TRD brace set, or Cusco?

[TuxedoCartman]

I rarely find myself this stumped on parts selection for my ride, but here I am: I can't decide between the TRD Member Brace Set (the red set, seen here), or the same parts from Cusco's Powerbrace line (seen here).

On the one hand, Cusco makes some damn fine parts; I used some of their suspension components on my 03 WRX I owned, and was happy with most of them. However, I know some of their stuff can be poorly thought-out (such as the underbody braces they made for the WRX that didn't fit if you had a cat-back exhaust), and sometimes seem a bit... lightweight... for structural support duty. Still, they race with the parts they design, and seem to do pretty well at it, and their parts are cheaper and seemingly easier to get at the moment.

On the other hand, TRD is in-house Toyota, so they've got a head-start on access to the car, and insight from the engineers no other company has. Their brace set seems to be beefier, and of heavier grade steel (which I'm conflicted on, as weight is bad for sports driving, but good for functioning as a chassis brace). Also impressed by their proactive release of a statement explaining why they didn't release some suspension components offered by "other" car tuners; apparently they didn't produce a rear strut-bar because they felt it would upset the chassis balance. Between that and the superior design of their front-strut tower bar, I tend to trust their designs a lot more. (Actually have the TRD front strut-bar on order already). However, TRD has a bit of a reputation for offering very mild performace parts, and banking on their Toyota name association for sales.

So I dunno... For those of you out there with experience with both companies, who would you go with for chassis bracing parts?

(P.S. Not looking for opinions on whether chassis braces are altogether dumb, or what other parts you think I should be buying, etc... If that's all you've got to contribute to this thread, kindly move along.)

[wcbjr]

Skip em both and wait for Whiteline. They build the beefiest suspension components and braces for cheap.

[jkonquer]

Are you looking for show or go? Order goes from trd to cusco to whiteline.

[TuxedoCartman]

Originally Posted by jkonquer

Are you looking for show or go? Order goes from trd to cusco to whiteline.

Definitely "go". These particular parts don't lend themselves well to showing off very well.

Really? Am i reading you right, that you feel the Cusco braces are more purpose built? Any particular reasons you've got to support that theory?

[cyde01]

Originally Posted by TuxedoCartman

However, TRD has a bit of a reputation for offering very mild performace parts, and banking on their Toyota name association for sales.

that's TRD USA only no? i was under the impression that TRD Japan has a reputation of offering the absolute best stuff, at baller prices.

[7thgear]

it's all metal

go with whoever uses better steel and better powder coating

[TuxedoCartman]

Originally Posted by cyde01

that's TRD USA only no? i was under the impression that TRD Japan has a reputation of offering the absolute best stuff, at baller prices.

Ya know, I'll be honest with you: I used to know quite a bit about quality of all the products available for Subarus and Mazdas, as I've owned a couple of each. But this is my first, err... "Toyota"... I've owned (don't look at me that way, Subaru drivers! It was co-developed!), so I've really no clue about the quality of TRD from either country, nor any of the other manufacturers that specialize in Toyota parts. But I'd heard the same thing about TRD America being mediocre, and TRD Japan being better, but who knows. That's why I thought I'd see if someone had first-hand experience on here.

Originally Posted by 7thgear

it's all metal

go with whoever uses better steel and better powder coating

Ya know, neither one of them specifies just what grade of metal they use on their product pages, neither in English nor Japanese (yes, I can read quite a bit). If it had been that simple, I coulda figured it out on my own.

[7thgear]

Originally Posted by TuxedoCartman

Ya know, neither one of them specifies just what grade of metal they use on their product pages, neither in English nor Japanese (yes, I can read quite a bit). If it had been that simple, I coulda figured it out on my own.

have you tried asking them?

