chassis brace

[rusty]

Has anyone in there travels found subframe connectors for the protege, or made one themselves. I am currently looking to get a AWR rear 21.5 sway bar and would like to then buy or build sub frame connectors for the pro. I wanna make the car handle like a dream. I already have some ideas on how I would like to set up my own but would like to see other options as well first.

[Intruder]

Have you looked into the 3rd gen Racing Beat rear sway bars? They're stock equipment on the Mazdaspeed Protege and many say that the RB sway bar is of better quality than the AWR part.

[rusty]

No I haven't, do you have a link to them? Once reason why I was looking at AWR was due to it coming with all the hardware I need for the install since my pro is a dx. Do you know if the RB comes this way as well.

[Intruder]

All the hardware you need is the endlinks and they come with the kit. However, you will need either ES struts or an aftermarket replacement like the KYB GR-2's because they have the tabs needed to mount the endlinks.

I was researching sway bars a while back and I PM'd NegatiZE about them because he's had both the AWR and RB bars.

Here's what he had to say:

I got rid of the AWR rear bar for 3 reasons:
1) The stupid "adjustable" blocks rusted shut and I couldn't drill the screws out
2) The endlinks clunked all the time
3) The bar made the car too oversteer-prone

The Racing Beat/Mazdaspeed front and rear sways solved all these problems for me.

The front and rear set together make the car more neutral than before. You know I autox regularly, and it's very balanced. I can come into a corner too hot, resulting in understeer, and tap the brakes to make the car rotate around. Very awesome.

The clunk everyone gets with the Racing Beat/Mazdaspeed bars was fixed with the E-level bushings I bought seperately from Mazda.

Oh, I called them the "Mazdaspeed" Racing Beat sways because they are actually 2mm thicker in the front and 1mm thicker in the rear compared to the Mazda MP3 Racing Beat sways. Both sets are manufactured by Racing Beat and look the same, minus the diameter differences.

Whats your username on AIM? Mine is NegatiZE but I have everyone thats not on my buddy list blocked.

Note the difference between the MP3/Mazdaspeed bars. They look the same, but the Mazdaspeed parts are thicker. Be aware of that.

Where to buy them? Look in the for sale section of msprotege.com. You can also order them brand new from Mazda but they will be costly.

Read this thread: http://www.wihandyman.com/forum/showthread.php?t=12179

[Intruder]

Also note that the Mazdaspeed rear subframe is used on 3rd gens with the Mazdaspeed rear sway bar but it is not required for mounting the bar (meaning, the bar can be mounted on the stock 3rd gen subframe). It has stronger mounting points, but we don't know if the subframe will mount up to a 2nd gen. We know that the sway bars interchange, but we can only guess if the subframes are interchangeable too.

[rusty]

well on that note, what about just using the stock es protege bar.

[95pro]

the awr adj. end links are ****ty, as i heard.

[Intruder]

well on that note, what about just using the stock es protege bar.

It will give you a nice neutral balance because it was designed to work with the one you have in the front, but it is thinner than any of the other aftermarket options. The thicker AWR/RB bars will make your car oversteer unless you upgrade the front bar as well.

[rusty]

Intruder, I followed your link and could not find a place to buy the aftermarket setup. I tried a few places going from google to find it. Would you mind giving me the link or links to the aftermarket bars. Also, is there an aftermarket bars that come with brackets and links, and possibly the bolts as well.

[Intruder]

From the link I posted:

I bought the MSP Stabilizer Bar kit, part no. 0000-8M-C15. This includes a 25 mm front bar, a 20 mm rear bar and a replacement rear subframe required to mount the rear bar. By way of comparison, I measured the OEM DX bars' diameters with my metric caliper-21 mm front; 17.5 mm rear.

Part number 0000-8M-C15 is the Mazdaspeed setup and can be ordered from any Mazda dealership. If you go to www.albanymazdaparts.com you can order it for $382 + shipping. But that includes a front bar that doesn't fir the 2nd gens, and a replacement rear subframe that might not fit 2nd gens. You can look for a rear bar individually here: http://www.msprotege.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=131

Aftermarket bars? Like the AWR bar?

http://www.awrracing.com/pages/pro/prosusp.html

http://corksport.com/store/category/4qc0/99p-suspension_misc.html

Search on ebay too. There's a set for sale right now. You'll just need the endlinks.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8034667009

I don't know if Racing Beat sells the MP3/MSP bars.

[rusty]

Man, thanks for the info. Most of those sites I have been too and for some reason I just didn't notice them. I must be more on the tired side than I thought.