Static911

I picked them up today from Area 51 Fabrications

It is a complete set: one for your front and one for your rear.

They retail for $425!

Image is taken from "RedLine Performance"

edit: I knicked one of the corners while taking them home...oops....





Ethan

GGP4me

And what is Ethan going to do with a set of Area 51 sway bars for the IS300??

Static911

Raffle them off to ClubLexus Paid Member...wait a second, GGP4Me, you're one of them

Ethan

Marley

Sorry Ethan had to move it in the proper forum

need4morespeed

Do you have any idea how stiff the sways are?

mdaltezza

I believe they're 33% stiffer front and rear.

Christobol

Are you sure? I think my L-Tuned bars are 100% in front and 50% in the rear. That would mean that what I've got is way better (and cheaper). I want to go with stiffer bars actually.

mdaltezza

I'm pretty sure the A51 sways are 33% across the board.

As to your comment about being better... that's just according to how you perceive it. I like the stock handling characteristics of the IS300 and I wouldn't want to change it except for flatter turning.

If the Ltuned sways are 100% stiffer front and 50% stiffer rear... that would cause more understeer than stock set up, I believe. Most people want a more neutral feel to the car with possibly a slight oversteer. At least most performance oriented drivers.
TRD Race sways are set up that way being 50% stiffer in the front and 100% stiffer in the rear. So "better" is all a matter of what you prefer.

Currently... I'm running the rear sway, 33% stiffer (approx. 17 mm). That has induced more oversteer than i'd like. The front sway is going to be installed this weekend.

afterwards.. i'm going with the stiffer rear springs and upgraded shocks. i'm open to suggestions about springs and shocks.

Christobol

I think I have the % numbers wrong. I do know that I have more oversteer than I once did. I want ever more oversteer actually. This car has SOOO much understeer that it's difficult to race it well. Since there aren't many people with L-Tuned sways I don't know if I will be able to find out the exact specifications.

I haven't looked up this number in awhile so I might be off: I believe our car's ratio of under/over steer is at 63%. 63 is extremely high in understeer. A basic saturn comes from the factory at 58%. 0% is complete oversteer, and 100% is complete understeer. If you really wanted to equalize the under/oversteer on the IS, you would have to go with a substantially stiffer rear, and no difference in the front (so throw on the TRD rear).

Of course it's all up to what you're looking for. If you want extreme performance then you'll go with a much stiffer bar. As far a springs and shocks, you might as well go with a nice set of coilovers. To get a good set of shocks (Koni) you'll spend about $500, then you'll spend 250 or so on springs. Eventually you'll want to revalve the shocks, which costs $200 per shock I believe. In all you would be best getting a set of true coilovers.

mdaltezza

christobol...

i installed the front sway this past weekend. i think maybe i got to used to the stiffer rear sway because now i feel as if i've got entirely way too much understeer. Much flatter... but a little unpredictable.

Do you think a rear strut tower bar would be my next option as opposed to just getting the TRD rear race sway? In the civics I drive occasionally (friends and brother) they are able to enter the turns at a much higher speed. Could this be due to the lower center of gravity (both are lowered). I would rather not lower my car but would like to have the same relative speed into a turn....

Any suggestions?

I suppose a good set of coilovers would suffice, providing me room to lower. but I really don't want to sacrifice ride comfort. Is there a happy medium?

Christobol

What are you noticing the car doing when you go into a turn?

If you feel that the inside tires are lifting off the ground then you need to have stiffer sway bars.

If you feel that the tire is still in contact with the road, but it isn't hitting at the correct angle (meaning you don't feel it's from swaying of the body) then it's caused by a distortion of the geometry of the suspension.. thus you should consider a rear strut tower. A front strut tower is just about useless.

If you feel that when you go into a turn the outside of the car compresses too much through the turn that would be the springs. Right now that is the biggest problem with my car... soft springs. Now you can go with stiffer springs, but you're going to have a stiffer ride. You don't have to lower your car with a new set of springs either. I would consider coilovers in this case because you can usually adjust them in anticipation for where you're driving. For instance around town I would have them on a regular setting. Then when you feel crazy, just reach in the wheel well and turn the adjustment **** a bit to give you a stiffer ride. The great thing about coilovers is that they have such a wide range of adjustment, that you can dial in your preference. With springs you're stuck with that one spring rate and if you feel it's too stiff or not stiff enough then you'll have to buy new springs.

Make sense? What are you feeling?

mdaltezza

i feel as if it's not hitting the right angle as well as the compression of the springs. ... i haven't hit the autocross with the sway bars yet though. i intend on doing at least one before adding another mod.

Is the ride stiffer due to a more compressed spring? I was under the assumption that the spring rate of a spring is always constant (unless of course pushed beyond it's resilient ability)... and that the shocks can be adjusted to provide some sort of comfort.

Coilovers sound like what i'm interested in, yet to justify the price to just being able to "lower" the car... as opposed to the performance aspect.... hmmmm.....
Decisions decisions. Alright.. who's got coilovers in the DC/MD/VA area...
i need some help... i don't care if it's a civic or a lex...