Rom
Advanced Member
- Messages
- 1,742
So this may be of use to some of you. I know clearance for strut braces can be an issue.
May also help with RBC issues. I know there are problems fitting RBC with Mugen and J's, though not sure this would apply as not fitted mine yet.
I bought an Ultra Racing 4 point brace, which didnt clear my Mugen air box. Not one to be deterred, i set about making it fit.
I didnt get a before picture, but it was no where near fitting. Id say 10mm short of clearance on the NS edge of the box. You can see in the finished picture, how close it still is. I couldnt even get a nut started before the mods on the NS. In total, id estimate ive gained about 15mm drop in the height on the back NS corner, which was my issue.
To do this you will need
Round File
10mm Drill bit
10mm Socket
12mm Socket
12mm Spanner
Ratchet
Extension
Plus whatever you need to remove your airbox. Mines 10mm and 8mm.
Ok, so with the airbox removed. You want to remove this bracket. 3 10mm bolts hold it on.
Then you want to remove this bracket, that the filter bolts to. Theres 2 12mm bolts, and a 10mm that holds a coolant pipe to this bracket. Mine was missing the 10mm. JDM weight saving yo!
For clarity, these are the brackets you should be left with
Now not wanting to ruin anything. I decided my best bet was to elongate the holes. Making the brackets adjustable, meaning i can return it to standard if theres a problem.
So start by drilling these holes out to 10mm. This is to fit the file in really. If you have a small file, you could skip this bit. But will take longer with a small file.
Also, by drilling them out, it gives a small amount of adjustment forwards / backwards on the black mount, and left and right on the silver mount.
Now get your file out, and get busy. I wanted to lower mine, so ive filled upwards of the original hole. You could go both ways, or just down if you need to raise it.
Ive taken them about as far as they will go. This isnt a high stress or structural part. So the ally will hold up fine depsite being much thinner in places.
Now refit them, and see if youve got enough clearance now. The silver bracket will be you limiting factor. You could shave some off the top, where the bolt from the air box goes in for a bit more effect. You could also shave down the rubber / steel sleeves that are on the airbox.
I refitted the black bracket in its lowest position and done it up. The silver one will move out of place every time you remove the box. So you wont know where to tighten it up. Jack the NS of the car up, and go in through the wheel arch with the air box in place, then do the 3 10mm bolts up. Saves trying to guess and refit the box 10 times.
There is a limit to how low you can go. The gear cables run under the box, and the selectors. So go too low, and they will catch. You also have to consider the intake hose. Id say if you have to go much more than 15mm to 20mm, you need to be very careful. The beauty is, if you do have clearance problems, just raise it back up on the mounts. You havent ruined anything here.
So there you have it. Hopefully you got the clearance you needed, and your brace fits, or whatever the problem was is fixed.
May also help with RBC issues. I know there are problems fitting RBC with Mugen and J's, though not sure this would apply as not fitted mine yet.
I bought an Ultra Racing 4 point brace, which didnt clear my Mugen air box. Not one to be deterred, i set about making it fit.
I didnt get a before picture, but it was no where near fitting. Id say 10mm short of clearance on the NS edge of the box. You can see in the finished picture, how close it still is. I couldnt even get a nut started before the mods on the NS. In total, id estimate ive gained about 15mm drop in the height on the back NS corner, which was my issue.
To do this you will need
Round File
10mm Drill bit
10mm Socket
12mm Socket
12mm Spanner
Ratchet
Extension
Plus whatever you need to remove your airbox. Mines 10mm and 8mm.
Ok, so with the airbox removed. You want to remove this bracket. 3 10mm bolts hold it on.
Then you want to remove this bracket, that the filter bolts to. Theres 2 12mm bolts, and a 10mm that holds a coolant pipe to this bracket. Mine was missing the 10mm. JDM weight saving yo!
For clarity, these are the brackets you should be left with
Now not wanting to ruin anything. I decided my best bet was to elongate the holes. Making the brackets adjustable, meaning i can return it to standard if theres a problem.
So start by drilling these holes out to 10mm. This is to fit the file in really. If you have a small file, you could skip this bit. But will take longer with a small file.
Also, by drilling them out, it gives a small amount of adjustment forwards / backwards on the black mount, and left and right on the silver mount.
Now get your file out, and get busy. I wanted to lower mine, so ive filled upwards of the original hole. You could go both ways, or just down if you need to raise it.
Ive taken them about as far as they will go. This isnt a high stress or structural part. So the ally will hold up fine depsite being much thinner in places.
Now refit them, and see if youve got enough clearance now. The silver bracket will be you limiting factor. You could shave some off the top, where the bolt from the air box goes in for a bit more effect. You could also shave down the rubber / steel sleeves that are on the airbox.
I refitted the black bracket in its lowest position and done it up. The silver one will move out of place every time you remove the box. So you wont know where to tighten it up. Jack the NS of the car up, and go in through the wheel arch with the air box in place, then do the 3 10mm bolts up. Saves trying to guess and refit the box 10 times.
There is a limit to how low you can go. The gear cables run under the box, and the selectors. So go too low, and they will catch. You also have to consider the intake hose. Id say if you have to go much more than 15mm to 20mm, you need to be very careful. The beauty is, if you do have clearance problems, just raise it back up on the mounts. You havent ruined anything here.
So there you have it. Hopefully you got the clearance you needed, and your brace fits, or whatever the problem was is fixed.