[cyde01]

don't have any first hand experience, but i do know that TRD USA just rebranded parts from other cheap aftermarket brands, which kind of ruined the TRD brand name in america. but TRD parts in japan are legendary. TRD LSDs, carbon fiber body parts, headers, for cars like the AE86 were all highly sought after even after they were discontinued, they had practically holy grail status. TRD engines like the 4A-GE and 3S-GE were insane, itbs, cams with insane duration, 9000 rpm redlines, extremely high comp ratios, dry sump oil systems. the TRD 4A-GE made 200 hp from a 1.6 liter motor, the 2.0 liter 3S-GE made 280 hp, both n/a.

based on the reviews i've seen of the full TRD GT86, i can assure you that the parts are made by the same people, they're definitely legit.

[xcelir8brz]

subscribed

[TuxedoCartman]

Originally Posted by 7thgear

have you tried asking them?

Nope; taking this in order of easiest to hardest. First asking around to see if anyone has experience with these companies, THEN moving on to calling two Japanese car parts manufacturers and asking them about their production methods and metallurgical practices.

So... do you have any experience with chassis braces by either of these companies, or are you just criticizing me for not pulling my answers up by their own bootstraps?

[7thgear]

Originally Posted by TuxedoCartman

So... do you have any experience with chassis braces by either of these companies, or are you just criticizing me for not pulling my answers up by their own bootstraps?

i'm merely making fun of the fact that you're digging too deep into this.

these are metal rectangles with holes in them

[dabocx]

Originally Posted by 7thgear

i'm merely making fun of the fact that you're digging too deep into this.

these are EXPENSIVE metal rectangles with holes in them

Added a important part. Regardless of the brand its going to be a decent chunk of change and its not a bad idea to do some research and try and get the most for your money

[Surok]

Go the TRD, the more TRD stuff we buy the more they will support the car..

[Mitch]

I'm new to this from the BMW world. Are these cars just have that much chassis flex? Other than the factory subframe brace and strut bars that were fully welded or allowed for pre-tensioning, not a lot of people even bothered with this kind of stuff. Does $1000 in chassis braces have the same impact as $1000 in shocks?

[Dimman]

Depends if you like red or blue better.

[TuxedoCartman]

Originally Posted by dabocx

Added a important part. Regardless of the brand its going to be a decent chunk of change and its not a bad idea to do some research and try and get the most for your money

Originally Posted by Surok

Go the TRD, the more TRD stuff we buy the more they will support the car..

Good point. Unfortunately, though, I'll be buying the JDM version from Japan, so they won't have any new data telling them how much Americans like this sort of thing. Might not hurt to write them, though, and inform them of such.

Originally Posted by Mitch

I'm new to this from the BMW world. Are these cars just have that much chassis flex? Other than the factory subframe brace and strut bars that were fully welded or allowed for pre-tensioning, not a lot of people even bothered with this kind of stuff. Does $1000 in chassis braces have the same impact as $1000 in shocks?

No, there's actually very, very little flex in stock form. But if you plan on driving the car hard, AND keeping it for a while, bracing can prevent a chassis from wearing out or showing its age down the road. Ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure... does that qualify as weight reduction? LOL...

[fatoni]

if you really are about go and not show, there are dozens of ways to better spend your money. also, it is likely that trd did not make a rear strut brace because the frs does not have rear struts

[TuxedoCartman]

Originally Posted by fatoni

if you really are about go and not show, there are dozens of ways to better spend your money. also, it is likely that trd did not make a rear strut brace because the frs does not have rear struts

<face-palm> See opening post where I said I'm looking for comparisons on these two items, NOT advice on what other parts you think I should be buying.

And the car may not have rear struts, but that doesn't stop Cusco from offering, quote, "Rear Strut Tower Bar." I'm sure you knew what was being referred to, but it's easier to be snarky on the internet than to weigh in with anything useful.

Edit: side note here: why do people consider chassis bracing for this car "show"? You can't even SEE most of this stuff once it's installed. Hell, both TRD and Cusco had to take the whole rear of the car apart just to give a glimpse as to how the bumper brace is installed. Do you guys really think I'm buying these so I can pull into a PepBoys parking lot, pop the hood, and give all the fanbois wood?

