Great...

My strut tower bar from MazdaStuff came in today. Got the right side bracket installed....but the left side bracket will not work because they sent me the same exact cruise control bracket that was already on my car! I'm going to email MazdaStuff and see if they can ship the bracket I really need.

 

it's the passenger side strut tower, where the cruise control actuator is!!!

the correct part number for that bracket is in the FAQ. Don't forget to mention the part number when you request the new bracket from mazdastuff

 

Yeah, I'm talking about the passenger side, lol. I called it left side because that's the side it's on when you're looking at the car from the engine. I looked at the FAQ - the part number is BN5W-66-3AY.

 

Not just mazdastuff, but all the deals are doing this error. I think its a mazda problem with wrong part numbers being specified.

 

Great news everyone. I ordered the correct bracket yesterday, and it came in today. Installed everything without a problem.

Well, actually one minor problem that can probably be solved... The tower bar gets REALLY close to the throttle body. In reverse, when the engine vibrates, it hits up against the tower bar and makes a God-awful sound. I guess the easiest way to solve this would be to add some thick washers to the connecting points on each strut tower mount.

Pictures will be up soon...

 

good job, I didn't have that issue with the throttle body banging against the bar, probably because I have a 1.8L and the throttle body is positioned low and behind the intake manifold.

feel any difference in steering response? you should

have fun

 

when i got my strutbar they only included 1 mounting nut. i emailed them several times to send the other ones but they never sent it. i ended up just ordering straight from my local dealer and came in 2 days. i don't know what to think of mazdastuff now. prices are better but is it worth the hassle?

 

Here's the pics as promised:


The CORRECT bracket:

Look how close it comes to the throttle body:

 

feel any difference with the bar?

 

at least it fits! it's close to the throttle body because it was designed around the 2.0 liter engine which has the intake manifold curved down away from the bar and the throttle body is below it.

 

Yes, there is a noticeable difference. Nothing too dramatic, but steering is a little more accurate, and it wants to pull back to the center more. Also turn-in is more accurate, as Hank said.

If I put some thick washers on all four of the mounting points at the ends of the bar to raise it up a little more, do you think that would compromise it's ability to tie the strut towers down? If I put washers there, I'm thinking it would make the entire set up more flexible.

 

if you put down metal washers instead of rubber ones, you should still have a pretty stiff setup.

I'd say 3-4mm worth of gapping would do it

 

congrats for finally getting it on. looks good. might i suggest painting the bar red since your injen is red?

 

Good idea...I might do that sooner or later. I need to get this clearance problem fixed first though.

 

The rattling is no more. Went to Home Depot and got some 1/2 inch washers and put them on the 4 mounting points. All is well, for now.

Man, it seems like all the problems everyone is running into has to do w/ the 1.6 engine. Let's see, Injen intake probs, strut tower bar probs, what else? Never mind the fact that it is slow...good god!