What does a strut brace (aka stress bar or strut bar) do?
The concept of a strut bar is intended on reducing the flex between the front strut towers during hard cornering loads. By reducing this flex, it allows suspension points to remain undisturbed, allowing for the suspension to do it's job properly. This often gives the drive a feeling of increased stability and improved turning response, when in reality, the suspension is reacting as designed.

Who can benefit from a strut bar?
For those that may believe a strut bar is only for "track cars" or "racecars", it is also street driven vehicles that benefit from a properly engineered strut tower bar. Whereas anyone can appreciate the ability for a front suspension to remain constant at all times, other benefits include support of the factory strut towers from "mushrooming". These generally occurs if the vehicle hits large potholes, causing the suspension to compress completely, and then damaging the rim. However, its not only the rim that takes the hit, but the shock tower as well. Over time, if left unprotected, it can cause expensive sheet metal damage.

What to look for in a strut tower brace?
When looking at a strut tower brace to give you the most benefit, it should have the following features:

• Sufficient protection of the strut tower top (to prevent "mushrooming")
• No pivots or heim-style joints to allow the bar to flex or bend, but adjustable, to allow for intention suspension changes.

• Center bar with minimal bends or kinks (straighter is stiffer!)
• Provide adequate underhood clearance (so not to dimple the hood)
• Allow for suspension changes (for those that frequent the track)
• Made from the best materials available (for lightweight, coefficient of thermal expansion)

Even BMW applied many of these traits to their own strut tower braces when they offered them. For the E36 and E46 models, both used cast aluminum strut tower plates and matched them to tubular steel center bars.

Thermodynamics: Damn, I should have paid attention in that class!
Don't worry, you won't be tested on this subject, however it is relevant when talking about the best materials of creating the best strut tower brace. There is a CTE (Coefficient of Thermal Expansion) for most every material so the key is to use materials that have the LEAST amount of effect when the heat increases (such as in the area of an engine compartment).

This graph illustrates the different Coefficients of Thermal Expansion (CTE) of popular materials used for strut tower braces. As you can see, a strut tower brace made entirely of aluminum or magnesium would be most affected by the elevated temperatures of an engine compartment. This may be fine on a strut plate, but if the centerbar were to expand, this would negate any benefit of the bar since it would change the suspension settings in a negative manner (usually increasing positive camber). Since the heat of an engine compartment can exceed 200ºF, this would cause an aluminum or magnesium center bar to start expanding. Simply switching the center bar to steel would cut the variation by nearly 50%. Of course, switching to carbon fiber would make the expansion virtually immeasurable.

What about Rogue Engineering's Carbon Fiber Strut Tower Brace?
Some may question our decision to offer a competing product, since the Rogue Engineering Carbon Fiber brace fulfills many performance requirements already. In fact, the RACEBRACE chassis reinforcement fills a niche which our Carbon Fiber brace does not fill. Such features include compatibility with specific adjustable shocks and easy access to adjustable camber plates.

• Lightweight tubular steel bars are MIG/TIG welded to high strength steel plates and powdercoated black for a durable finish. Steel is used for its superior CTE over other materials (such as aluminum or magnesium alloy).
• The multiple bar configuration, with center support bars, resist twisting and bending of the front chassis. Although it does not bolt to the firewall, the bar's multiple tubes resist bending and twisting in multiple planes (when compared to strut braces' that use only flat bars).
• Fits all 6-clyinder 1992-1999 E36 models, including those equipped with ASC+T. E46 version in production now (as of 6/12/07)
• Open tower design allows for easy access to adjustable camber plates and shock adjustments.
• Designed to offer adequate clearance over the engine components as well as underhood clearance. This is especially important in E36 coupes, as the underhood clearance is the lowest of all of the E36 models. Other strut tower braces will either put too much pressure in the hood release lever or worse, dimple the hood.
• Strut tower mounts completely cover the strut tower area, preventing costly sheet metal damage from "mushrooming", especially with lowered cars.
• Removal of the strut brace takes only minutes with simple hand tools.
• Adjustments to suspension camber/caster plates can be made without removal of the bar.
• At only 6.9 lbs. (E36 model), it is designed to withstand the rigors of extreme track use. Its one piece welded construction resists bending and flexing moments that hinged, flat bars simply cannot compare.

• On the E36 version, our RACEBRACE does fit those with the rather short studs of TC Kline camber plates.
• On our E46 version, the RACEBRACE is designed with aftermarket, adjustable camber plates in mind. For those using stock strut mounts, modified by removing the alignment pin and adjusting the suspension, the RACEBRACE has been designed to have its plates in the factory center position.

• Because the RACEBRACE one-piece construction, it requires a box which UPS and other common carriers have deemed "Oversize 1", which ships at 30 lbs (despite its true weight). Freight charges will be calculated based on this information.