I've been researching a FSTB for my '03 6MT, and am looking for some advice that so far I've been unable to lift out of the forum.

STILLEN
The Stillen brace is pretty expensive, but very sturdy and attractive. My only concern is their installation instructions for the 5.5 gen, which is to grind down the two top bolt nubs on the aluminum. I do not want to do that. My question is: do I really have to? I have ES motor mount bushings, so the engine barely rocks front to back at all.

OTTO
I can't locate this FSTB anywhere. Does anyone know of a current retail source for this item?

CATTMAN
This is expensive, but beautiful, no doubt about it. However, does the twin ti-bar design clear the intake manifold bolt nubs?

EBAY
$30 for something that works just as well as a $200 item, seems too good to be true, but it also seems to true-up per all the posts here. My question again is clearance on the 5.5 gen. Is there an issue?

Thanks, Org Members!

Cattman is no longer being sold. Stillen and any other brand you can avoid grinding down by using copper washers to raise the FSTB. If you have ES mounts you have more clearance than stock and lastly FSTB don't do much for our cars so buy one you are willing to spend on.

I have the stillen, with ES motor mounts and the NWP spacers and I have no clearance issues. I did not add washers. Everything is as it should be.

I didn't have to grind anything down with my Racingline.
Spacers installed. No clearance issues.

I've had two different eBay bars, an Otto Racing (Stillen knockoff), and a Cattman, and ALL of those have cleared the IM comfortably. I do have ES motor mount inserts, but I don't think the difference is that significant in terms of how much lower the motor sits.

I agree with the point about the ES motor mounts. I doubt the engine sits much lower. I think people have assumed it sits lower because the hole is in the middle of the mount, but on the OEM mounts the hole is above centre. But it is above center because it will sag with the weight of the motor and appear to be on center afterward.

Racingline? That's a brand I wasn't aware of -- thanks! I need to look into Racingline. Any recommendations on a retailer?


That's a pretty cool insight about the mount bushings.

I personally would not recommend racingline. I had fitment issues around the strut mount area and I think the bar actually sat too high. It was definitely hitting the hood insulation and it pinched my windshield washer fluid tube.

There was a group deal going one in the GD section a while back, but I havent seen anything on that lately.

i have an 03 6MT with the stillen fstb, had no fitment issues at all.

Well now, that's very encouraging. It's also really nice to see so many responses to this post, and so quickly. Thank you, all.

I spoke with Brian Catts this afternoon. He confirmed his ti-bar has been unavailable for almost 3 years.

In poking around, I'm pretty sure the Otto and Racingline FSTB's are no longer available, as well.

That leaves me with 2 options: Stillen and ebay. I'm thinking to roll the dice with ebay, and if it's crap, I'm only out $30 and I go after Stillen.

Thanks again, Maxima.org contributors!

The eBay 1 fit perfectly fine on my '03. No fitment problems at all.

hers a pic of STILLEN fstb installed on my 03 6MT

dont cheap out on that ebay junk.. if your gonna do it.. DO IT RIGHT!!!

i also recomend the STILLEN rear strutbar. a pic installed on my 03 6MT

http://www.racinglineperformance.com...roducts_id=117

Pity both are out of stock.
Have you emailed them to see when they'll be available again?

Yes, no response yet on the RacingLine.

AlfaOtto.com wrote me back this morning to thank me for the inquiry, and said they need to be removing it from their website, so... adios, Otto.

Damn, but that looks real good! Solid, strong and attractive. Nice picture, too.

Hey Ricerocket... when you installed the RSTB, did you remove it after a while to get a sense of the difference? I'm asking, because I've read posts about people uninstalling their RSTB because they didn't care for the way it affected handling, and that the rear sway bar was the more effective rear suspension mod. On your '03, are you running with a RSB, too?

All that aside, it does look pretty cool in your trunk compartment.

As to "cheaping out on ebay junk"... you may very well be spot on with that opinion, but for only $30, don't you think it's worth the experiment. If it works, sweet. If it doesn't, or it breaks, then there's always Stillen waiting to take my 2 bills.

All FSTB's are the same essentially, they all get the job done. People just pay for more expensive 1's because of the brand name, and the eye appeal.

stillen with tons of room to spare, even with the spacers installed

This email just received from Racingline:

"We have a few in stock that are needing new brackets due to a defect
that was found, however once the new brackets arrive we will only have 6
units in stock and all polished. They should be re-entered into stock
by monday. New normal stock will be refilled first week of may."

The Racingline FSTB is $95.

It seems the perfect middle-ground between ebay and Stillen. I'm going with Racingline.

I got mine for my 2000 I30 from Courtsey Nissan a few years ago. Fit fine:

http://www.courtesyparts.com/


but I don't see it on their web site any longer. You may want to call them and see if it's coming back any time soon.

I am another person with no fitment issues with a Stillen FSTB on a 2002.

after i intsalled my RSTB i havent took it off since i lowered my car. the car handels so much better and when taking turns it feels like the car is planted and you can drive with confidence knowing the car and how it will react to driving conditions. i currnetly dont have a RSB, but will very soon. you could try the $30 one im sure it will work fine, but im the type of person who buys the best of the best. when i do something i buy the best and stay away from cheap things because, its only proboly gonna break or not work as it should in a few months or weeks, and your only going to have to rebuy it or replace it. and doing that buying it twice you could have the best in the first place for the same price or even cheaper. thats just my own 2cents =)

where can i get a intake....i dont want cold air....

I also have a Stillen installed on an 03 MT. The only issue I have is that the bar hits the under the hood lining(black). The I and L in stillen has also fell off(red lettering). You may also run into an issue with the bar (any brand) pinching the washer fluid line.

Other then that, as far as the product working I think it makes you feel like you have more control and you'll notice theres less body roll.

Thanks for the opinions and the photos, RiceRocket. I appreciate it.

Now that Raceline has made their FSTB available again, I'm going to try and get their's in May. And if I have trouble getting that, well... I'll wrestle with the ebay/stillen decision at that time.

The Racingline FSTB finally showed up today. Installation wasn't exactly smooth... I had to grind down the brackets to fit. But aside from that, it went in without a hitch. Strut nuts are torqued down to 50 ft/lbs, and there must be 3/4 inch clearance between the tower brace and the intake manifold... probably because of the ES motor mount bushings. (I'm thinking there's room for NWP spacers, later this Summer. Maybe.)

The bar itself is clean and smooth... no branding, no logos, just polished silver. Nice!

Anyway, I was expecting a noticable change in handling, and wasn't at all disappointed. The car is much more planted when plowing into the off-ramps and on-ramps. It's a nice complement to the Goodyear Eagle F1's I've been running these last few years.

This afternoon I test drove the new 2010 Mustang GT 5-speed, and drove away afterwards thinking, "My 7 year old Nissan is a better car than this brand new Ford." So yeah, I'm feeling pretty good today.

Thanks again for everyone who offered advice on this mod. And a general thanks to Maxima.org, supporting the research for my mods this Spring.

Here's a picture: