Quote:
Originally Posted by ClickClickBoom
Wouldn’t the load path be from the axle to the a-arm mounts, with any multiplication factoring coming from the distance the axle is relative to the a-arm pick up points? The strut towers are for shock absorption mounting and some small lateral deflections.
Side note, I have the x brace aluminum mounted, and while driving in the rain the windshield gasket woul weep, took it out and dry as a bone. Putting it back in now that the fuse panel update is finished, will go slip sliding in the rain to test.
Moving stiffness around means forces are focused in a way that the factory never engineered for.
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Yes most of the load is directed to the heavy cross member due its proximity to the front axle. However, since there is a large tire mounted to the spindle the friction force from the road tries to fold the tire under the car. The only thing that prevents this is the shock tower attachment.
As far as the up and down loads go, the strut tower is very strong in this direction because the metal is in tension instead of bending as with the lateral forces.
Thanks for sharing that experience with your windshield! Wow, that's pretty crazy. Did your X brace have heim joints on it to tension the tub?
Thanks
Tom