Queston for those who've fitted PMS brace and top mountsmounts

[Ads29]

Let me stat off by saying that i have already emailed PMS but obviously being Sunday evening I'm not expecting any response for a day or so. The quality of these products is excellent and I'm hoping what I am about to describe is me being dumb rather than it being an issue with what I've ordered.

So I've bought the above top mounts and corresponding strut brace and mocked it up this evenine ready to mark out where to drill the holes for bolting through the brace into the top mounts.

Once placing the brace across the suspension turrets with the original securing hats removed it seems as if the brace is slightly too long? Working on the principal that the ends of the brace sit central over the turrets then it looks like everything is about 5mm too long

The only way I can get both sides to line up is to remove one of the securing bolts for the strut brace end and move it across slightly, covering approx half of the fixing where the securing bolt goes through

Has any body else had issues when fitting these? Or am I just being dumb?

Thanks and any advice is greatly appreciated

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[bozothenutter]

Never had that.....has the car ever had a bump?

 

[Ads29]

Not that I'm aware of, forgot to put on there I have my mates 182 at the moment as well and is exactly the same on that too? My first thought was the same as yours, had mine been bent/twisted but the fact that it's the same on 2 different cars would kind of say it's not that

 

[bloke]

get the mounts on and the brace will go in fine.

 

[Vaughan]

Jack both front wheels off the ground and the strut turrets will probably move outward enough to fit woithout problems.

 

[Ads29]

Bit of an update, after a very short 3 hour morning at work I decided to dodge the showera and crack on with getting these fitted. With a very minor touch of fettling everything is mocked up and in place, ended up cleaning off the paint from the inside edge of the towers to allow the top mounts to fit, built up new front suspension and trail fitted everything and hey presto it all lines up.

I'm yet to drill through, and obviously I'll need to remove the front struts again before I do so but it looks as though any issues are out of the way.

Thaks again for all the input, it is greatly appreciated

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[Gus]

Remember to protect the holes you drill with some paint or something.

 

[Ads29]

@optical I certainly will be, that's partly the reason why I stopped where I did earlier, well that and work phoning me and asking me if I'd come in on my day off tomorrow (with a 3.30 am start for good measure :anguished

 

[KitsonRis]

Also make sure you put a small punch mark where you want to drill as the slightly curved surface is a nightmare to start drilling on, otherwise the drill will wonder.

 

[Jimbob 2705]

Just some information for anyone else who is fitting a PMS Strut Brace and Mounts,

I found exactly the same when putting the strut brace on the turrets, it didn't look like it would fit central i.e. Would be over to be one side of one.
This was the case even with my struts out

So I used the Top Mount upside down to mark the holes, made sure they were lined through with each other (so the strut brace would fit on) with some building line

So fitting the strut brace was a bit of a fiddle as it didn't line up with the holes on both sides at the same time, so fitted one side with the top mounts loose then managed to hold the strut brace slightly off the turret so I could get the bolts started the other side

Just worked then in a diagonal pattern going from each bolt on both top mounts, going back and forth between them - little time consuming but worth it to make sure it would sit down properly

Was worried at first that it wouldn't fit and the strut brace was too long, but when you think about it you don't want it just simply bolting down easy, as it won't offer much advantage - it really does need to be tight

 

[Radugns]

Hi,

I just bought a used pms strut bar for my Clio. At first, I did not notice anything wrong with it, but after a close look I find out the the top plates are bent.
After seeing this topic I want to ask pms strut owners to check if their plates are bent or not. I think due to a little longer strut bar, they can actualy bent in a while.
The previous owner says that his car never has an accident (with structural damage).

The strut bar itself is perfectly fine.

Thanks,
Radu

 

[Ads29]

I'll have a look at mine tomorrow @Radugns , I'll be taking them off to change coilover springs so can check for you

 

[Radugns]

I'll have a look at mine tomorrow @Radugns , I'll be taking them off to change coilover springs so can check for you

It would be great, thanks a lot!

 

[bozothenutter]

Hi,

I just bought a used pms strut bar for my Clio. At first, I did not notice anything wrong with it, but after a close look I find out the the top plates are bent.
After seeing this topic I want to ask pms strut owners to check if their plates are bent or not. I think due to a little longer strut bar, they can actualy bent in a while.
The previous owner says that his car never has an accident (with structural damage).
View attachment 1414975
The strut bar itself is perfectly fine.

Thanks,
Radu

Hi Radu,

Had mine loose while doing the gearbox a while ago.
No bending at all.
It should not be able to with 3 layers of metal clamping it.
Looks more like the previous owner either tried to make it fit (I do that a lot, always regret it), or didn't tighten them up properly (threads in top mount still ok?)

 

[Radugns]

Hi Radu,

Had mine loose while doing the gearbox a while ago.
No bending at all.
It should not be able to with 3 layers of metal clamping it.
Looks more like the previous owner either tried to make it fit (I do that a lot, always regret it), or didn't tighten them up properly (threads in top mount still ok?)

Hi mate,

Thanks for your feedback. Maybe someone try to bend it to fit easy or the car suffer from a side impact.
The threads in the top mounts are fine, no sign of wear there. I will straighten them up by using a vise and a rubber hammer and a new paint after. Maybe I can restore them.

Radu

 

[Krarl]

The biggest issue I found was that I forgot to charge both of my Makita batteries so I got halfway though one and then had to have a tea break!?

I read about peoples being too long on the FB group and a few people have had it. It wouldn't surprise me if people have gone full gypo and bent the bar mounts

 

[Ads29]

My strut bar seemed to be slightly too long when I bought the kit, and the car has had a 'love tap' with one of the walls at Silverstone, I'll report back tomorrow when I've taken everything apart

 

[Louis]

I'll check mine tonight for you. I slotted my PMS bar holes as I fitted the ktec mounts ages ago and they arent both perfectly straight

 

[Louis]

As promised.

 

[Radugns]

As promised.

View attachment 1415307View attachment 1415308View attachment 1415309View attachment 1415310

Thanks a ton!

 

[VenomUK]

Just attempted to fit mine today and I have to say it’s not the simplest kit to use and get set up correctly.

Currently mine seems too long too and is going to require some fiddling to get it to sit right if at all.

 

[frayz]

Fitted mine last week.
What seems to be the problem, I found it completely straight forward.