Rear strut tower and Lower Floor Brace

[floydiancomplex]

my latest hardware store mods, a rear strut tower brace and lower floor brace.
I used galvanized pipe and flange mounts, cut to length and threaded (which I
did myself since the only guy who knew how to use the equipment was off that day).
About 30 bucks total and they really stiffen up the back end, I can actually feel
the rear suspension working without any flex.



mounting on the strut tower, 4 bolts with washers run right through the tower.



Lower floor brace runs through both layers of the unibody.



Floor brace running across rear seat footwells.


Close up of tower mounting flange.

enjoy - Chris

[leapin]

Thats sweet. Exactly what I want to do. Good Stuff!

[deathegg]

Thats really cool!
Can you remove the rear brace if needed just by unscrewing it?

Speaking of braces, i have heard that removing the rear seat is a bad thing because the lower mount acts as a brace? has anyone heard of this??

[floydiancomplex]

maybe if i unbolted one side and loosened the other i could unscrew it, but
it is pretty stuck. I even had to drop the rear struts to run the bolts through,
so no it is not easily removed.

[KingFish]

Maybe if you cut the pipe in th middle and put in a threaded sleeve you could make removal easy and also add a bit of adjustment to it. Just a thought I was throwing around for a home built front brace.

[Safety Guy]

Looks good Chris.

Where do the nut ends of the floor braces come out? Are they visible on the rocker panels outside the car, or is there an access area underneath the car?

I'm carefully considering all of the work you guys are doing on rear bracing. My plan is to eventually create removeable braces made mostly out of aluminum. That way I can prepare the car for larger/more cargo and have stiffness when I want it, at a minimum weight penalty (not that adding to the rear end is that bad).

I know some people have run rear braces from strut top to strut top, but somehow I don't like that idea. I wonder if that method would put too much stress on the struts themselves?

Thanks for sharing!

Karl

[sam.1956]

Ya know, these great pics of your project got me thinking (admittedly, a dangerous activity)... you could build a whole low-tech roll cage with enough flanges, pipe T's and elbows...

Sam

[floydiancomplex]

I considered that actually but I figured it would cost almost the same amount as
a 4 or 6 point roll bar built correctly, it would never pass tech anywhere and it
might be the reason you failed tech.

- safety guy
the unibody has sort of a monoque (sp?) frame rail running down the length of
the cabin. the sides are about 2.5" across so the bolts run through both sides.
you can access the back side by removing the seat belt retractor and reaching
down inside. no they cannot be seen from outside.