ok guys dont get on me to bad....i have a 92 Firebird with WS6 suspension i put in it ( front/rear springs & sway bars ) out of a wrecked 91GTA with WS6 in it.....i keep seeing postings on the Camaro wonderbar....1 -- what is it? 2 -- what would it do for my car ? 3 -- where can i find one at ?.......thanks alot for all your suggestions and help.....

It ties the front frame rails together. Helps with chassis strength. You can find them on ebay.

I grabbed mine new from Top-Down Solutions (lonsal is the contact on this site). His are a bit different (better? they seem so) in design/construction but they bolt right in, have excellent silvery powder coating, and for around $40 are worth it for something that (for once) you won't have to clean up and coat/paint yourself. Good guy to deal with as well.

HTH, peace

K

hey can u get me a phone # or email address for....Top Down....thanks

I can. But I have bad news. I'm currently out of stock as of about a week and a half ago. I've redesigned the Steering Brace to also fit the 1982 Model year F-Body. I'm expecting to have the new version in stock by the end of November. There has been a slight price increase, but I'll know more when I get a new quote on the steel and water-jet cutting the end pads. I may turn out a few of the original version if the new version gets delayed too long. Just as before, I'm offering an "out of stock" discount for orders that are placed before I can re-stock. Also the new version will be available in powder-coat red as well as the original color which is called "Raw Steel" (a silver-black color resembling newly cast steel).

E-mail me for a currrent Price List: topdownsolutions@yahoo.com

Lon Salgren
Top-Down Solutions

Lon is good guy, he'll do you right and he knows his stuff!

also for the DIYer's its pretty easy to fab one up. now. Im Not trying to take business away from you Lonsal,but there are lots of little things us 3rdgeners can do to save some cash. If you dont have the time/resources to make one.. them go straight to Lonsal.

but I used my friends one(from an IROC) as a temp. I used 1/4" galvanized plate and 7/8" pipe, and 3hrs (including installation) thats it. Now, Im trying to fab a STB (strut tower brace)

Lonsol,

Post when you have the new ones ready, I'll buy one that's powdercoated red for sure... but I won't pay until you have them ready to ship...

Keep us posted, I have two-three friends who also are interested.

Garett

Isn't that the thing that goes under the front of the car and pushes up on everything, and makes the headlights look bigger than they really are?

It bolts on between the 2 sway bar bushings and the frame. It ties the 2 sides of teh "frame" portion of the unibody together, out in front of the K-member. It's the thing in the center of this pic.

thats the one from global west suspension..

old post but summit has 1 4 $40

I realise this is an old post, brought basck from the dead just giving a tip on a good price...

...but it gives me opportunity to spark a question I have always wondered (pun intended) about the name "wonderbar"

Since this is steering related, and it is a brace for the steering system- I for one question if someone in GM misinterpeted some engineers notes and called it a wOnder bar instead of a wAnder bar since the car steering slop would be related to the car wandering about the lane.

Things that make you go hummmmmm?????

I bet big bucks this thing was initially called a Wander bar and someone screwed up labeling it wrong.

it would make more sense that way.

The global west version is called a Wander bar.
http://www.globalwest.net/ts-14.html

Its actually called a steering brace. but good observation though

It was named "Wonder Bar" because most people WONDERED what it actually did on the car. Aftermarket name for some expensive add on which is not a performance part. Main function from GM was to correct problems in the steering box area with the then new Gatorback 245/50/16 tires . Correct name Streering Support Brace.

Latin name: Steel tube with two brackets welded to it held by 4 bolts.

My thought about the name Wonder Bar, is that every 3rd gen owner wondered why GM didn't put them one every 3rd gen

And I still wonder where the name Wonder Bar originated...

RBob.

lmao love the humor guys.. Maybe the guy was eating a "Wonderbar" chocolate bar and then had an epiphany!

rev "A"

..."held on by 4 to 6 bolts (depending on the manufacturer)."

If you purchase the TDS version it would be mounted with 3 bolts per side for 6 bolts total.

Lon

I've heard of some aftermarket wonderbars not fitting properly on cars with a dual-fan setup. Does the TDS one have this issue?

Nope. The TDS steering brace clears both single and dual fan lower mounts.

Lon

Right on, be ordering one in a couple months when I've got some money.

So why dont most of them fit the '82? Also whenever there is one that will sign me up to buy one.

IIRC, TDS sells them.

JamesC

'82s used different front sway bar bushing brackets. The attaching bolts are inline. Starting in '83 they were staggered.

