Strut Braces For C2

I've heard two conflicting opinions on the use of strut bars. 1) The chassis is already uber stiff and not worth the 250$ that they probably cost. 2) The C2 chassis isn't as stiff as the C4 chassis and thus it wouldn't hurt to throw them on. Your thoughts/comments?

Save your money!

hehe, that's what i thought. its not like these cars are civics with steamship body roll and flex

"DeAd-EyE" what color is your interior? It looks like it might be Space Grey. That's what color mine is and Iv'e never seen another like it. If the seat deal falls thru...please contact me. Thanks

On my previous car, a 1997 Boxster, I put front and rear strut brace, and it made a noticeble difference, manely the rear strut. Boxster came from factory with front struts, but even so, it made a difference. At time, there were other Boxster owners who made the move with positive feed back. Might be a different story on the 996. Anyway, I can feel the chassi more rigid with the hardtop put on. J.Seven

I'm not sure of the 99s, but the 02s already have factory braces that runs from the strut towers to the center of the firewall(behind the battery). I would think all 996 have it.

Carrera Mike - take a snapshot of that. I want to compare. Please... C.

I must say there were made by Porsche reinforcements in the 1998 Boxster model, and most of them were in the rear suspension and upper part of the engine assembly, so that 98 models could use 18" wheels. 1997 moels were not allowed to have 18". J.Seven

No problem. Give me 2 hours though. I'm still at work, I'll take the pix as soon as I get home.

Those were exactly what Boxster models had. All 996 have them too. J.Seven

i think that might be the flash/lighting. it looks very black in person. i'm curious as to what space grey looks like. can you pm me pics of ur car?

Sorry it took a while but here you go. Its those black tubes running from the tower braces to the center of the firewall, behind the battery. This is much better design than the aftermarket ones(IMHO) which usually attaches to one side of the strut tower only which causes twisting motion/stress to the towers/struts. Like I said, this is a MY02. Hopefully all Model Year of the 996s have them and like J seven said all 986. So, I'd say save your money for some other upgrade.

The dome struts are the same 996 P/N for both Boxsters and 911s at least circa late 90s. I wouldn't say the Boxster (being a convertible) is uber stiff, but it does already have front strut bracing. IMHO, the construction of the aftermarket ones don't look that beefy. A while back, I did find a P/N 996.343.042.00 at http://www.lindseyracing.com/986sus1.htm (an old page I bookmarked ages ago) but my inquiring leads me to believe this is either a Motorsports part or doesn't exist. I inquired with Motorsports but got not response. The GT3 guys say they don't have it, and a dealer couldn't find it either. If it does exist, I would be interested since Porsche probably wouldn't make it for no reason.

hmm...i'll check my car for that when i work on it this weekend if not, i'll have 2 order them and install them. edit: i'll look up the part # in my PET now.

the part number isn't in my PET. i have update 160. the closest thing i found was 996.343.041.xx (stabilizer bars) and 996.343.043.xx (bilstein struts) stabilizer bars mean sway bars right? or are those the strut bars? its hard 2 tell because my monitor's resolution is forked.

if you HAVE to do this mod, go with OEM, x74 or the GT3 struts

^ u mean the GT3 adjustables that gert sells in combo with the pss9's?

Gotta get that monitor de-forked The "stabilizers" are "swaybars". Porsche calls the factory "thingies" we're talking about "dome struts" and there are 2 part numbers L/R. They go between the strut domes (body sheetmetal) and the firewall. The aftermarket "strut bars" go between the strut domes themselves by way of slipping in under the strut hat mounting nuts. I haven't contacted Lindsey, but someone should be able to see if that P/N is real or not.

I was surprised when I saw my MY02 brace. Can someone confirm if 99-01 have one also? I also saw a small trickle charger next to my battery. Car was stored in winter and previous owner left it. I guess I'll leave it there in case I ever need to store it.

All 9x6 cars have this. Plus, the shock towers are joined together by the firewall. Adding a strut tower brace will do nothing additional. But, some people like the looks and want bragging rights.

Interesting...my 99 does not have those. I could weld some in !?! C.

Ok, for all Boxsters and 996 icluding GT3: Up to MY 2002: 996.504.233.00 - L 996.504.234.00 - R From MY 2002 (2003 for GT3): 996.504.233.01 - L 996.504.234.01 - R

Stabilizer bars are anti-roll bars. Cars haven't swayed much since the unibody concept was introduced. Sway bar is the wrong term for these.

Whats a 9X6 car? I totally disagree that the firewall alone, just because it share the same piece of metal sheet as the tower brace will reinforce it. Look at the angle of those tubes. Basic engineering will tell you that they are counteracting the forces of cornering which tends to move the towers inward. You really think Porsche engineers will endorse or design these factory pieces for people to have bragging rights??

Picky, picky Sorry, I should have said "more commonly referred to as swaybars". Neither do they introduce sway as the term would suggest, either. Maybe you can send a suggestion over to the guys at TRG, Lindsey, and to everyone else who calls them inappropriately: http://www.theracersgroup.com/parts/...s/swaybars.htm http://www.lindseyracing.com/986sus1.htm LOL. bigbye

I think you misunderstood. I was not referring to the factory installed braces to the left and right. I was referring to the silly *aftermarket* strut tower braces which are clearly unnecessary. A 9x6 is a 986 and a 996 together as the share many parts..

I have to agree with the vote of save your money on the strut bars. I once read in Pannorama that the front strut towers are tied in to the firewall and these braces are nothing more than a marketing ploy to get your money. The $250-300 could be used to get something much more valuable to your handling such as GT3 sway bars or if you're picky know it all anti-roll bars. FWIW I have M030 suspension and I go down this street every day that intersect with a hill that I must make a right turn on. The turn also has a dip where the hill and street meet, and when I make that turn I could feel the car lift one of the wheels off the ground because the chassis is so stiff. The point is the car does not need this strut bar.

I see. I thought you meant other wise..

I would agree that a strut bar won't do much. I haven't seen a single 996 based race car using one. Eddie, FWIW regarding lifting a wheel, that likely has more to do with the opposite corner not having enough compression resistance than strut tower movement. Regarding those of you taking a shot at Viken. I would point out that he has provided more valuable technical information to this board than all others combined so cut him some slack. Jim Just my 2 cents worth.

JimB, I've corresponded with Viken so many times. I hope you didn't mean me as taking shot at him. I was just clarifying some misunderstood points. I wasn't born yesterday in this forum.

Sorry Mike. I should have been more specific. I was responding to the "picky know it all" comment. Which Viken sometimes is but backs it up by being an extremely valuable resource. In retrospect I wish I hadn't responded at all. Jim

Jim, I know that its not related to the struttower movement, but I was just refering to that this event does not happen on many other cars I drive through the intersection, even my old 930 does not do this. The point is the chassis is stiff and that the strut brace is just a waste of money. As far as Viken he is a valuable resource, but at times he seems to talk down to some people.

Jim B, No worries. It's all good. We are all shooting for the same goal... to better our cars and help each other out. Sorry if I came out rough.