[babydriver]

Final report on GrimmSpeed bar:

I took the car out this morning on Hairy Man Road. This is a 2 mile paved road with many tight turns and some real bumps due to a poor paving job. (It is asphalt, though.) At one end is a church parking lot that is paved with blacktop. I used the parking lot to remove the bar and replace it after a test run in both directions on Hairy Man. I also pulled several tight figure eights at about 20 mph in the lot to check for sway.

Comparing the handling with and without the bar in place, the biggest difference was the ability of the bar to keep the tires in better contact with the pavement on bumps. The ride also was a good deal less jarring over the uneven parts of the pavement. I described this before as a "surefooted" quality to the front end. Bump steer also was reduced noticeably, although again, not all that bad to start with (no bar). NVH was definitely reduced by a large margin.

Without the bar and on the road itself, there was more jostling on bumps, a less controlled feeling from the front tires and suspension and more sway. I did not notice that last characteristic last evening on the high speed pass on a long, well-paved curve in a divided highway, but it was obvious when switching from "no bar" back to "with bar" that sway was reduced noticeably. I am certain that a good sway bar would do even more, but at about 3-4 times the cost. I strongly suspect, though, that no gains would be made in the other areas outlined above with a sway bar, since these appear to be due to the increased stiffness of the strut towers with the GrimmSpeed bar.

Bottom line: This product works, it improves the ride and stability of the car's handling and it seems to reduce sway to a certain degree, but not as much as a good sway bar would. For the improvement in front end handling and reduction in NVH and for the modest cost, I definitely recommend this accessory.