Front anti roll bar diameter?

@TB

Yes good point on the braking, however i was told that with sticky soft tires not to worry about it. The extra 1/4 degree camber should be felt especially in off-camber corners but not really in straight line braking. I don't do trailbraking on the ring except for a few corners so it should be OK. All theory, but I'll take it easy and see where it's going under actual testing before committing!

I am currently looking at a dual brake mastercylinder set up, possibly with a proportioning valve. I know this car can brake a lot harder then it is doing now, and rather then going hunting for more power i think beefing up brakes and grip while possibly lightening the car is the least expensive way to go faster.

Also have a few more projects in the pipeline.. don't know if they come to life though.. currently getting an offer worked out on Carbon Fibre Drive shafts. there shold be enough interested to get a batch of 30 something made up for starters. might be something for you too?

Cost for me in Aussie money is below:
Shipping charge is itemised.

Ordering Details:

Part number: BAR18XZ.
Qty: 1 @ AU$241.82
Description: Swaybar-X h/duty Blade adjustable

Part number: KLC053.
Qty: 1 @ AU$145.18
Description: Swaybar link kit-spherical rod end

CHARGE DETAILS (AU Australian dollars)
Value Goods:------ $387.00
Freight Cost:------- $164.00 (Europe incl UK - via Courier)
Aust. GST:---------- $0.00
GRAND TOTAL:---------- AU$551.00

I'm happy to participate in an extended destruction testing program for you - you know me! (including passenger side door tensile strength )

Do you have any technical info on the benefits?

Sounds very promising , especially since I suspect I will need to replace my driveshafts every two years or thereabouts.

Once the technical characteristics areunderstood I would imagine I would be extremely interested..

Cheers,
TB

Originally Posted by Peter K

Also have a few more projects in the pipeline.. don't know if they come to life though.. currently getting an offer worked out on Carbon Fibre Drive shafts. there shold be enough interested to get a batch of 30 something made up for starters. might be something for you too?

Well.. one major benefit is if they break they desintigrate..

Thery are stronger and lighter, so can't be bad.. except for the budget of course! A bit worried about the costs TBH.. But lets see what they come up with. Would be nice to have this part on the S/C cars. No more worries even with the LSD fully loaded and under full steering lock..

TB,

As always - outstanding!

E.

The website is screwy if you go onto anything other than their homepage, http://www.whitelineautomotive.co.uk/ should work.

There's tons of dealers listed under 'how to purchase', bought mine locally to collect but was sent direct from the distributer anyway, paid a tenner for shipping if memory serves, that was including a couple of bottles of rbf brake fluid, received it over a weekend.

Stock was okay a few months back and prices aren't much different to the oem bars plus you get poly bushes.

http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/alfa-...ml#post1046516

Is Whiteline really the ONLY company that sells thicker rear ARBs (standalone, not kits like Eibach) for the GTA? Moreover, theirs is for the 147 GTA, would be nice with a proper one for the 156 GTA.

156 Rear Bar 18mm adjustable - BAR17Z

Yes, I saw that one too, no 20 though. Still, there must be someone more than Whiteline manufacturing such a simple part?

you can buy the Novitec rear bar alone (it's a rebranded Eibach)

I think it would be a step in the right direction to fit a thicker rear ARB, the question is, should I go for 18 or 20 mm? I do almost exclusively B-road driving, plus future trips to the Ring (I suspect). For this, maybe a 20mm would produce too much oversteer, which is not so nice in 80+ km/h

Pax, having the 20mm and original front I do think the 18mm arb would be stiff enough especially on the 156 without vdc, 20 on the track maybe, not the road (or Ring), unless you get stiffer front arb / springs to compensate. Don't let that phase you though it is a very good modification, just better to have the adjustably to go softer rather than be to stiff altogether and need to spend more sorting out the front.

Determined to go to Nurburg myself sometime this month, like to be there with the rest of the Alfa's but have a christening to attend on the 9th, will be putting the arb on the softest setting guaranteed (medium now) and adjust the damping to suit... if and when I do make it there.

Just need to tap the little metal holder that hold some sensor cable out of the way, and use cable ties in place - very straightforward.

Cheers,
TB

Originally Posted by Pax

Is Whiteline really the ONLY company that sells thicker rear ARBs (standalone, not kits like Eibach) for the GTA? Moreover, theirs is for the 147 GTA, would be nice with a proper one for the 156 GTA.

If you havent done too many track days and want to be safe then maybe 18mm might be fair enough, especially if you still have standard springs/dampers.

For folks who want a have adjustable dampers or stiffer springs or simply have more experience on track I think the 20mm ones are hard to beat. You can start off on the softest setting.

Originally Posted by Pax

I think it would be a step in the right direction to fit a thicker rear ARB, the question is, should I go for 18 or 20 mm? I do almost exclusively B-road driving, plus future trips to the Ring (I suspect). For this, maybe a 20mm would produce too much oversteer, which is not so nice in 80+ km/h

Originally Posted by Trailbraker

If you havent done too many track days and want to be safe then maybe 18mm might be fair enough, especially if you still have standard springs/dampers.

