Subachad Tunnel Brace

Hi guys,

I started working on a flying miata style butter fly brace which I'm dubbing the subachad tunnel brace. Unfortunately I ran out of weld before I got very far.

So far though even with the minimum bracing that I have done, the car feels more composed on the freeway and doesn't make wierd falling apart sounds when I pull in the driveway. Also going over bumps in the road just feels different, it's tough to explain.

I will update my site later with how I did it and how it attaches to the car, but for now you can see some pics by clicking on the thumbnails towards the bottom of this page.

http://www.uniquemotorsports.com/200...-observations/

subchub,

Nice info page on handling improvment options.
I have some cash and ordered some new springs.
I have no intention on trying to make my 2005 quick, fast, or powerful,
but will focus on making the car drive and handle better.

After driving a couple hundred miles with this, I think I will start producing a finished version of this brace. It will look similar to what you see in the link, but will have a diagnal support and 2 more cross sections connected to where it currently crosses over. It just makes the car so much more composed over bumpy roads it's like driving a more expensive car.

It will require 4 holes to be drilled into the frame rails of the car and tapped with a 10X1.5 tap so it can be bolted up. You can get the drill bit and tap at Pep Boys for $4.99

I will sell the first one at $30 shipped to whoever wants to review this for the rest of the board. After that the target price will be $60 shipped unless I can get the materials cheaper. Honestly that only has me putting about $20 in my pocket for each brace sold.

Included will be the Brace, 4 bolts and 4 lock washers.

Is anyone interested?

Also to come will be a front 3 peice lightweight lower chassis brace like I'm running, only difference is it will be cleaned up for asthetics reasons. Target price for that is $25 shipped depending on materials cost.

props on the product

I'm in Chad...you know that.

What exactly is comeing in the package your going to sell?....
But Im in......!!!!!!!!!

Package it all up and let me know a total cost :P

Glad to hear there is some interest. The tunnel brace is a little more difficult to install because you need the car high enough that you can drill into the frame runners. You will then need a way of tapping it, when you can get a tap and die set for 10-20 bucks. You will use it again to repair bad threads so it pays for itself in time.

Here is what would be included

Tunnel Brace:

1 tunnel brace
4 10mm bolts
4 lock washers


Front chassis tie brace:

Attachment 8714

Attachment 8715

Attachment 8716

Attachment 8717

1 cross brace
2 mounting brackets
4 bolts
4 nuts
4 lock washers


The front chassis tie brace is pretty simple to make if you have a drill, hacksaw, and a vise. It's basically 3/4" conduit and some alluminum mounting brackets. This keeps the cost down so I can sell it pretty cheap yet I have driven my Aveo on the track with this brace and even with the super sticky Azenis, the brace did its part without bending. This says a lot. If you look at the rear braces on Civics which are made by DC Sports, they get bent under canyon or track driving use.

http://www.uniquemotorsports.com/200...-observations/

:twisted: im going to have to make myself some of these braces....your tie brace is perfect for fitting in with the auto trans (its a tight fit)

there is literally this much room between the tranny and the bolt on the drivers side
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Quote:

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Originally Posted by AVE0SAM

:twisted: im going to have to make myself some of these braces....your tie brace is perfect for fitting in with the auto trans (its a tight fit)

there is literally this much room between the tranny and the bolt on the drivers side
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If you are able to weld the tunnel brace is pretty simple to make.

The front brace can be made by anyone with some basic tools. You just need a vise to crush the ends of some 3/4" electrical conduit. A hacksaw to cut up some aluminum flat stock. A drill and bits to drill out the holes. Then some basic tools to install everything.

is it EMT conduit or rigid conduit you used?

two more question....for the front brace did you use the same bolts to attach it back to the underside? and if i undo those bolts on the arms...what happens? it doesnt fall out or anything...dont need my dad coming home to a wrecked car

Standard metal conduit.

When you undo the bolts just try not to move the car otherwise you will have a harder time getting the control arm bolts back in.

OK people, I bought some materials so I can make a few of these tonight.

Final price shipped to the main 48 states is

Tunnel brace - $60
Front control arm brace - $30

Remember these prices are shipped to your door. If you are interested send a paypal to me at subachad@(do not spam please)hotmail dot com.

thanks subachad, just got back from lowes..it was the emt conduit and it comes in 5' and 10' but the 5' is like $4.50 and the 10' is $6...well i went with the 10ft and just to let people know that doesnt fit inside the aveo lol but good thing i brought a hacksaw and just sawed it in the parking lot :lol: hopefully i can build it by this weekend...pretty cheap mod if you ask me and the conduit seems pretty strong

:evil: everytime I getting back in the mood to modify my aveo, something always comes up that makes it impossible (usually its a lack of intelligence of who ever designed this car)...so i was siked today to start build my tie bars and i got one side of the front one all drilled and ready and i go to move to the other side....and of course there isnt even enough room to get the bolt out because the auto transmission is too close....so wtf, i have to move trans and engine to get those bolts out? :x I mean i would have to do that if the arm bent or something which would be a total bitch...so thank you to jackass who didnt think about how much space was needed....but its still a good mod for you manuals out there

Thanks for the heads-up about the auto trans problem. Was just about to order some of that stuff from subachad. I swear they build some of this stuff specifically so you can't mod it.

yea you can still do the tunnel brace and the other arm brace (which is what i will probably do now) but the very front brace wont work on autos

The tunnel brace might not work with aftermarket exhausts as it will ship. If that's the case you will need washers and some longer bolts for added clearance.

