Chassis Strengthening

[risyia]

UR bars are useful in strenghtening the chassis, am using the bottom front 4-points bars that holds the underarms & the 4-points side bars for both sides that stiffens the chassis.

Just be careful fitting the bars will 'lower' your car as these bars protude below the original chassis. Have whack these bars against potholes/road humps a few times.

Hit it hard u might cause serious damage to these bars & might even cause the chassis to 'lari'.

 

[shiroitenshi]

I have a question: Doesn't stiffening the chassis makes the ride even harsher? With our malaysian roads, it only takes a while before something gets loose and rattles.

Just a thought.

 

[MKMD428]

hmm now thats something to ponder..

 

[risyia]

U're right Shiroitenshi, strengthening the chassis will transmit more stress to the bushes & joints and then the dashboard will rattle BUT it is choice that u make to get that 'tight' feeling when taking corners.

 

[kumar22mostwanted]

i feel adjustables alone are sufficient enough with a good braking system to have that safe feeling into corners
and not to mention darn good tyres
no need chassis this and chassis that
plus as mentioned before strengthening chassis just shifts more impact towards other parts of the car
coz the impact has to be absorbed somewhere

 

[D7zul]

U're right Shiroitenshi, strengthening the chassis will transmit more stress to the bushes & joints and then the dashboard will rattle BUT it is choice that u make to get that 'tight' feeling when taking corners.

i disagree..

chassis strengthening is important.. coz everything in the car is bolt on to the chasis..

if it's not strengthened, everything else will move around..

juz my opinion

 

[VectorX2]

i dun really agree the point of saying the "shifting or transmitting the force to somewhere or something else"

because in my opinion, it works this way, if the chassis is weak, less force is required to bend it, therefore if the chassis is stronger, more force is required to bend it and therefore, stronger absorbs more force than a weaker chassis

i am not really quite sure is my opinion is right but its worth to think about...

 

[D7zul]

i dun really agree the point of saying the "shifting or transmitting the force to somewhere or something else"

because in my opinion, it works this way, if the chassis is weak, less force is required to bend it, therefore if the chassis is stronger, more force is required to bend it and therefore, stronger absorbs more force than a weaker chassis

i am not really quite sure is my opinion is right but its worth to think about...

Force = Force = Force..

1 ton of force impact a weaker chasis = 1 ton of force impact a weaker chasis = u'll be seriously injured

1 ton of force impact a stronger chasis = 1 ton of force impact a stronger chasis = u'll be fine..

so, u choose...

 

[scoupe]

i think u guys got it wrong, the bars are installed to make the chassis more rigid not stronger. the original car chassis is design to allow flex, by installing these bars u will make it flex alot less. this in return will give it better handling but the cons are a very rigid chassis will be prone to crack.

 

[g4i8y0t]

I think the it's the other way around. A weak/less rigid chassis will take impact from the suspension, flex a bit and direct some of it to the passenger cabin. Flexing will cause vibration and rattling. Vehicle occupant will feel this as harsh ride. A rigid chassis will still take the impact, but it'll keep it's shape better as there is less flexing, thus helping the suspension to do it's job = absorbing impact from below.

Chassis flex is not a good thing as it can cause metal fatigue over time.

 

[scoupe]

well, how harsh the ride is basically depends on the suspension set up.. u can have a rigid chassis and still not feel the ride harsh. what impact are we talking bout here? if its the roads then the chassis is not ment to take the impact thats the job of the suspension. the chassis is not ment to flex alot, u cant see this flex but its there. too much flex will cause metal fatigue but i think it has to be there to provide a comfortable ride and to allow the chassis to crumple in the crumple zones during an accident. well this is my understanding, erm any chassis engineer out there to share some input?

 

[D7zul]

I think car manufacturers didn't put in all the anti-roll bar, strut bar, etc because they want to save cost..

for a Toyota AE101 (like mine) it cost around rm2,500 for full body strengthening.. the prices are from UR (i heard they're the cheapest & highest quality)

furthermore, all that increases the weight of the car & will affect the fuel consumption..

 

[mADmAN]

for comparison....

my old ex-EF3 converted to EF9 had VERY stiff suspension and also had chassis strengthening done via spot welding....spot welding was done on entire car including engine bay. only had front 2pt strut and rear 2pt strut...

DONT ASK ME WHERE, HOW MUCH BLA BLA BLA. EX OWNER OF THE CAR DID IT. I BOUGHT THE CAR WITH THE CHASSIS ALREADY STRENGTHENED...but years ago i heard itll cost RM700 to get it done...dunno about now. n JFA it seems can do it...so thats a start for those of u interested to do it

my friends original EF9 with stock Integra DA6 suspension. so its softer....only had front 2pt strut.

