POLL Does Strut brace improve handling?

[EnthuZiaZT]

I thought about strut braces a lot when I had a Zed 3, BMW had one listed for my car at a cost of £330 I think. If BMW make one to fit on the Zed 3 I don't think the insurance companies can say much about it as its regarded as an after market upgrade by BMW. That is of course if you buy a BMW Brace. In the end the only time it might have made a difference, I decided was on the track at Silverstone and I didn't miss it then although we were traveling at speeds in excess of 100MPH So I never did get one. I've not looked to see if you can buy a Strut brace from BMW for the Zed 4 E85 as i never felt mine needed any enhancement. The suspension was very stiff on the E85 and the car handled very well on M sport Suspension. The E89 is a different kettle of fish, the springs are very compliant and the chassis very stiff. i'm sure if i corner hard I can lift a front wheel. But that requires a different solution.

Mike

 

[t-tony]

There is a genuine BMW front strut brace bar for the E85 Mike, but the price is still high at nearly £400. My Z3 already had K&W suspension fitted by the man I bought it from, a very successful racing driver called Gary Goodyear, but hard fast cornering was definitely improved by the addition of a front strut brace, albeit not a very expensive one. Which in a way makes me wonder that sometimes we get caught up in the "brand name" rather than how good an item actually is? My Z4 is fitted with M Sport suspension which is firm to say the least. Firstly I have to get rid of those noisy hard run flat tyres.

Tony.

 

[Rha]

In that case pg what happens when you go from 17inch to 18inch wheels, put S/S exhaust, spoiler, smaller steering wheel, lowered sus, bigger brakes, differant tyres from oem, these are all modifications to original spec, may be there's a case for them making a list for drivers to check to see if they've actually infringed the rules. Perhaps the rules work both ways in court. I should have checked, they should have informed. Life's such a bi*** sometimes, think you have just opened a can of worms that's probably been opened for some time, all to allow the Ins comps to make more money. Did some reading in the past and when it goes to court the Ins comps don't always get away with it, if you purchased your car with all the mods thinking that's how they're built and never knew otherwise ? Like " well your honour this young feller I bought it off said it goes round corners like it was on rails, my ears are not what they used to be and I thought he said he just drove it all the way from Wales" bargain.
Rha.

 

[t-tony]

There was talk last year or earlier this year about someone not getting paid out because he had stickers on his car ! Which, strangely, HT picked up on ..............................................

Tony.

 

[pgunter]

When you get asked the question, is your can standard .. What they mean is.. Has it changed since leaving the factory. The small print even goes to thinks such as lighting, stereos and such. Crazy, but anyway they can get out of paying.

 

[Rha]

Of cause your right pg, never thought otherwise despite my posts, just hate being fleeced.

 

[t-tony]

I would imagine that there are very few unmodified cars out there. Judging on what I see daily there are "modifications" to most cars. Most suspension mods are done to increase safety (albeit, maybe, while going faster), no one wants to make their cars less safe do they ?

Tony.

 

[EnthuZiaZT]

You could argue, quite successfully that a 'suspension upgrade' was really just a question of replacing worn out parts, most insurance companies require you to keep the car in good order. How ever they never specify you need to use the original makes parts to do so.
Again Changing wheels might be treated in the same way, especially if you argued the original ones were damaged by potholes and needed to be replaced and the makers ones were too expensive.

Mike

 

[t-tony]

Very valid points there Mike.

Tony.

 

[PerryGunn]

The Z4 has the two bars which go from the towers back to the centre of the bulkhead as standard. Not posh shiny ones though I'll admit.

Tony.

When I fitted a StrongStrut brace, I also replaced my firewall braces with their uprated versions - the strut brace has a noticeable effect but I'm not sure the firewall braces make much difference over the standard ones but they're nice engine-bay eye-candy

 

[t-tony]

When I fitted a StrongStrut brace, I also replaced my firewall braces with their uprated versions - the strut brace has a noticeable effect but I'm not sure the firewall braces make much difference over the standard ones but they're nice engine-bay eye-candy

Thanks for that Perry.

Tony.