BRZ/FR-S Strut Tower Brace - Any Interest?

[Hawk77FT]

OK, I will put this out there. I have been on few forums already and I must say you and couple of others are one of the top notch product developers/sellers I have ever come across. Let me explain few things that really impressed me and made me trust your products more than others:

1. Communication - On top of the posts all the time. Good on you guys! You answer all questions, regardless of how silly they are. That shows that you guys care. Not only you care about the customer but you care about your business. And that is something that shows passion for what you do. You love what you do, I can tell that much!

2. Transparency - you guys don't muck around. You let the community/potential buyers know where you're at, even if things go wrong with a design and you guys need to rethink it, we know about it. That takes cohones, big ones. It shows that you respect the buyer. I for one, (and I bet others do too) I really appreciate that. There are too many companies out there that want to cut the cost, and just release a product that maybe later down the track will fail. I dont want to mention names, but for instance exhaust that start to fail due to poor testing, etc.

3. Product development - you guys take this very seriously. You might not know but you go through the process of product development without skipping any steps. I have watched the development of other products from you guys and you never skip a beat. Yeah, talking about stalking you...

4. Strategic pricing - Your business strategy is quite simple and I would love to see more like you out there. Maybe others vendors will read this and bloody learn: Once you have all the other elements I mentioned above: communication, product development transparent, etc and release a product that does not brake the bank or is very competitive (as in few 10's of dollars cheaper) , you will sell hundreds. Why? Well, because by going through the first steps of developing a relationship with potential buyer you gain their trust in your product and that PAYS OFF on the long run. it is quite simple really: the cost of materials, production costs, expenses, profit. In this industry people want to know "which one is better". keep them informed and they will decide which one is better. Why people buy from you? Simple! because they know more about how that came to life than others.

5. The potential buyer involvement in your product development. That is something unheard off from other vendors/parts developers point of view.

Way to many (big name) sellers out there ask big money for products that would cost much less to produce (poor base materials, etc) and in many ways they prove to be of lesser quality than other small businesses. The buyer of such products, pays for their marketing, promotion and advertising. yeah, yeah raise the awareness of your product and you increase the sales. Bullshit! Very true to some extent, but (and proved on this forum many times) when that awareness is negative, then you're fucked, pretty much. The snowball effect is unbelievable on social media channel and you dont have to be super smart to know this.

So, to wrap this up, you guys do a tremendous job at promoting through good quality, carefully developed products. People got to know you through your awesome work you do, your dedication to inform us, and (i really like this bit a lot) getting us, the buyer involved in your product development. We know that our collective thought went into your product, and it makes us proud, it makes us feel we are part of the business.

At the end of the day, we have your money. So why not!

Keep up with a good work and please don't change it to worse.
Note: I dont have any affiliation whatsoever with GS. I am not a fanboy, stalker, weirdo, etc. I talk from experience and only from my personal observation.

[eikond]

Put me on the list please Matt!

I've been following this thread since day one.. I don't have anything technically valuable to add, but I can tell you that I definitely want to own one.

Thanks for sharing the development process with the forum.

[chanomatik]

If you start a list within the next two weeks please put me on it. I'll be travelling a bunch and might not make it on this site after this Friday until I get back. If only there was an app for FT86Club...

[wheelhaus]

I love it, and the "revised" design that's eh, blurred out... Looks great. I really appreciate G*S's ground-up approach to design and engineering, definitely unique and not a hint of "me too" look-alike engineering.

I'm also one who typically prefers form over function, but if it can be aesthetically pleasing at the same time, it's a win/win. If the laser cut GS logo can be incorporated on the bracket, or on a small riveted plate, I think it'd be a nice, subtle touch.

[2point0]

Originally Posted by Hawk77FT

...lots of words...

Well said. I have to agree that the sense of involvement has been great. I don't recall if I had any GrimmSpeed parts on my previous Subarus (bought most stuff used, it's all kinda blurry now...pretty sure I had some gaskets), but since the hood strut thread (yup, got a set), I've really taken an interest. Being able to ask questions (which are answered) and provide input is great.

[2point0]

Originally Posted by wheelhaus

...or on a small riveted plate...

Ooh, I really like this idea. +1

A gold plate, even.

[Vracer111]

I like this bar and would upgrade from my SRT bar for this...SRT is similar (single solid piece [flat metal stock mounting tabs welded to the tube], hollow steel tube design, less than $100) but is too close to the AC line and has slight bends in it. I don't think I'll mind the weight increase for better rigidity and clearance of AC line...

[GrimmSpeed]

Originally Posted by 2point0

I kept wondering if OE was really a stripper...now we know.

Any reason you can't just sand/prime/paint over the powdercoat? I did this on some wheels recently, but after painting two I took them in for powder anyway so I don't know how well it would last.

I guess maybe the texture would be hard to sand if it's really coarse.

Obviously the powdercoat is going to be the most durable finish, which is our primary goal. Sanding down the texture might be tough. We'll see how things pan out as far as finish/options, how about that?

Originally Posted by Fenrir

A) As mentioned before, I'm really lazy, and it's a decent bit of work to do it properly.
B) Powder is (generally) much, much higher quality paint than anything that comes in a can. Especially on a stress part that is going to be flexing constantly, powder will hold up much better.

Either way, I ordered a can from @GrimmSpeed just to play around with it and see how it holds on up on some engine trim and such. I'm still not convinced the bar will make a big enough difference to warrant me getting one, so I'm partially looking for an excuse (More CBR in my engine bay? Sure, why not.). But we'll see.

Awesome! Personally, I was in the same boat as you. In fact, I've never purchased a strut tower bar for a personal car. I can tell you that after all of the testing that we've done on this car in the last two weeks, I'll be in the market for something for my personal car (if I can find something that meets my strict criteria, that is). I'll let the data and reviews do the real talking, but it really does make a nice difference. Even going over cracks in the road, potholes and entrances to parking lots and driveways, the car feels substantially more robust.

Originally Posted by Hawk77FT

OK, I will put this out there. I have been on few forums already and I must say you and couple of others are one of the top notch product developers/sellers I have ever come across. Let me explain few things that really impressed me and made me trust your products more than others:

1. Communication - On top of the posts all the time. Good on you guys! You answer all questions, regardless of how silly they are. That shows that you guys care. Not only you care about the customer but you care about your business. And that is something that shows passion for what you do. You love what you do, I can tell that much!

2. Transparency - you guys don't muck around. You let the community/potential buyers know where you're at, even if things go wrong with a design and you guys need to rethink it, we know about it. That takes cohones, big ones. It shows that you respect the buyer. I for one, (and I bet others do too) I really appreciate that. There are too many companies out there that want to cut the cost, and just release a product that maybe later down the track will fail. I dont want to mention names, but for instance exhaust that start to fail due to poor testing, etc.

3. Product development - you guys take this very seriously. You might not know but you go through the process of product development without skipping any steps. I have watched the development of other products from you guys and you never skip a beat. Yeah, talking about stalking you...

4. Strategic pricing - Your business strategy is quite simple and I would love to see more like you out there. Maybe others vendors will read this and bloody learn: Once you have all the other elements I mentioned above: communication, product development transparent, etc and release a product that does not brake the bank or is very competitive (as in few 10's of dollars cheaper) , you will sell hundreds. Why? Well, because by going through the first steps of developing a relationship with potential buyer you gain their trust in your product and that PAYS OFF on the long run. it is quite simple really: the cost of materials, production costs, expenses, profit. In this industry people want to know "which one is better". keep them informed and they will decide which one is better. Why people buy from you? Simple! because they know more about how that came to life than others.

5. The potential buyer involvement in your product development. That is something unheard off from other vendors/parts developers point of view.

Way to many (big name) sellers out there ask big money for products that would cost much less to produce (poor base materials, etc) and in many ways they prove to be of lesser quality than other small businesses. The buyer of such products, pays for their marketing, promotion and advertising. yeah, yeah raise the awareness of your product and you increase the sales. Bullshit! Very true to some extent, but (and proved on this forum many times) when that awareness is negative, then you're fucked, pretty much. The snowball effect is unbelievable on social media channel and you dont have to be super smart to know this.

So, to wrap this up, you guys do a tremendous job at promoting through good quality, carefully developed products. People got to know you through your awesome work you do, your dedication to inform us, and (i really like this bit a lot) getting us, the buyer involved in your product development. We know that our collective thought went into your product, and it makes us proud, it makes us feel we are part of the business.

At the end of the day, we have your money. So why not!

Keep up with a good work and please don't change it to worse.
Note: I dont have any affiliation whatsoever with GS. I am not a fanboy, stalker, weirdo, etc. I talk from experience and only from my personal observation.

I know I speak for the rest of the GrimmSpeed team when I say that it's feedback like this that keeps us going every single day. In fact, I even stash comments like this away for the rainy days. We do what we do because, as you can probably tell, we truly love it. We take great pride in our work and the products that we create, which I think is what sets us apart from some of the others. We're not here to make a quick buck; we're dedicated to setting a new standard for what guys like you should expect from the companies that manufacture parts for your cars.

