have no idea if you have a s13 or s14...waiting on pics...

[hk240sx08]

damn....my stupid pc is not letting upload pics...anywayz if u want to visualize it, its basically a cusco os look-a-like, with the bar roughly 1/2 inch longer....so it fits one side but not the other...thanks people

[98koukile]

It's not THAT rare for a 15 year old car to bend at the shock mounts. In fact that's where some older cars just fold in on themselves. If you lift the car so the upper shock studs are recessed you may get the extra you needed to make it fit, If not then slot it, it'll still do its job when you tighten it down

[sultan]

i unbolted the cusco fstb from my green coupe and tried to put it on my red hatch, shit was off by about an inch. even the cheap ebay adjustable length junk won't fit. my chassis is fucked, maybe yours is, too.

[soreballz]

i unbolted the cusco fstb from my green coupe and tried to put it on my red hatch, shit was off by about an inch. even the cheap ebay adjustable length junk won't fit. my chassis is fucked, maybe yours is, too.
See, there's your problem... Strut bars from green cars don't work in red cars, simple as that.

[enkei2k]

See, there's your problem... Strut bars from green cars don't work in red cars, simple as that.


:bowrofl::bowrofl::bowrofl::bowrofl::bowrofl: LOL good to know. i like this thread. i want to see pics of the OP's car, bar, etc...upload em on photobucket or something! i had problems too when i was installing my bar, that's why i feel for the OP.

[aziankingz]

See, there's your problem... Strut bars from green cars don't work in red cars, simple as that.

lol that is funny..

[mrmephistopheles]

Just an FYI: Almost all front strutbars will interchange between S13 & S14.

[sultan]

straight off the other car onto this one
http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/9240/dscf0534mx2.jpg
yeah it's not pictured but the other side is lined up with the bolts


an adjustable length bar would work but i'd have to shim it up a good bit off the strut tower to clear the motor (stock motor mounts, 180,000 miles). :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: i love this car.

[Tulok]

try to jack it up from the front (engine) cross member, it may allow the car to flex enough to fit it in there.

[hk240sx08]

straight off the other car onto this one
http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/9240/dscf0534mx2.jpg
yeah it's not pictured but the other side is lined up with the bolts


an adjustable length bar would work but i'd have to shim it up a good bit off the strut tower to clear the motor (stock motor mounts, 180,000 miles). :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: i love this car.


hahaha wow, my problem is exactly like that picture above, at least i know im not the only one going throught this, so how to fix it? and seriously, is it possible to "bend" a strut bar to fit? LOL :/

[g6civcx]

How about we loosen the nuts and bolts holding the bar onto the endplates?

[enkei2k]

How about we loosen the nuts and bolts holding the bar onto the endplates?

werd +1 loosen that big looking bolt until it fits...pop it on and tighten. done and done

[sultan]

lol, i dunno about the op but that does not work on my car. there is not enough adjustment even on cheapo ebay adjustable crap.

[hk240sx08]

lol, i dunno about the op but that does not work on my car. there is not enough adjustment even on cheapo ebay adjustable crap.


same here, just not enought adjustments to make it fit.....what can i do!!!!...

[Kouki*Monster]

LOL
like everyone above said , loosen the big bolts on the side of the strut bar holding the endplates on.. until they are loose and flop around put on the car.. then tighten them .. then done.

[hk240sx08]

LOL
like everyone above said , loosen the big bolts on the side of the strut bar holding the endplates on.. until they are loose and flop around put on the car.. then tighten them .. then done.


like i said, IT WONT WORK!, i tried that already....

[g6civcx]

like i said, IT WONT WORK!, i tried that already....

In the pix you posted I can see the endplate not touching anything, implying that there is tension on the bar caused by the nut and bolt being too tight.

How about removing the nut and bolt completely and separating the bar and the endplates?

If you still can't figure it out then it's not worth doing.

[xtreme_s14]

Try taking a ratchet strap to it. My friend was using a TRD MKIV strut bar in his MKIII and it always did the trick. It was a pain, but it worked.

[sultan]

In the pix you posted I can see the endplate not touching anything, implying that there is tension on the bar caused by the nut and bolt being too tight.

How about removing the nut and bolt completely and separating the bar and the endplates?

If you still can't figure it out then it's not worth doing.
i don't think op posted a pic but in the pic I posted loosening or removing bolts does absolutely nothing and the endplate is resting on top of one of the bolts, not just floating in the air. you don't get very much adjustment with cusco and as i said before even the mega adjustable ebay crap ones don't fit my car (doesn't clear valve cover with 180,000 mile engine mounts, lol).

my chassis is fucked, i have to run the coilover on that side a good bit higher than the coilover on the other side to make it sit right. strut towers do not line up.

strut tower bars and busted ass chassis aren't rocket science.

[hk240sx08]

so in the point with the strut towers not lining, and adjusting the coilovers differently on the sides, is the car even worth keeping? if....planning to go drifting or autox etc? :/

[Rapier46]

lift up the front and try. but somehow dont le the strut bolts fall through.

[sultan]

so in the point with the strut towers not lining, and adjusting the coilovers differently on the sides, is the car even worth keeping? if....planning to go drifting or autox etc? :/
who cares, it drives straight enough, perfect for drifting, autox, daily driving etc..

[redsx13]

did you ever jack the car up from the center to see if you can make it fit like that? If it where me, i would make it fit. having a warped-in chassis would piss me off. at least if you could somehow force it on, it would keep the chassis in place.

[Jonnie Fraz]

ok I will throw in my .02. I build strut tower bars for both the S14 and S13. I have found that S14's are about a half inch wider than the S13.
I did have this problem with one install and like the poster before me said try lifting the car from the center...we watched the strut towers move out at least a half inch and the bar dropped right on.

[hk240sx08]

yupp guys, took a better look at my car, and i definetly think my chassis is f**ked, i noticed the differences in the paint from the driver side strut tower and the fender (very sad day for me....T.T ) anyways, anyway i can go around this problem? or do i have to like get the car straighten out?? LOL all this because of a damn strut bar.

Appreciate the help so far :)

[DJ_Sunrise]

Thats an S14 strut bar. S14 have a wider track. Strut towers were moved accordingly. Buy a genuine S13 bar.. or ask the kind gentleman above for a measurement from stud to stud. Hell.. Just check the FSM for proper measurements.. you can figure out if your shit is twisted that way. Engine bay paint is always a different color... Why spray a shit ton of clear coat in the engine bay... Hence the dull appearance under the hood.

-Bart

[hk240sx08]

no i mean literally, a differences in paint as in (paint-bare metal-paint but iono...im starting to give up on the front strut bar....install the rear perfectly tho...

[XperienceM5G]

ebay the bar and buy a shorter one.
or hire an obese dude to sit on the side of your chasis that isn't bent. maybe if you bend both of them down an inch it will fit. haha
sorry that wasn't much help.

[lazysk8er2]

the question was answered by lifting from the center. worked on my friend old ass bmw 2002 tii. chassis does flex when lifted and he has a sold strut bar no nuts or nething.