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It's definitely worth the extra money for me to know that it will fit perfectly without having to grind it down. I'd rather grind the plastic throttle cover (or just remove it completely) any day than grind a piece of metal that's supposed to be providing structural support! Not having to go through the hassle of POSSIBLY being able to return and MAYBE getting a refund for a part that doesn't fit is worth a little more money to me. Not that I'm saying that none of those AMS/Top Speed bars out there fit properly, but I've seen WAY too many complaints about them on the forum for me to even consider going through the trouble of getting one and hoping it will fit. As for it touching when the engine rocks... there have been absolutely no cases whatsoever of that happening. In order for it to rock enough that it would touch, your engine mounts would have to be blown (and in that scenario, the problem is not with the bar design itself). On the other hand, I've heard of at least 2 cases on this forum alone that their AMS/Top Speed bar contacted the intake manifold. As for no gains... the Okuyama bars do weigh less than the other bars out there because they are one piece and aluminum. And, being that they are one piece, they provide better rigidity than a three piece unit. And what's wrong with asthetics? I would say that asthetics are a major point for many people out there... why not have a piece that performs as well as any other brand, but looks better? (Besides the fact that a Z with an Okuyama bar will stand out more because it is not as common as the hundreds of AMS/Top Speed bars out there). There's even a large group of people out there that think the front strut bar provides little to no structural improvement at all because the Z is already so rigid up front. So, maybe the question you should be asking is do ANY strut braces give any gains at all? And if not, I guess we are all buying them because of asthetics! : and you still have to make under hood modifications. If the throttle cable cover touches, I imagine that the engine would probably touch when it rocks. I'd rather stick to a cheaper line, because they essentially do the exact same thing, with no gains by going to the expensive piece other than aesthetics.
Bernie
The heart of the Phoenix...
bhsiao@newssun.med.miami.edu |