You deserve not just great parts, but top notch customer service and, most importantly, honesty/trust. We're proud of each and every step we take on the way to bringing you these parts, and we're more than happy to share. We believe that not only do we do it right, but we do it best. So, if other companies start to catch on and follow suit, the more the merrier!

Originally Posted by eikond

Put me on the list please Matt!

I've been following this thread since day one.. I don't have anything technically valuable to add, but I can tell you that I definitely want to own one.

Thanks for sharing the development process with the forum.

It's our pleasure! I'll make sure that you're added to the list when the time comes.

Originally Posted by chanomatik

If you start a list within the next two weeks please put me on it. I'll be travelling a bunch and might not make it on this site after this Friday until I get back. If only there was an app for FT86Club...

Consider it done! Thanks for the support!

Originally Posted by wheelhaus

I love it, and the "revised" design that's eh, blurred out... Looks great. I really appreciate G*S's ground-up approach to design and engineering, definitely unique and not a hint of "me too" look-alike engineering.

I'm also one who typically prefers form over function, but if it can be aesthetically pleasing at the same time, it's a win/win. If the laser cut GS logo can be incorporated on the bracket, or on a small riveted plate, I think it'd be a nice, subtle touch.

Thanks for the kind words! We definitely do thorough market research, but only to make sure that we're offering something new and innovative. If we can't make it better or put a new spin on it, we'll just move along to the next project.

Originally Posted by 2point0

Well said. I have to agree that the sense of involvement has been great. I don't recall if I had any GrimmSpeed parts on my previous Subarus (bought most stuff used, it's all kinda blurry now...pretty sure I had some gaskets), but since the hood strut thread (yup, got a set), I've really taken an interest. Being able to ask questions (which are answered) and provide input is great.

Rock on! I don't wanna put the cart in front of the horse or anything here, but now is about the time when we'd start scheduling time in the next few months to begin our next FT86 project, so if you fellas have any killer ideas, feel free to share! (If they're super duper killer, give me a call instead. ).

Originally Posted by 2point0

Ooh, I really like this idea. +1

A gold plate, even.

We thought about riveting on a tag too, since I thought it would look pretty neat too. Chase and I talked it over though and our primary concern was that even a single hole in the tube can compromise it's strength and stiffness. It can also provide a way for moisture to make its way inside the bar and cause it to rust from the inside out. We've come up with a pretty neat idea for the branding that I think will be a good compromise between clean/subtle and still recognizable. I'll see if we can work up some kind of sample to share in the next few days.

As always, you guys rock! It's a great privilege for us to have such a great/honest/active sounding board for our ideas. You haven't steered us wrong yet, so onward and upward!

Matt
Engineering

[GrimmSpeed]

Originally Posted by Vracer111

I like this bar and would upgrade from my SRT bar for this...SRT is similar (single solid piece [flat metal stock mounting tabs welded to the tube], hollow steel tube design, less than $100) but is too close to the AC line and has slight bends in it. I don't think I'll mind the weight increase for better rigidity and clearance of AC line...

Sounds good! We'll add you to the 'interested' list when the time comes. Thanks for the support! We think you'll enjoy the upgrade.

Matt
Engineering

[RazBRZ]

Just in case you couldn't tell. I'm in when the list starts. I'm in for basically anything you guys come up with

[Hawk77FT]

Originally Posted by RazBRZ

I'm in for basically anything you guys come up with

[IMG]https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSLlPjcu1doq3gTUTGQvulSQgbZd_QcI aIP***Mhu505nxr6pBszQ[/IMG]

[mottor]

Originally Posted by chanomatik

If you start a list within the next two weeks please put me on it. I'll be travelling a bunch and might not make it on this site after this Friday until I get back. If only there was an app for FT86Club...

Use tapatalk or tapatalk 2 and just login to the forum through the app. It gets me by when I don't have access to my PC.

[phat 86]

I am in I have everything u guys make for the fr-s so why not. Thanks for all the great stuff. What's next lol

[2point0]

Originally Posted by GrimmSpeed

Obviously the powdercoat is going to be the most durable finish, which is our primary goal. Sanding down the texture might be tough. We'll see how things pan out as far as finish/options, how about that?

No worries, I was only asking for curiosity's sake, and since it sounded like some wanted more color options. I personally prefer black, gunmetal or gold/bronze.

Originally Posted by GrimmSpeed

...even a single hole in the tube can compromise it's strength and stiffness. It can also provide a way for moisture to make its way inside the bar and cause it to rust from the inside out...

Good point, I didn't really think of that. Looking forward to what you guys come up with!