Sub-frame connectors... Please build them correctly!
Well whatever you do, don't post your own drawing or I'll throw it off into the Grand Canyon as well. :D
You know I am just kiddin ya just like I was with the OP.
Hey no worries. That's why I posted a disclaimer on my own subframe connectors. I
know they aren't the best possible solution, but they're better than some and definitely better than nothing at all. Everything is a compromise, I did what I did because I didn't want to cut up the floor.
There we have it.....
Good post!
BTW, i am a journeyman welder and i approve of this post.......
Thanks!
I didn't intend for it to be an "end all" post, there are a lot of solutions out there that would improve the stock chassis. But that's why I thought it was necessary to post up, because there are
a lot of possible solutions, and you'd have to really try to make something that actually made things worse.
And I think some people forget about the importance of the actual installation. Welding to the floor pan is not the easiest thing to do, even for skilled welders. Without proper prep and equipment, it would be pretty easy to make a mess out of the floor pan. Sure, with a rotisserie and media blasted car its not a big deal, but laying on your back in your driveway with a MIG welder isn't going to work so well.
longitude bars will add something but Redfish is the only one who gets it.
Gussets...nothing so strong as a triangle,
If you triangulate the corners you are getting strong fast and factory torque boxes
have this effect
I can assure you Redfish is not the only one who "gets it". Subframe connectors are just one piece of the puzzle. I added torque boxes on my car as well for that exact reason. And J-bars. And a tubular radiator support. X-bracing the car would add more, but keep in mind it will also get in the way of everything- transmission, exhaust, driveshaft, etc. And you don't just have to work in 2-dimensions, a 4 point bar will also do wonders for chassis stiffness.
But it really depends on your use of the car, and for a street car you can probably make the chassis "too stiff", where things will start to crack instead of flex. Its a balancing act. You don't want to break things because there's too much flex, but you also don't want to break things because there isn't enough flex either. That's why big rigs are built on twin I beam frames with open channel and have riveted or bolted cross members, and why you aren't supposed to weld on them except in limited locations and instances. They NEED to flex in order to work properly. Granted, that's a special case because of the amount of load they carry, and it's not really as much of an issue with our fairly light duty cars.
And again, it depends on the use of the car. If you're involved in racing you'll want to make sure that any reinforcements you add conform to the class that you want to race in. Subframe connectors are allowed in many cases depending on their design, but for autocross and road racing, cross bracing is pretty heavily regulated for the "stock" classes.