For folks who want a have adjustable dampers or stiffer springs or simply have more experience on track I think the 20mm ones are hard to beat. You can start off on the softest setting.

I definitely think the 20mm Whiteline ARB is overkill unless you are a serious trackdriver. In Pax's case doing spirited driving on B-roads is not a place where you want the rear to go light. The back roads I know of in Skåne/Southern Sweden all have a lot of ditches and Road side trees, not to mention dirt and gravel left from Farm machines on the surface.

You could be passing over a crest into a steep left hander on tarmac with poor grip etc..

Understeer is safe and predictable, catching the rear when you are not expecting it to go is quite the heartstopper, and not something which you want to experience on the Road.. If you make the rear too light then you also loose the option to catch it on lift off, which is what most instinctively would do..

Just my two cents..

I have the KW V3 coilovers installed on my car + front upper strutbrace.

How do you think the 20 mm on the softest setting compares to the 18 mm on medium-hardest setting? As TB suggests, maybe 20 on softest could be a way to start, then having room for more a aggressive setting if you want to?

Peter & TB,

That was exactly the question I had in mind. Then, if you buy the 20mm bar one can always tighten it up, as desired over time, but with the 18mm one it will run out of stiffness before the 20mm. I accept that 'going for the max' or at least having that capacity is not often the correct thing, but 20mm at softest setting would seem like a reasonable starting point would it not.

By the looks of things Pax and I would welcome your advice.

Well i don't know the exact figures for the Eibach,(it too is two way adjustable, and i have it on the stiffest setting) I think TB said earlier that the Whiteline is 144% stiffer compared to stock? It's not enough to judge an ARB by the Ø, some are hollow some are not, some are made from harder/stiffer steel then others..

I do know my 3.2 is more then enough light at the rear with the eibach and KW II suspension, especially in off camber corners. This is the reason why i opted to add camber. (don't know yet if it worked) When pushed in relative flat corners, the car did slide quite nicely over all four wheels as it was (Ie.very forgiving) so I hope i didnt upset this balance too much.

It's too much of a bother (for me) to adjust the rear ARB before a track day, so it has to work for every day use.

One thing which you mught consider, and that is, that the Whiteline is made for the 147 GTA, not the 156 GTA. The 147 GTA rolls ALOT more in stock form then the 156 GTA does. I think this is caused by it's shorter wheel base and higher point og gravity. The 147 GTA grips very well though. From what i have experienced, the 147 does understeer more then a 156 (not helped by the VDC constantly keeping it in line)

Bottom line is that I personally don't think the Whiteline is something i would want on my everyday car, it's a bit too hard core I suspect. but i'd certainly fit it if i start stripping out the car making it more track oriented, or if i had a beast like TB's car.

In this photo my 3.2 is probably at more or less max yaw angle. This is on a relative moderate lowering of around 40-45mm.

Certainly high enough to be comfortable for everyday use, not scraping over bumps, and still low enough to feel flat through the corners for the driver. No doubt as a passenger not having a steering wheel to grab onto, a car feels like its rolling a lot more.

I will lower it about 5-8mm more though.. which i suspect might put the car slightly over the edge from being predominantly a road oriented car.

Heres a clip of my car soon after I had the ARB fitted, just after I had "run them in" at the Ring, running on stiffest rear ARB setting, and rear dampers on stiffest, front on med/softish.

http://videos.streetfire.net/video/5...5f007c0df3.htm

To be honest it still feels very stable but cornering speeds are noticably higher than without. The extra turn-in sharpness is helpful rather than a challenge.
Almost certainly my stiffer 10kg front springs are keeping the balance slightly away from any oversteer, but I would imagine somebody with modest 8Kg front springs and the rear ARB on softest would have a similarish balance.

There is one tricky downhill off-camber double right on that circuit approached at about 110 then hard braking - that used to be scarier without the stiffer rear ARB, since it was soo easy to understeer way off-line. Now the car generally feels much more neutral there. FWD cars normally wash-out a little on off camber corners.

Now for VERY fast off camber corners like "miss-hit-miss" at the Ring in 4th gear I would agree that you DO have to be very aware of the rear and when you really commit to the corner you don't want to back off ignorantly..
That said, that probably is one of the trickiest sequences of corners on any race track, sorry public road

Cheers,
TB

I would opine that almost defintely the 20mm on softest would be stiffer than the 18mm on hardest..

Apparently stiffness is proportional to the diameter to the power of 4, whereas stiffness is just linearly related to the "adjustable ARB softness setting" which just determines the sidearm length.

Cheers,
TB

Originally Posted by Pax

I have the KW V3 coilovers installed on my car + front upper strutbrace.

How do you think the 20 mm on the softest setting compares to the 18 mm on medium-hardest setting? As TB suggests, maybe 20 on softest could be a way to start, then having room for more a aggressive setting if you want to?

Hello All,

A simple question for you: On the Whiteline rear ARB there are three mounting holes. I guess that the outmost one is the softest settig, right?

Yes, the longer the side arm the softer the setting. I wouldnt go directly to the stiffest setting - safest to try the softest setting first