[fatoni]

Originally Posted by TuxedoCartman

<face-palm> See opening post where I said I'm looking for comparisons on these two items, NOT advice on what other parts you think I should be buying.

And the car may not have rear struts, but that doesn't stop Cusco from offering, quote, "Rear Strut Tower Bar." I'm sure you knew what was being referred to, but it's easier to be snarky on the internet than to weigh in with anything useful.

Edit: side note here: why do people consider chassis bracing for this car "show"? You can't even SEE most of this stuff once it's installed. Hell, both TRD and Cusco had to take the whole rear of the car apart just to give a glimpse as to how the bumper brace is installed. Do you guys really think I'm buying these so I can pull into a PepBoys parking lot, pop the hood, and give all the fanbois wood?

the only reason i mentioned other ways to spend money is because you say you are about go. saying you are about go and then not wanting upgrades that are cheaper and infinitely more effective doesnt make much sense

i dont know about you but i think offering a strut bar where there are no struts seems like it cant be for anything other than show. why dont you just the objectives that each part accomplishes? what are you trying to accomplish with these parts? id be surprised if they made you any faster and will likely just bump you into a crazy racing class. what kind of advice are you expecting on two products that havent both been owned by a single person on this forum and more importantly provide no data or testing on the products?

but ill go away...good luck on your endeavor

[Dimman]

Loads are still being fed into shock towers regardless of suspension design. That being said, the whole purpose of reducing chassis flex is about precision of the suspension. I don't think it will be worth significant gains until after sticky tires and other mods. But if precision is the priority I think bushings would be a better starting point.

So until you have a lot of complimentary mods, just pick the colour you like better, or name you like saying better.

[TuxedoCartman]

Originally Posted by fatoni

the only reason i mentioned other ways to spend money is because you say you are about go. saying you are about go and then not wanting upgrades that are cheaper and infinitely more effective doesnt make much sense

Have I said at any point that these are the only upgrades I'm performing? Have I led anybody to believe that I'm not looking at sway-bars, or will never install coilovers or stiffer bushings? By stiffening my chassis, have I forfeited all right to a turbocharger kit when it becomes available? No? Then why are you weighing in with nothing more than your useless opinion on how I'm upgrading my car, especially when I stated right at the start that I wasn't looking for such opinions? If you think that's dumb, and want more powah, or to tune your ride a different way... go buy one, and have at it.

Originally Posted by fatoni

i dont know about you but i think offering a strut bar where there are no struts seems like it cant be for anything other than show. why dont you just the objectives that each part accomplishes? what are you trying to accomplish with these parts? id be surprised if they made you any faster and will likely just bump you into a crazy racing class. what kind of advice are you expecting on two products that havent both been owned by a single person on this forum and more importantly provide no data or testing on the products?

Cusco chose the term "rear strut bar" because that's what it's commonly called; probably to make differentiating it from the other two rear-chassis braces they offer a bit easier. One day maybe you'll learn too that not every modification you can perform on a car is solely to make you faster; a lot of times it can be just for reliability, and other times it's just to improve the characteristics of the drive. Having seen how STRUT-bars affect the handling of some vehicles, yes... sometimes they make a car faster, but sometimes they just make it more fun. (Sometimes they do nothing at all, but I won't know till I get one on here and see for myself).

As for asking for advice on products on this forum... yes, I can name at least one person who has experience with the Cusco braces on this exact car. And this may come as a surprise to you, but... CUSCO AND TRD MAKE PRODUCTS FOR OTHER CARS TOO!!! <gasp!> Shocking, right? See, my message was aimed at those out there who've had Cusco Powerbraces on their RX-7's and WRX's, and TRD Member Braces on their Supras and MR2's. If one person says, "Yeah, I had the TRD on my Celica, and it was solid!" and another says, "Meh, the Cusco stuff on my STi was warped after a year"... then I can use my brain-meats, and figure out that this might... might... be indicative of future results on the FR-S.

But I forgot... I'm on the internet. Worse, I'm on a car forum. My bad.