rear upper strut brace

[james walker]

hi guys.... looking to fine tune my handling setup

mods so far.

tt wishbone bushes
s3 upper
s3 lower
rear whiteline 23mm adjustable on stiffest setting
falken fk452s all round (awesome by the way) set to 34psi
uprated shocks and springs
new topmounts
ths dogbone
ths engine and tranny uprated mounts

quaife atb diff

looking into a rear upper strut brace, anyone got any experiences and/or opinions on these. ive only seen them listed for mk4 golf which i assume is the same fitment.

opinions welcome, as to wheter its worth adding one of these

 

[lordgibbness]

I think Phillc and dolby have the rear strut brace - never felt the need myself - but I'm sure they can help. Your ARBs are quite closely matched (as you know been investigating this recently). The only weak point I can see is the tyres, but I know how unwilling people are to spend on good rubber.

 

[james walker]

the falken 452s are not weak tyres mate, they are very good.... loads of people use them on here, had them 2 weeks, very very impressed.... similar performance to the gsd3s i had before.

 

[james walker]

nobody else got one then.... take it it aint wort the bother?

 

[lc_allan]

I have one and sorted the last group buy on here for them. Noticed the difference once on and before my arbs were fitted. Does reduce body flex a fair bit in the rear. Also quick release so can be taken out for space

 

[ChrisGTL]

Thumbs up to the Hughes Engineering Rear Strut Brace!!

http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showpost.php?p=1959893&postcount=48

 

[james walker]

is it worth adding as i already have rear arb and a pretty long list of handling mods already.... like that hughes engineering one alot.... go on then hit me with the huge price tag??

 

[lc_allan]

It's just another extra. I have pretty much the same mods as you.
The brace was £68 delivered in the group buy. I think Mike has put the prices up slightly for one offs and due to the increased cost of stainless.
Beautifully made though and I'm sure he'll offer a decent price still.

 

[james walker]

thats not too bad tbh...

where do we contact mike then?

 

[lc_allan]

Use the works email address. He runs a small business and is usually very busy, so may take a day or so to reply. Or call him up.

http://www.hughesengineering.co.uk/contact_us.htm

 

[BoomhaueR]

I can vouch for Mike's work. Very good quality and would definitely buy from him again. Here's what mine looks like:

Took me about 15mins to put on and most of that was trimming the carpet. Then once the brackets are on you can remove the bar section in about 10 seconds if you need to put big items in your boot.

 

[james walker]

what difference to the hanndling mate...

i see you dont list arbs on your siggy? so youd notice the difference.

p.s anyones surplus to requirements wanna sell me theirs??

 

[BoomhaueR]

Yeah arbs are on my list after exhaust!

It does feel like it makes a difference. The back end feels much more planted and willing to follow the front, not that I have pushed it to the limit, but it is noticeable and a worthwhile spend.

 

[james walker]

okay mate thanks..... anyone know of any other versions of a rear upper brace for the leons??

 

[Phillc]

Robdon has a different type, mine is the same as the above.