Chassis braces for NA6

[MoonieGT]

I've been researching chassis braces for my '91. The obvious brace would be the FM frame rails. I also found these braces:

http://www.good-win-racing.com/Mazda...t/20-1088.html
http://www.good-win-racing.com/Mazda...t/20-1095.html

Anyone have these or something similar for their NA6?

Thanks

[juxt3r]

I picked up a set of the old Brainstorm braces from 949 Racing not too long ago. Can't find 'em on the site anymore, though. Guess the supply finally ran out.

[trickyrix]

The Goodwin braces look like the ones that come standard on a '94-97 car. Where do they bolt up?

[Rob®]

I put on a brace similar to those Goodwin ones on my 90. I put one on the rear, connecting the control arms together, and have to say I actually noticed it. I have the "canon" or whatever brace sitting in a box somewhere. One day I will make it work with my exhaust and put it on. Seems like it should help even more than the single bar brace I put on.

I have the same type of brace for the front that I had installed for awhile. I can't say I noticed a difference when I took it off, but by that point I had not driven the car for nearly 2 years.

[shortshift]

I used the support bars from Moss Motors for our 1990 Miata. They both looked like pieces of pipe. The one in the rear made a very noticable difference, the one in the front stopped the dash board and under-hood rattles.. I would recommend both of them.

[MoonieGT]

Would you opt for these front and rear control arm braces or the FM frame rails (without the butterfly brace) first?

Thanks

[Rob®]

I installed only one set of the FM frame rails on a 95 Miata when they were first released. I was told they were 1 of the first handful sold, but I never cared to verify that claim. Since it was a later car, it already had the braces...so I can't really give you an answer for that.

I can, however, tell you that there is no way I would put the FM rails on my car. Unless they changed the design a bit, the one I installed had you drilling through the floor about 20 times, with nothing but a cheap washer to prevent the bolts from pulling through (which, by the way, nearly all of the bolts stripped when installing anyway). I'm sure they tested the crap out of it, but no thanks - I will never push my car hard enough to be able to justify doing that to my car. I can say that the car felt about as tight as I'd imagine you can get without a full cage, but no thanks. FWIW, the owner of that car eventually pulled the rails off anyway. I couldn't tell you why though.

[MoonieGT]

Interesting. I know that they actually have changed the design somewhat from the "original" version. But I don't know what all they changed. I think the website said it is just as strong as the orginal but lighter.

Does anyone else share the same concerns about the bolts pulling through the floor pan? I guess I could grab larger washers...

[Rob®]

Does anyone else share the same concerns about the bolts pulling through the floor pan? I guess I could grab larger washers...

I doubt it. Like I said, I'm sure they tested it to no end before they released them to the public. I just personally would have opted for rollbar-style plates, but that might just be me.

[MoonieGT]

Thanks for the help Rob. Once upon a time I added subframe connectors to an LS1 F-body and it was one of the best modifications I ever made to the car. The car felt much stronger. I could tell that the chassis was more rigid the first time I ever sat in the car after they were installed. If the frame rails are a step in that direction, I think they may be the ticket for me. My miata is a track toy (though I've been driving it like a daily driver the last few months...). So if I can stiffen up the chassis substantially with the frame rails, then that's probably what I'll start with...

[2K Miata]

Think about getting the Hard Dog door bars. Adding them made a big difference to my '99. TDR believes they are better than the FM butterfly braces, so much that IIRC Gary took them off one his cars. I've been tracking my car for more than 10 years now and the door bars are a significant improvement that I can recommend.

[Rob®]

Thanks for that info, 2K Miata. I have been considering those for some time now, but haven't heard of anyone that had them yet. I guess I'll have to pick someone's brain at TDR once my car is road-ready again.

[miataspeedracer]

Two more thumbs up on the door bars. They did a lot more than I thought they would...

[MoonieGT]

My only hesitation on door bars is that I drive the miata almost daily. My "daily driver' sometimes sits for 2 weeks at a time. If I add door bars, how much more difficult is entry and exit from the car? I'd hate to ruin my daily enjoyment of the car. Later on down the road it might become more of an exclusive track car... Will I not want to drive the miata to work with door bars in place?

[jeepinbanditrider]

I've done the Brainstorm braces that 949 had for a while and they made a noticeable difference in how the car felt and pretty much eliminated the cowl shake I had in the car. I later removed the rear brainstorm brace and installed the FM cannon brace which is much more substantial and it stiffened it up a bit more. Later I installed a rollbar (actually about 3 weeks ago) and it stiffened the car up even more.

I would suggest starting with a rollbar (what I wish I would have done) and then the subframe braces (which I think the 90-93 models should have had from the factory) then decide if you want the framerails/butterfly brace from FM. It's a pricey setup and you can easily pick up a rollbar new for that and have some left over.

Also keep an eye out in the classifieds section here and elsewhere. All of my braces and even my rollbar are used which saved me a substational amount of money.

My only hesitation on door bars is that I drive the miata almost daily. My "daily driver' sometimes sits for 2 weeks at a time. If I add door bars, how much more difficult is entry and exit from the car? I'd hate to ruin my daily enjoyment of the car. Later on down the road it might become more of an exclusive track car... Will I not want to drive the miata to work with door bars in place?

I'm also curious about what would happen during a crash. In a side impact situation will the bars deform further into the passenger compartment? Are they so intrusive into the passenger compartment that they will cause discomfort during everyday driving? I.E. Are they above or below the seat bolstering when installed?

[MoonieGT]

I've already got a roll bar (It's actually the same roll bar in 2k Miata's avatar, I bought it from him). It was a noticeable improvement. It sounds like I'll want at least the front brace and some form of a rear brace.

If you add the door bars, does that make the frame rails a bit redundant or vice versa?

[jeepinbanditrider]

In my car the front lower subframe brace made the biggest difference in cowl shake and what not. Since you have the rollbar I'd suggest going with the front and rear braces first. It'll be much cheaper than diving into the FM braces and if you feel like the front and rear braces stiffen it up enough you won't be out the money on the FM braces.

[Rob®]

It sounds like I'll want at least the front brace and some form of a rear brace.

If you have a stock or near-stock exhaust on your car, you can have my canon rear brace. It was rather poorly powdercoated black, but otherwise in good shape. The more I think about it, the more trouble I think it will be to fit a 3" exhaust through it...so I will probably never bother with it. you'd have to come to Haslet to pick it up though, that's the only catch (it'd be free though, so I'd say worth it).

From what I've seen/heard online about the door bars, you don't even notice them. The pictures look like they are below the side bolsters, so they only look to be an issue with adjusting the seatback, if even then. And yes, I would say the door bars set out to do the same thing as the frame rails, so having both would probably add more weight than anything. EDIT: I must have seen the door bars from somewhere other than TDR - I just looked at their site and noticed they are quite a bit higher than whatever ones I saw.

[MoonieGT]

I'll take the brace, thanks! I just have to find out where Haslet is...

[Rob®]

Go north for about an hour. If you know where TMS is, I am about 8 miles from that. If you know where all eight 287s intersect, I'm right there. What else is there...like 2 miles from Lee's BBQ..that's all I can think of, sorry. I will PM my address in a second.