mikegarrison

This does give me an idea for an interesting experiement. I assume it is only a matter of a few minutes work to bolt the thing on or take it off?

As I see it, the way to do this would be to go out to the track with an X-brace, some tools, and a partner who one trusted to work on the car.

The car would be jacked up and the partner would go under and work on it for a while. Then the car would be lowered and the driver would drive some laps. (For this to be meaningful, you need at least lap times, and better yet sector times and g-forces, but a datalogger that gives me that is one mod I was willing to buy for my car.)

The car would come back to the paddock and the partner would work on it some more.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

Each time the partner would either install the brace, remove the brace, or do nothing but pretend to work on it. The partner would decide this randomly, and note down the state of the car.

In conjunction, the driver could keep notes on what he felt, whether or not the car felt better or stiffer or flexible or whatever.

Later on, the data would be compared. This is the kind of blind testing that could really give a solid answer to this question, and it wouldn't be all that hard to do.

ralper

Mike

That sounds like an interesting experiment. I think the results would tell quite a story.

dlq04

I have the Comptech chromoly aero tubing suspension lower x-brace, wt. 8 pounds, designed to reduce chassis flex in front sub-frame, sitting on my work bench ready to install. But it's so dang pretty I just want to show it to people!

It was my understanding that the top brace didn't make any difference but I must admit this is the first I've heard that the bottom wasn't effective - at least for some. For three bills I plan to give it a good test next summer. My only reason for delaying this long in buying one was concerns that it might defeat the built in crush zone design of the S2000 in an accident; but, those fears subsided. Based on what I heard and saw at the FC'05 track event, I decided it was worth getting.

ralper

Actually, now that I think about it, it does make sense. The compliance comes from the suspension, not from the frame. You want to keep your frame as rigid and flex free as possible on rough and bumpy pavement and allow your suspension to do it's work. This should result in more precise and predictable steering.

Legal Bill

I unknowingly did a comparisson over the same road in two different cars. The two different cars part means that other things may have effected the experience. But that said, I felt enough of a difference to conclude that there may be some merit to the claim that the X-brace results in a smoother ride.

I was driving a fellow member's car over some rough road that I had driven over many times in my car. His car felt much smoother than mine over the rough stuff. So much so, I said right out load to him "wow, your car is much smoother than mine over the rough pavement." His immediate response was "that's because of the x-brace." I didn't know he had one, so I wasn't looking for anything.

In the end Rob, I suggest you find a metro member with the xbrace and do your own back to back test drive. Even if the x-brace does not improve track times, there may be other benefits that are more important to you.

Triple-H

Some say yes, some say no... a very old debate that will never be answered, you basically have to buy one and decide for yourself.

As far as reduced lap times on the track - when one plans to use a car for a period of 7 years on the track there is more to life than a reduced lap time by say a second... There is the whole structural help from twisting loads and how that will assist the car wear less over the long haul.

I don't care about a faster lap time, I care about the better steering feel over rough surfaces, and the extra stiffness and how that helps keep the car stiff over an extended life of high loads from track events.

I can feel a difference, and it is not in my head, it is in my fingers, I can feel the difference in the steering wheel. Keep in mind I drive mostly in the country, we have some amazingly rough roads, and those surface undulations don't care if they are in the straights or in the curves.

For those who say they X-braces and shock tower braces worthless, I simply say you don't drive hard enough on rough roads.

dean

I have one, but I never noticed a difference with it. Then again, I installed it when my car was new and the car only has ~7K miles on it now. It may have some benefit on an older car with more mileage that has loosened up over time, but that's pure speculation on my part.
I would still buy it again because of the protection it provides for the oil pan. I don't race so the added weight isn't an issue for me. Plus, none of the other kids in the neighborhood have one.

Triple-H

Agreed. I added mine not for track performance, but for track rigidity preservation. And for the record, the track is too darn smooth to really feel a difference there, where I feel the difference is out on the street where washboard effects, broken pavement, poor pavement jobs and these kinds of things cause the surface to be rough and bumpy. Just because the roads can be a bit rough does not mean I'm going to slow way down. And as a side note, because I drive on road conditions like this, my official take on bump steer is that it is bogus, just like the S2000 being a horrific snap oversteer car...

freq

I agree with Defenders point, an oil pan protector if nothing else.

bborzell

It certainly helped me on the Rubicon run this year.

I think the most important merit is the coolness factor that comes into play when the very small person I run over looks up and says, "Wow! Isn't that one of those way cool X-Braces"?

In the interest of full disclosure, I didn't install an X-Brace. I have simply decided to believe that I did and I get both the placebo effect as well as the "If you looked under my car, you would see how cool I really am" effect.

I was thinking about doing a similar FI install next. The price is right.