Mazdaspeed Strut Bar Impressions
 

Short version of this...get it. It's worth it. ;)

Long version...I got the Mazdaspeed strut bar about two weeks ago from Park Mazda on Ebay, along with the all weather floor mats (the mats are seriously must buys, can't believe I waited a year to get them myself). Buying from these guys was a great experience, and I would definitely look them up in the future for Mazda parts. Thanks to the excellent installation instructions by PoLak in the DIY forum, I was able to install the bar in a jiffy myself. Took maybe about 30-45 minutes, with most of it being me torqueing the nuts to hell after getting the bar in place. The instructions that came with the bar was so pitiful it was funny...basically "take old bar off, put new bar on, you're done!" :rolleyes:

Now, as far as performance is concerned...first and foremost, I'm definitely a cornering whore. There's nothing that puts a big grin on my face as much as simply being able to snap around a corner without a hint of tire squeal, while keeping the car within my lane.

With the Mazdaspeed strut bar installed, the car simply now feels as though it's leaning less into the turn under hard cornering. The difference isn't small at all either, as I find that I am now able to snap around corners so hard that I find myself being completely stunned that something didn't give way. My cornering confidence definitely went up tremendously after installing the Mazdaspeed strut bar. There's a round "carousel" by my local Mazda dealership that is awesome for generating massive g's, and it's a favorite for the salesmen to use when demonstrating the RX-8. It's always the first place I put first timers in my car through to elicit an honest reaction out of them, just as it got one out of me when my salesman took me through it. Since installing the Mazdaspeed bar, I've been able to go around that carousel at an even greater angle and speed than ever before, and the g-force is just incredible.

The bar also has a brake cylinder brace that helps keep the brake pedal firmer under hard braking. This feature seems to mainly affect the last inch or so of brake pedal travel...when you're pratically standing on the brakes, you can definitely feel that the pedal feels much firmer than without the brace. Incidentally I had gotten the new non-squeaking brake pads about two weeks ago, and had complained about how spongy they felt under hard braking. After installing the Mazdaspeed strut bar, that spongy feeling, which mostly occurred at the end of the brake pedal travel, seems to have gone entirely away. This brace was one of the main reasons I went with the Mazdaspeed strut bar over others.

Overall, the Mazdaspeed strut bar is definitely worth forking $250 or so over for. It's an awesome looking piece of hardware certainly, and looks very impressive installed under the hood. I was expecting the bar to not make much of an impact, and it certainly felt that way at first. For the past two weeks it has been raining non-stop and I didn't have a chance to safely corner hard with the bar installed. But once the weather cleared up, and after taking a few corners harder and harder, the difference made itself known. Get it! :cool:

Nice write up.

So do they have a 4 point strut bar with a master cylinder brace now for the LHD RX-8s :cool:

looks great,
very noticeable first days but you get so use to it that it seems like the stock bar.
well thats what I got from it after I got it last year.

A quicky question for those in the know about brake cylinder braces...can the brace actually help to lessen your braking distance under hard braking, or does it merely just provide a firmer pedal feel without really doing anything to your braking capabilities?

Firmer pedal feel

Since the firewall is thin in our car, there is actually some travel when you press the brake pedal hard.

So it helps with the feel and more direct pressure on the brake pedal.

Same idea is use in the Autoexe Mastervac Brace.

Actually Vertigo was referring to the 2pt MS strut bar rather than the 4pts. Its one thats with CF shaft in the middle (or was it just CF wrap).

Anyway, I know you do have the 4pts MS strut bar right, takahashi?

well, i need a favour, to either taka, or anyone who has the 4pt bar. I do have the MS 4pts strut, what happen was recently i notice the brake stopper wasn't in contact with the brake master cylinder. And i notice all it has is only a long screw track and 3 nuts on it. Is there anything missing? eg a stopper or something?

Would appreciate if someone, can do a quick snap shot of the brake stopper portion, just wanna check against my.

Thanks a bunch!

I found it. From Taka's old post.

Indeed my stopper has gone missing... wonder how that happen :confused:

the mazdaspeed strut bar did make some and only a little difference in my 8.
yah i could feel the difference in every term and the firmer brake and it was definately worht the 250, but dont have HIGH expectations.
or maybe thats because i have sways and springs???

im just waiting for my JIC CF rear strut to come in! YAY! tuesday!

Behold! The Mazdaspeed 4pt. Strut Bar with brake brace for LHD RX-8!http://https://www.rx8club.com/attac...chmentid=46212

who has these in stock?

I have no idea. I'm getting one as soon as I find out though. :D

Is that really something that Mazda is now selling, or is that a one-off modification of an RHD brace?

jds

nice racing suction..hehehe

I had my MS upper strut bar installed by mazda speed last year. It has been worth the $250 I paid for it. However today I found out the lock nut for the brake brace was loose and the acual bolt that stands against the master of couse was loose too. I do not have the instructions, as I never installed the unit myself. Any one knows what is the pre-load you are supposed to apply to the break brace bolt. you help is much appreciated

Mark

Sorry few corrections...I was typing too fast... the was the Mazda delearship who installed it, and I meant the master Cylinder when I said master...Thanks again

Mark

I guess the motor cover does not fit with the 4 point bar. Anyone compare the regular MS bar with this one? I prefer to keep the cover on myself.

sounds like a really good write up, so how do the other strut bars compare with the MS one? is the MS one like the best one for the 8?

Even the normal MS one will not fit with the cover you need to do some triming of the cover before it will work .