Can you take a picture of the bolt coming out and hitting the AT? I'm wondering if you could lift the engine a little bit with a jack and then remove the bolt. It will go up a couple inches without removing the motor mounts.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by subachad

The tunnel brace might not work with aftermarket exhausts as it will ship. If that's the case you will need washers and some longer bolts for added clearance.

Can you take a picture of the bolt coming out and hitting the AT? I'm wondering if you could lift the engine a little bit with a jack and then remove the bolt. It will go up a couple inches without removing the motor mounts.

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hmm really that might work...ill get you a picture

i'll take both! :D so $80.00 bucks for both shipped?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by andrewsvt03

i'll take both! :D so $80.00 bucks for both shipped?

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Sure, no prob. Sounds like a good combo pack. I'll price it as such on my site as well once I get a product page up.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by subachad

Standard metal conduit.

When you undo the bolts just try not to move the car otherwise you will have a harder time getting the control arm bolts back in.

OK people, I bought some materials so I can make a few of these tonight.

Final price shipped to the main 48 states is

Tunnel brace - $60
Front control arm brace - $30

Remember these prices are shipped to your door. If you are interested send a paypal to me at subachad@(do not spam please)hotmail dot com.

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Hey there,
Would you ship to Winnipeg Manitoba Canada? What would the cost be?
This looks like it will sure help the car.
Thanks

yeah I can ship to Canada, throw in another $5 and I'll make sure to mark it as a gift. Hopefully it won't get held up in customs.

For AutoXing, I would STRONGLY recommend the front lower control arm brace. You will be able to take the same turns faster. I had a freeway onramp test which I would lose traction at 40mph and had to lift to avoid going off the road. With the brace, I could take it at 50. I could probably do 55 but ran out of balls. :)

Here are some similar braces for the new Prius.

http://newtoyotaparts.com/model/struct. ... 3&cat_id=7

better late then never i say...here are pictures, i completely forgot that i had taken these a long time ago and had them stored on my cardomain

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member...37_23_full.jpg

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member...37_22_full.jpg

i believe the motor and trans can be lifted a tad, you could get the bolt out

You could jack it from the oil pan without removing the motor mounts and it will go up high enough to clear that bolt no prob.

After more review, I don't think many people would notice much difference with the tunnel brace.

Anyone will notice a difference with the front lower control arm brace. I have one made up ready to go, or if you are handy, it's pretty simple to duplicate.

Chad

Quote:

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Originally Posted by subachad

After more review, I don't think many people would notice much difference with the tunnel brace.

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did you?

i assume he meant that it can be noticed if you take the aveo to the track or autocross, but daily drivers won't put the car thru hard condition where the bracing would be noticed

It's more composed over rough roads or not so smooth freeways. Pulling into my sloped driveway the car doesn't creak as much.

I want to make a stronger front tunnel brace and connect some points just behind the wheels to see what that does to chassis rigidity.

In other words, yes it's better but the chassis is still really soft. I'm looking for a change that will be more significant. Perhaps bracing around suspension pickup joints such as the fender brace or just behind the wheels as mentioned.

The front lower control arm brace is awsome. I HIGHLY recommend that.

Hard driving, I don't seem to notice any difference with the tunnel brace. I'll update that comment after running some canyons when I go to LA next month.

You're right, the front lower control arm is great... I haven't put on the front tower strut yet, and wondering if it'll make a lot of difference in addition to the lower control arm.

I'm also looking for more bracing stuff at the mid-ship or rear of the car to reduce understeer...

Yea thats what im looking at too mid to rear bracing as well.

I have kind of stopped modding the Aveo and therefore the mid brace never was improved on. My thought is to strip a section of undercoating off the car, weld some peices of flat stock to it for where the bolts will go, thread it and build some better braces. Once done, I can put bolts in the threaded holes to protect the threads, spray with undercoating then install the braces. With flat black paint, they would even look stock.

To get rid of some of the understeer, pick up some 17mm Polyurethane bushings for the front swaybar. This will stiffen the front a little more and actually help reduce understeer.

arent the newer (2006+) have a 18mm swaybar?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ontarian_frog

arent the newer (2006+) have a 18mm swaybar?

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Good point... about 33% stiffer than the 17mm 8)