I believe all the Evos are leaving the factory with the same suspension settings. I believed my Evo understeered, too, but the problem was that I entered corners way too hot. This will make any car understeer. I added the Cusco CF rear STRUT bar and it made the car a lot more neutral (at first). Now that I am more accustomed to how the Evo handles (slow in, fast out - actually REALLY fast out), the back end does tend to step out. I have always favored oversteer vs. understeer, so I am used to it. It almost caught Big Al out when he jumped into my car and took off the first time - he got sideways in a hurry...

Just a note on the anti-roll bars (sway bars) - they will DRAMATICALLY change the handling of the Evo. Only install them if a) you are VERY experienced behind the wheel and b) you have someone equally experienced in setting them up.

 

ummm.... not to step on any toes here but a "strut bar/brace" will not affect handling balance. The chassis rigidity of the evo is VERY stiff to start with so the gains with the braces are minimal ( dont get me wrong, every little bit helps ) but adding a strut brace probably affects "mental" handling more than outright grip

 

If you are referring to the front, you might be right. However, you are dead wrong if you are referring to the rear. It makes an incredibly noticeable difference. If you don't believe it, buy a rear bar and try it out. Check w/ a vendor in advance to return it (or try someone's Evo w/ a rear bar). It makes a HUGE difference... Ask Dynoflash Al.

 

There is no way that your rear strut towers are moving around in any measurable amount. If they are......... your car is broken. I agree that adding chasis rigidity is a good thing, but the rear shock towers flexing wouldnt affect camber or handling. There is more slop in the rubber upper shock mounts than there is chassis flex in the rear. In the rear suspension, camber is not affected by moving the top of the shock ( it is a multi link design, camber is adjusted by changing the effective length of the lower arm - unlike the front struts). If you take your back seat out, and the covers out of the trunk, you will see that the shock tower area is VERY well reinforced.

If we were talking about stiffening up a 73 VW bettle cabriolet I would agree, but we are talking about a current WRC homologated car, praised the world over for its chassis stiffness.

 

Chris,

you should listen to ogvw. he knows what he is talking about.

 

I would lean towards what ogvw is saying. With the strut bar you will notice a difference for sure but it will be mainly an increased feeling of solidness when going over bumps. From my experience with cars and mods, all the bushings will move much more significantly than strut tower flex.

 

I have installed all of the Cusco braces front and rear including the rear strut tower bar and v-brace and on a road corse & autocross it did not make an incredible difference. But when I upgraded the rear sway bar to the Cusco 23mm 3-way adjustable it made a big difference. You will have to do some tuning to get it correct for your style of driving and or track. But once you do you it will give you a more neutral driving experience as far as tuning out the understerring problems.

 

Does the rear strut bar really make a noticeable difference??
I hope it would..

 

Does OGVW have a rear strut bar? Didn't think so...

Go install one and then drive your favorite fast, twisting road or canyon (or ideally someplace safer). You'll become a believer VERY quickly. Just like the aerodynamics thread, I'll quit adding to this conversation. Some points to think about:

1) Have you seen the "additional bracing"? I have - a few of my friends have stripped their rear seats and trunk. It's a sheet metal "V". And the WRC cars have fully integrated cages to make them so stiff.

2) If you've never driven hard with and without the bar, you'd never know.

Do what you feel is best. I am just letting you know what happens when you put the bar in. PM Dynoflash (Al) and ask him about the blue Evo in MD with the rear strut bar...

Chris

 

Could someone take a photo of the cusco rear strut bars?
Like to see how are they designed especially at the mounting
ends. I want to see if they are the hingeless type.

Thanks,