Strut bar for 5k/100/200

["g.scruggs" <g.scruggs@mciworld.com>]

I've done a front strut brace for my '87 5kCStq.  Buy the mounting
plate/bracket/fixture things from a V8... about $65 each from Carlsen and
make your own bar from a length of 3/4 square tubing.  The OEM V8 bar is
made to wiggle around things in the V8 compartment and will be of little use
in this application.  I made my bar from Al to see if it actually made a
difference in the feel of the car but later intend to do both solid Al and
steel for comparison.

The windscreen washer bottle on my car was located at the right rear of the
compartment and interfered with the bar.  It is possible to fiddle with the
mounting and get the bottle so sit lower.  I thought that to be too close to
the wastegate so I removed it completely and located a used one, from Dad's,
from a later series, 200 I think, that goes between and below the right side
headlight and the air filter box.  This is tedious to install as space is
limited in there.  Your Euro light will have to come out and much wiggling
and fiddling is required to get the bottle in and the lines run correctly.
Check for leaks prior to installing as you will be unamused to do this
twice... do not ask how I know this.  Be sure to get all the lines and
screws and stuff for the bottle as there is provision but no hardware if
your car didn't come with this bottle.  You'll have to remount the remote
battery terminal and lengthen the electrical lines to the pump motor, too.

During this process you'll note the brake fluid reservoir filler cap is
directly in line of where the bar needs to go.  I pondered remote mounting
the reservoir... either hard mounting or suspending from the bar...  and
also experimented with sawing the top half off a reservoir and bonding it on
backwards... but finally conservation of energy took over and I just
reversed the entire OE reservoir on the master cylinder.  What you get is a
reservoir that is raked the wrong way and now the cap end is up in the air
and the rear is low enought to clear the bar with 3/8" to spare.  Those with
very high  aesthetic requirements may gag at the site of a reservoir that
doesn't 'look' right but I assure you that it works correctly and shows no
problems after 5000 mi and at least one brake bleeding cycle.  You'll have
to lengthen the clutch fluid tube now that the outlet is located on the
opposite side.

I noted the cap to the hydro fluid reservoir was a bit too close to the
bottom of the bar for my liking.  I modified the base on the back side of
the reservoir and got it to sit a bit lower in the mounting bracket and
everything is now easily accessible.

Is it worth the effort?  I believe it is.  I don't have before and after
stopwatch times to compare, but I did this not for 'fast' but for 'feel.'
And it does feel better.  Steering response is improved, even with the
relatively 'soft' Al tubing.  It's not the case that without the bar the
steering feels wrong or terribly deficient, but the first enthusiastic
corner after installing the bar I found myself thinking, "better."  Having
just located a piece of 3/4" square steel tubing in my shop... that I didn't
recall having... I'll cut a length and try it, too.  Your local hardware
store should have a collection of trim pieces from which the appropriate
square plug can be selected to finish the open ends of your strut bar.  Of
course the bar can always be power coated... yellow, of course.

Regards, Gross Scruggs