Kazlot, you might be the only one who is able to confirm this: Does the bolt on the MCS support both the JCW brace and the camber plates? Some people say it is not possible to have both. My goal is to use JCW brace but use the camber plate to prevent mushrooming.

 

Not being a mechanic I'm not sure which "bolt" your referring to. When you replace your stock camber plates you are basically removing and replacing the upper strut attachment hardware. The new bolts will be a bit longer and help in attaching the strut brace.

If you mean the bolt on the stop of the strut it will be plenty long enough.

The quick answer is not to worry, every thing will work out fine because it is possible to have fixed plates and a strut tower brace.

Go for it, you will not regret it!

Hope this helps...

 

Kazlot, can you post some pictures? I want to see how it looks. Also where did you get your plates from and for how much??

 

I hate to admit this but I'm a bit challenged in the photo taking department. The photos in my gallery were taken by a friend when I wanted to sell the car and I do not currently have any of my new car.

In a couple of weeks my friend will be back in the states and I'll have him take some photos for me. You can see photos of camber plates here: http://www.lonestarminiclub.com/foru...read.php?t=361

As far as how it looks it looks just like all JCW strut braces on a JCW car. No difference. The camber plates look identical to the stock plates from the factory. When holding one next to the other the only visible differences are the thickness of the plate and the longer bolts for attachment to the towers. Also the size of the rubber bushing is larger and slightly offset to one side compared to stock.

After the plates are installed there is no visible changes, looking under the hood, that you can see other then the bolt that holds the strut is slight offset towards the center, the engine, of the car rather than towards the outside, the fenders, of the car.

The plates also do not raise the front of the car witch is another reason I used them. Most adjustable plates raise the front of the car a bit and I did not want that.

To purchase plates go here: http://store.nexternal.com/shared/St...t=products.asp

I had mine shipped directly to the installing shop and they list for $180.00 without shipping.

Hope this helps...

 

Hi guys, I've took my final decision to go for any solution to prevent mushrooming, even before getting a new SC pulley which I was planning to get as an x-mass gift. In order to confirm what exactly is the best for me, please comment on the following:

I'll be getting the Irland camber plates + JCW strust brace. Those are easy to be fit together as tested earlier in this thread. Also, both will prevent mushrooming and enhance the tire wear and stability because they modify the camber position.


Is my understanding right? Or shall I place the order for M7 brace and just care for the mushrooming prevention?

Please help as I'll place my order today or tomorrow.

 

Marwan
The camber plates will give you the best protection from mushrooming because they are supporting from the bottom. The extra camber will also reduce understeer. The JCW brace will do litttle to help with mushrooming or handling. Save your money unless you want the Bling.
Steve

 

get the camber plates, and use the money you were gonna use on the STB and buy an adjustable rear swaybar

 

To get the most "bang for your buck" the IE fixed camber plates are the way to go. No mushrooming and better turn in and tire wear.

With the money you save by not replacing tires on the steering axle as often you can buy the JCW strut brace.

Or as etalj suggests, you can get a rear bar.

Hope this helps...

 

Guys, for camber plates now, which is the best? Craven's or IE'S? Please find a link below:
http://www.cravenspeed.com/index.php?productID=81

Let me know what do you think comparing both products.

 

Those are not camber plates, and Craven does not make any. They are strut tower reinforcements similar to the M7 products. If you get camber plates you won't need additional strut tower reinforcement.

 

There are many options for camber plates.

Fixed plates offer value but you cannot predict how much camber you will get for each side, right and left values may be different and you cannot further adjust them with having adjustable camber plates.

Camber plates do offer some resistance to damaging the shock towers but you can also add M7 braces or strut tower brace for another layer. Not really needed to have all this except if doing hard cornering.

 

The bottom line is, how bad are your roads? If your suspension isn't bottoming out with your style of driving on your roads, then I think adding reinforcements on top of camber plates is just paranoia.

 

Well, we have bumpy roads and the suspension is bottoming alot. I was thinking the the fixed camber plates provide:
-Peace of mind because they fix the camber but still they are fixed so no need to maintain or adjust.
-Reinforcement for the strut towers.

I heard that Carven's quality is much better than IE's, so I need your help deciding. I do not do much cornering but if I decide to do so or change my driving style, I'll go for JCW suspension, 18" wheels and other mods. I just need a high quality mushrooming prevention, but also looking for some bonus features. That's why I'm thinking like that and need your votes:

Which product provides the best mushrooming protection and extra options?
-M7 brace: bracing and mushrooming protection.
-IE's plates: camber adjustment and mushrooming protection.
-Carven's: best quality and look while specialized in mushrooming protection.

