Just installed the Front swaybar

[impactX]

Not much difference until I corner moderately to hard. OMG the cars just plants on the road. I can't express my feeling when the car barely rolls

It took me a while to install and the bushings don't really fit that well. Anyways... such a good compliment to the TRD RSB.

Now I just gotta wait till my SS brakelines... 2 months and still waiting

[Yanks0114]

Not much difference until I corner moderately to hard. OMG the cars just plants on the road. I can't express my feeling when the car barely rolls

It took me a while to install and the bushings don't really fit that well. Anyways... such a good compliment to the TRD RSB.

Now I just gotta wait till my SS brakelines... 2 months and still waiting

Sounds like you are having fun. Suspension is my next upgrade.

Why so long for the SS brakelines. I ordered mine from tirerack.com and had them 2 days later

[cdssolara]

Not much difference until I corner moderately to hard. OMG the cars just plants on the road. I can't express my feeling when the car barely rolls

I know what you mean. I felt the same way when I got mine on the car. Do you notice that steering response is better? That was the first thing I noticed. The steering just feels tighter.

Be careful about pushing the car too hard until you get used to what it will do. The front bar brings back some understeer. Some people who installed the front bar have noticed their car tends to plow more. One guy's front end lost traction and he crashed his car into a telephone pole. Just be careful until you have faith in the new handling dynamics.

I recently swapped my stock front bar back in because of a defect in my Whiteline front bar. In some ways, having just the Whiteline rear sway bar makes me feel more comfortable because the car has less understeer. I do miss the flat cornering and better steering response that I had with the Whiteline front bar, though. I'm kind of unsure whether to leave it with just the Whiteline rear bar or get another Whiteline front bar and put that in, too. Both set-ups have their advantages and disadvantages.

Anyway, keep us posted on your further experiences with the new front bar.

[impactX]

Not much difference until I corner moderately to hard. OMG the cars just plants on the road. I can't express my feeling when the car barely rolls

It took me a while to install and the bushings don't really fit that well. Anyways... such a good compliment to the TRD RSB.

Now I just gotta wait till my SS brakelines... 2 months and still waiting

Sounds like you are having fun. Suspension is my next upgrade.

Why so long for the SS brakelines. I ordered mine from tirerack.com and had them 2 days later

I don't know why it takes so long

[impactX]

Not much difference until I corner moderately to hard. OMG the cars just plants on the road. I can't express my feeling when the car barely rolls

I know what you mean. I felt the same way when I got mine on the car. Do you notice that steering response is better? That was the first thing I noticed. The steering just feels tighter.

Be careful about pushing the car too hard until you get used to what it will do. The front bar brings back some understeer. Some people who installed the front bar have noticed their car tends to plow more. One guy's front end lost traction and he crashed his car into a telephone pole. Just be careful until you have faith in the new handling dynamics.

I recently swapped my stock front bar back in because of a defect in my Whiteline front bar. In some ways, having just the Whiteline rear sway bar makes me feel more comfortable because the car has less understeer. I do miss the flat cornering and better steering response that I had with the Whiteline front bar, though. I'm kind of unsure whether to leave it with just the Whiteline rear bar or get another Whiteline front bar and put that in, too. Both set-ups have their advantages and disadvantages.

Anyway, keep us posted on your further experiences with the new front bar.

The steering response is way better... Before was a bit numb. Now is where-you-steer-is-where-you-go.

Yeah I think both setups have its pros and cons.

Whiteline FSB + TRD RSB
When I push the car to its limit, the limit is actually lower than Stock FSB + TRD RSB.
There is a curve that I used to test this. With Stock FSB, I can turn at 100km/h. When I changed it to Whiteline FSB, I drive at 90km/h and the car starts understeering.

However, the gain of having the car so stable while cornering is more than the sacrifice, so I am still happy after all

Yeah now I have to be careful with the new dynamics. Next thing to do is probably telling Toyota to replace my strut mounts... the noise is getting annoying.

[cdssolara]

It sounds like you have a good handle on the sway bar issues. I might just go back and forth between the two set-ups until I decide one is better suited to me than the other. By the way, is your TRD bar on STREET or TRACK setting?

What kind of noises, and under what conditions, are you getting with your suspension? I'm hearing noises from my suspension, but I'm not sure whether they apply to the strut mount problem. I'm getting a clunking sound when I accelerate from a stop, or when I hit the brakes. I only notice these at slow speeds, and never when I go over bumps. Obviously, it's a front to back movement that causes the clunking rather than an up and down movement. Nobody seems to be able to figure out what it is. Do you hear clunking over bumps, like most people who have the strut mount problem?

[Yanks0114]

Will toyota still replace the strut mount after you have installed upgraded struts and spring?

Also what exactly is the strut mount and what are symptoms of the problem

[impactX]

It sounds like you have a good handle on the sway bar issues. I might just go back and forth between the two set-ups until I decide one is better suited to me than the other. By the way, is your TRD bar on STREET or TRACK setting?