As James C pointed out, the aftermarket wonder bar from Top Down Solutions is designed to fit '82 and '83-92 cars.

One reason may be, your car was made 5yrs before the Steering Brace was designed.

If the Wonder Bar/Steering brace was designed to counter the forces imposed by the 245/50R16s....Why only the IROCs got them?

The GTAs were standard with 245/50R16s & that size was optional on pretty much every other 3rd gen (after they came out). Even some RSs came stock with 245/50R16s, without being "special ordered" or anything.

GM cost savings on 3rd gen non-performance cars.

The TTA didn't get one. It wasn't a "Performance car"?

The GTA was Performance with Luxury, but it didn't get the Wonder Bar either.

ordered one from TDS today...i like the idea of 3 bolts per side holding it on.

Wouldn't want that wonder bar to wonder off.....

lol this thread has had me cracking up. im stationed in sicily atm. there all about taking corners over here and they have a few tracks. would a wonder bar help with handling???

I would say it's REQUIRED if you want the car to handle at all. The steering box is mounted to the front driver's side frame rail and when you have a car that turns high lateral G's, it puts stress on that part of the frame which could make it crack of break, which will make the steering feel loose and dangerous. For a drag car you could remove it altogether as it won't do anything for that, but for a handling car, I wouldn't even think of it without having this bar (it's technically a GM patch fix for the cracking frame rail problem on third gens, and I believe only IROCS got them).

You guys have got this all wrong...

It goes across the front, underneath everything, and kind of pushes up; the purpose is, to make your headlights look bigger.

a-men!

I don't know what to say.. lol

I just love it when I leave em speechless.

Whoa whoa whoa, you are in Sicily? Me too! Maybe you have seen me, I have the black/primer 91 Z28 with the cowl hood.

Don't tell me you bought that teal 92 RS from the lemon lot.

I am finishing up setting up my shop so if you need work done, let me know. I brought my tools with me.

Sending you a PM

Yes I did (: the guy started the price out at 12k last summer I've been waiting for a long time for him to come down off of his high horse and give me a reasonable price. Car is bone stock, interior great, exterior pretty good for these cars and the year. 94k on the dash.

:O

Boy is this an old thread. If anyone needs a steering brace, I have plenty. Normally you can order online at my web site, but it is temporarily offline while the site gets updated with new software. Phone or e-mail me in the meantime if you want one.

Lon Salgren
626-369-0040
topdownsolutions@yahoo.com

I bought a TDS wonderbar in 2007 (from Lon) and it fit great and has held up great over the years (still looks pretty under there lol)

So, I have a 1991 Z28, with almost all the performance goodies from the factory, so it already has the OEM steering brace. I got the UMI one a while back (Got a decent deal on a group of UMI itemsfor my car) Will I see any improvements in steering stiffness with the UMI over the OEM one?

In a blind test of an undamaged car, I doubt that drivers could tell if a steering box brace was installed or not--and certainly not the difference between an OE and an after market piece. What was once a BandAid has become a performance piece over the years. Worthwhile addition? Certainly, but don't expect miracles.

JamesC

You forgot to tell him he WILL see an improvement, because his car didn't come from the factory with a steering brace.

Lon

He has a 91Z28, they did come with a wonderbar.

I think the stock only came with two mount points whereas yours comes with three. Correct me if I'm wrong. Also, yours might be thicker. Either way, it was a fair price and works as advertized. I did not notice any difference.

No, I didn't forget. I simply don't believe that most drivers can tell the difference in a structurally sound car. If the gear box area has been damaged, the addition of a brace certainly could effect the car's drivability; however, if that's the case, the area/crack should be repaired. Again, my two pennies. I'm sure there are members with other pennies out there .

JamesC

My '91 1LE Z28 didn't come with a wonder bar from the factory. I guess their racing package wasn't a performance vehicle!

I agree w James... I added one to my car (83 L69 Z28, in essentially perfect shape at the time) and I would classify the difference it made as just barely noticeable some of the time. Specifically it made the car feel marginally more solid while going over bumps and around turns at the same time. I couldn't tell any difference other than that, and of course I have no idea whether it affected frame cracking or not. I would classify as a good bang for the buck though, because it was so cheeeeeeeep; I think I paid $20 some at the GM store. Been a while in case you can't figure that out. So, incremental improvement, yes; revolutionary, not hardly.

My bad then. I thought since in 91 the Z28 was the top model, let alone a 1LE (IROC's weren't around by then, and all IROCs got wonderbars, so I put 2 and 2 together.)