1/ my car barely squeaked... his car squeaked quite abit.

2/ my car only rattled when hitting bumps and holes or due to the stiff suspension, thick yellow lines. his car is the same.

3/ when parked with 1 tire on a slope or something (aka 1 tire not on level ground).

-My Friends EF9
when closing the door... the doorlock hook at the B-pillar thingy doesnt align properly coz the chassis flexes enough to make the door "drop" a little when the door is open...first checked door hinges, changed, flat surface straight... uneven surface same thing.

-My Strengthened Chassis EF3
no problems...straight door close...no issues.


so yeah.... when it comes to chassis strengthening... i say do it. especially if its spot welding....wont add as much weight as the bars...just a lil bit more leceh..thats all.

 

[D7zul]

for comparison....

my old ex-EF3 converted to EF9 had VERY stiff suspension and also had chassis strengthening done via spot welding....spot welding was done on entire car including engine bay. only had front 2pt strut and rear 2pt strut...

DONT ASK ME WHERE, HOW MUCH BLA BLA BLA. EX OWNER OF THE CAR DID IT. I BOUGHT THE CAR WITH THE CHASSIS ALREADY STRENGTHENED...but years ago i heard itll cost RM700 to get it done...dunno about now. n JFA it seems can do it...so thats a start for those of u interested to do it

my friends original EF9 with stock Integra DA6 suspension. so its softer....only had front 2pt strut.

1/ my car barely squeaked... his car squeaked quite abit.

2/ my car only rattled when hitting bumps and holes or due to the stiff suspension, thick yellow lines. his car is the same.

3/ when parked with 1 tire on a slope or something (aka 1 tire not on level ground).

-My Friends EF9
when closing the door... the doorlock hook at the B-pillar thingy doesnt align properly coz the chassis flexes enough to make the door "drop" a little when the door is open...first checked door hinges, changed, flat surface straight... uneven surface same thing.

-My Strengthened Chassis EF3
no problems...straight door close...no issues.


so yeah.... when it comes to chassis strengthening... i say do it. especially if its spot welding....wont add as much weight as the bars...just a lil bit more leceh..thats all.

can pass PUSPAKOM test? i heard they have an 'anti-welding on chassis' policy...

 

[mADmAN]

should be.... the anti welding is for kereta potong wan....spot welding doesnt involve any potong potong...

n my EF was sold 7-8 years ago...before this whole puspakom test thing appeared if i remember correctly

 

[nikolaiski]

If I were the owner of ANY car older than 7-10 years of age and were to use it for daily enthusiastic driving and a bit of track, I would spot weld the hell out of the car. However, before you do that, it is vital that you find out what you want out of your car's handling, because the number of welds and the location all affects the handling at the end, just like the number of bars you throw onto the front and back of the car.

If you are serious about your car's performance, strip it down to the bare essentials and start by welding/further rustproofing because using anti roll bars la, lower arm bar la, chocolate bar la, all serve to cure the symptom but not the "disease" itself.

I'm not familiar with AE111s, so I can't say where to weld exactly, but hope you can find someone who is very familiar with this. Then, build the car around it with good comfortable struts, not too stiff, PU bushings, and then start tuning your ride height/spring rates/etc from there :D

 

[DanzEterna]

if i buy the mig weld & DIY can ah? get a certified welder to guide me lor hehe...

 

[^pomen_GTR^]

if i buy the mig weld & DIY can ah? get a certified welder to guide me lor hehe...

mig/tig makes the welded area looks like "taik cicak" or like human stiching scar.....


hehe...


the best is to use manual spotweld machine...like factory robotic arm....but instead move by robot....it moves by human arm....very slow machine because low spec but already very expensive......mostly big bodyshop who do complicated body repairs only got this type of weld.....

 

[Veloc]

Bro nikolaiski...

Thank you for your suggestion. Your choice seems ideal for a track set up. But I got some questions here as I don't understand much about chassis.

By spot welding, you strengthen the joint between 2 pieces of metal. This makes the joints stronger and less likely to twist/flex/bend under stress. But the metal pieces of the chassis itself is not strengthen. So this still allows the metal pieces of the chassis to twist/flex/bend isn't it?

but if using the bars, the bars usually connect the left and right side of the cars. This strengthens not only the joints but also the metal pieces of the chassis right?

Feel free to correct. It's just my assumption. But erm... You do get what I mean right? I don't know how to explain well without drawings

 

[D7zul]

i'll go for bars anytime..

becoz :

1. it's plug & play.. no need to worry about workmenship

2. it's harder to twist 2 pieces of metal at one time..

3. if i'm bored with the bar, i juz open it & sell it ;p