So I need your help deciding which one is the best bang for the buck.

 

OK...

Camber plates provide the best single point of protection from mushrooming. The M7 plates/strut bar and probably the Craven plates provide the second best protection against mushrooming. All of these products exclude driving with caution over bumps and both exclude operating your car with 15" wheels and/or higher profile tires.

The M7 provides bracing as long as the temps under the hood do not get too high...if they do, the aluminum brace will expand and contract with differing temperatures...thus throwing off your alignment.

You can go with almost any camber plate and get adjustability & protection from mushrooming.

Looking for bang for the buck? Go with the IE fixed plates...if your not concerned with the ultimate in handling and the OMP strut bar which will provide the best...so far... in bracing. Good luck with your purchases

 

Thanks HighLife. To make sure I understand right and make a dicision, would you explain more on your statement? Why camber plates are the best? Is it the design or the material or what?

 

My understanding of why plates work to stop mushrooming is that is it is like having the M7 plates but instead of being on top of the tower they are underneath the tower. I believe that most camber plates are made of steel or something like that and because they are under the tower they are in a bit better position to help prevent bending (at least in this case).

HighLife, got anything to back up your statement about the M7 brace being affected by high temps? I am really want to know more more about this as i have one.

 

See below or post 18.

It's not specific to the M7 bar...just that it's made of aluminum. Most things...solids, liquids, gases...expand when heated. Aluminum expnads more than steel and at a lower temperature.

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu...rmo/thexp.html

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu.../thexp.html#c1

If you want a really great bar, have Palo Uber make you one from titanium for $1599

 

Ok, that is what I thought. That said I still dont see the Aluminum expanding enough at those temps to be that much of an issue. If it were i would think we would have problems with things like Al cylinder heads which can get real hot.

 

Guys! I got the brace finally!! I got the M7 and I did the installation myself in 15 minutes. Here are some points I noticed while the installation:
-I had huge mushrooming on the driver's side strut tower. When tightening one bolt, the other wont even get hoocked,lol. I had to do little of this and little of that. I did not hammer the tower as suggested by Mark.
-I had hight problems and had to go with their appendix to water soak the inner cloth of the boot.
-I felt a noticed difference on bumps. I feel the car more rigid and stable.
-I never got the feeling of "car on rails" when turning or anything. Turns on high or low speeds do feel the same like before the brace. Shall I tightend the brace or try to force pull it from one side or something?

Any comments??

 

Marwan
I don't think you did yourself any favors by not flattening the tower before putting the brace on. My guess is if you have an alignment done you will see a big difference between left and right camber.
Steve

 

I agree with you on the mushrooming. But I got the JCW Brace figuring it would be bling only. It was a great price and I couldn't pass it up.

To my surprise it actually made a noticeable difference in understeer. I take the same twisty road to and from work every day and I am very familiar with how Artoo handles on that 3/4 mile stretch. At first when it was dry it felt a bit better but it is much better when the road is damp. So I am convinced that it is at least a bit more than bling. I have fixed plates ready to go in the spring and expect a much bigger difference with those but again, my experience is that the brace is more than bling.

Rich

 

Steve, how would I flatten it? Do you think that just hammering the camber with a hammer and peice of wood will work? This way, you are not measuring the power, the adjustment or anything. I'd better do it professionally or not do it at all.

 

I put on the M7 brace just after getting my car. I did it to prevent mushrooming and felt that for a few extra bucks, the brace wouldn't hurt. I didn't notice any real difference with the brace, but I am happy that I don't need to worry much. So is the brace worth it, well, for $70 I don't see why not.

 

The brace alone won't give you that "car on rails" feeling. It will however, give you the more rigid solid feel you describe which helps to inspire confidence and keep the car from wandering.

I suggest hammering the tower flat. It is supposed to be dead flat. I flattened mine out with a block of wood and a small sledge. Trust me, you don't want to pay a "professional" to do that, it is super easy and they won't do a better job than you can. It is simple. There is no "measurement" that needs taken. Just hammer until flat. It won't go more than that.

Enjoy the brace.

 

Marwan
This post is the best way that I have seen on flattening the damaged towers.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...light=mushroom
If you are handy, or have some friends that are the parts needed to do this job could be easily made. It would entail removing your struts which is not difficult. If you wanted it would be a great time to install some camber plates. If you were to do the job in this manner I cannot conceive any body shop could do it any better.
Steve