What kind of noises, and under what conditions, are you getting with your suspension? I'm hearing noises from my suspension, but I'm not sure whether they apply to the strut mount problem. I'm getting a clunking sound when I accelerate from a stop, or when I hit the brakes. I only notice these at slow speeds, and never when I go over bumps. Obviously, it's a front to back movement that causes the clunking rather than an up and down movement. Nobody seems to be able to figure out what it is. Do you hear clunking over bumps, like most people who have the strut mount problem?

My TRD bar is on Track setting.

The noise is exactly how you described, mine is more on the right front side. When I turn at around 10-20km/h to the right, I hear that clunking sound.

I am thinking it's the strut mount since one of the top bolt on the right strut mount is higher than the left one...

"Will toyota still replace the strut mount after you have installed upgraded struts and spring?"

Exact question in my head right now. But with aftermarket struts and springs, you are still using the stock strut mount, so I will make them replace it for sure (my warranty will end soon so I have to get it done soon).

Symptom is probably the noise. In the TSB it says "SU001-00 JAN 00 Suspension - Front Support Change Reduces Noise" and "ST008-01 DEC 01 Front Suspension - Squeaking Noise"

For sure i will go check it out before warranty ends.

[DavPak]

Will toyota still replace the strut mount after you have installed upgraded struts and spring?

only if you've got TRD struts and TRD springs and prove installation by a toyota dealer.....otherwise, you're SOL. unless of course you can bring it to me

[DavPak]

hey look at that, i finally got rid of that "just licensed solaraguy!"

[impactX]

Will toyota still replace the strut mount after you have installed upgraded struts and spring?

only if you've got TRD struts and TRD springs and prove installation by a toyota dealer.....otherwise, you're SOL. unless of course you can bring it to me

I don't see how they can do that when clearly, I am using the same strut mount in the first place. It's the strut mount that is causing the trouble, not the springs or struts.

[DavPak]

Will toyota still replace the strut mount after you have installed upgraded struts and spring?

only if you've got TRD struts and TRD springs and prove installation by a toyota dealer.....otherwise, you're SOL. unless of course you can bring it to me

I don't see how they can do that when clearly, I am using the same strut mount in the first place. It's the strut mount that is causing the trouble, not the springs or struts.

that may be causing the trouble, but in toyota's mind, it was the springs and struts that caused the mount to fail.

[cdssolara]

that may be causing the trouble, but in toyota's mind, it was the springs and struts that caused the mount to fail.

I think you're correct about this issue. The last time I took my car into the local Toyota dealership to diagnose a problem, they refused to do any type of warranty work as soon as they saw aftermarket equipment anywhere near the area of the problem. I think the only time they will consider doing warranty work is if the parts are TRD and an authorized Toyota dealership did the installation.

[DavPak]

I think you're correct about this issue. The last time I took my car into the local Toyota dealership to diagnose a problem, they refused to do any type of warranty work as soon as they saw aftermarket equipment anywhere near the area of the problem. I think the only time they will consider doing warranty work is if the parts are TRD and an authorized Toyota dealership did the installation.

yup, that's what pays for my Solara........i do it all day long!

the moral of the story is: remove any aftermarket parts in your car before going to a dealer for the possibility of a warranty repair.

[cdssolara]

It sounds like you have a good handle on the sway bar issues. I might just go back and forth between the two set-ups until I decide one is better suited to me than the other. By the way, is your TRD bar on STREET or TRACK setting?

What kind of noises, and under what conditions, are you getting with your suspension? I'm hearing noises from my suspension, but I'm not sure whether they apply to the strut mount problem. I'm getting a clunking sound when I accelerate from a stop, or when I hit the brakes. I only notice these at slow speeds, and never when I go over bumps. Obviously, it's a front to back movement that causes the clunking rather than an up and down movement. Nobody seems to be able to figure out what it is. Do you hear clunking over bumps, like most people who have the strut mount problem?

My TRD bar is on Track setting.

The noise is exactly how you described, mine is more on the right front side. When I turn at around 10-20km/h to the right, I hear that clunking sound.

I am thinking it's the strut mount since one of the top bolt on the right strut mount is higher than the left one...

"Will toyota still replace the strut mount after you have installed upgraded struts and spring?"

Exact question in my head right now. But with aftermarket struts and springs, you are still using the stock strut mount, so I will make them replace it for sure (my warranty will end soon so I have to get it done soon).

Symptom is probably the noise. In the TSB it says "SU001-00 JAN 00 Suspension - Front Support Change Reduces Noise" and "ST008-01 DEC 01 Front Suspension - Squeaking Noise"

For sure i will go check it out before warranty ends.

My noise is coming from the right front, too, and my right strut mount is also a little higher than my left one. From what I understand, the repair work involves replacing a bushing.