I just installed my Spohn steering brace and the passenger side bolt holess on the steering brace did not line up with the factory holes I had to use a small grinder to make the holes about half their size wider to the outside of the car to make them line up. I also noticed that the mounting bracket on the Spohn steering brace was not welded at a perfect 90 degree angle, it was crooked If it had been at a correct 90 degree angle it would have fit perfectly with no mods what so ever to the brace.

So if my car tweaked or something or did I get a bad brace from Spohn? Is the brace not suppossed to be straight? I ask because I KNOW my car has NEVER been wrecked in the front and my alignment is perfect, I was 100% positive my frame was straight before this and I'm still 99% sure it is but I'd just like some extra assurance cause if it is tweaked I want to get it fixed ASAP...

 

I don't have the Spohn brace but I believe the mounting plates on my Global West brace weren't 90* to the cross bar. You might check Global West's site and Spohn's site, they both have pics of the brace you can compare.

 

I just bought the global west steering support. Will let you know by the weekend. I know the bar should sit infront of the bolts. I'm sure you tried flipping it over to test the bet fit.

Benny....how do you like the steering box support??

 

I didn't flip it over because there was a right and left written on my brace...

I just looked at the pictures on Spohn's site but the picture they have is not even close to the one I received........

 

Was that the solid brace? Maybe the adjustable brace would have fit?

 

Yes it was the solid, Why would I need an adjustable brace? Shouldn't the solid one work?

 

I think that a adjustable one could be adjusted lengthwise to fit better then a one size fits all. And from the sound of you having to inlarge both bolts holes on one side sounds like it was not the right lenght. Maybe the steering stress made the frame slightly shift??

 

That's what I was thinking, that's why I thought I'd start this topic. I guess I could have gotten the adjustable but too late now

 

They're all made out of the same jig, I haven't had anyone else tell me of a problem. One thing I learned a long time ago is no two cars are the same. I could use slotted mounting holes, but I hate to do that.

Steve

 

Steve, thanks for responding. If they are all indeed made from tha same jig then I can only assume that the front of my car is out of whack then...

Thanks!

 

i bet that makes you feel better

 

I tried fitting my Global West brace this morning and found that the holes did not line up either. Frustrating. I guess its not too big of a deal as long as I can widen the bolt holes a bit, but I tried doing that with a 3/8 cobalt drill bit and it did not do much.

What else can I use?? The holes are only a few millimeters off.

Damn!

 

Exactly like mine was! I just used a Dremel with a grinding bit to make the holes just a little bigger...

 

You know what the problem may be?? I was just glancing at the directions Global West provided and the first thing they say is that the suspension MUST be loaded in order to install the brace.

This morning I noticed that with one hole of the brace bolted on, none of the other three lined up [with the front end jacked up and tires off] . I don't even know if I could get clearance without the jack stands; I'd have to drive it up ramps.


Did you notice this direction too? Was your suspension loaded when you tried to install it??

 

Yes mine was loaded. I had my car on a drive on lift. I installed my steering brace right after installing my SFC's...

 

What diff do you think it makes if the suspension is loaded or not? It must make some difference or else it would not be the first thing they mention in their directions.

I just posted a message to steve spohn about it and see what he says.

I know for sure it did not work for me on an unloaded suspension.

I was going to try tomorrow with mine loaded, but after what you said.......

 

i guess its a good idea to get an adjustable one then... just in case

 

yeah maybe......I can't return mine now anyway so if it does not work on a loaded susp, I'll grind the holes a few mm wider and just go with that. Seems that with these braces (on applications that have 11-21 years worth of driving/ stress) its a roll of the dice if they fit or not.

I'd prob recommend an adjustable one to anyone unless their car had less than 20K miles on it.

But I guess we'll see....

 

Why would it be so important to have the suspension loaded when installing things like SFCs and braces? I doubt GM did their framework and suspension installations with everything in the car. I can understand that cars with 100K+ miles may have some wear and tear, but how much of a difference would that actually make?

 

You got me....I guess the dimensions of the K-member change when the springs are applying all that pressure on them with the suspension loaded. And the points where the brace bolts too are prob connected (direct or indirectly) to the K-member.

And with miles and stress put on the car, I can understand how the dimensions of prob every aspect of the car may change to be slightly off exact factory specs.

 

hey i ned some help with my box brace i just bought one from global west but im curious i know its a must for every third gen but will i notice and differrence in handling or steering or is this just a preventative measure thing???

 

you can feel a diffrence. nothing major but you will notice.

 

Ok...with a little die-grinding, I got my brace to fit. Nice difference. Hard to say exactly because I put a bigger rear sway bar at the same time. But, the subtlties made by the bigger front and rear sway bars plus the brace add together to make a relly phenominal difference in handling.

 

I would not go with slotted holes either, that could allow for slippage on the mounting.

Alex, I know from my job as an engineer when using a jig things can still 'walk' when welding. It is just something you have to expect.

I am ordering mine soon... :lala: