minmet

+1

HyperS4

Updated OP.

VipinLJ

So it works yeay

And yes. My tests are going to same as yours. I have a similar driveway too (from the way you described yours) and I can feel flex and minor creaks when I back out onto the street. Waiting for tomorrow so I can install it and hopefully drive around a bit too!!

savi01

Thanks for the review!

sprior

Reading your review makes me very tempted to order these, but I am only interested in functional/handling improvements (I don't care how pretty the engine compartment is) and I just don't understand how these bars could influence the ride. The originals look like a relatively weak connection between body frame points at the tops of the struts - it's hard to imagine what the originals even do. Can anyone explain the mechanics behind how the strut brace works (and therefore why upgraded ones would be better)? If I can't understand how it functions it's hard for me to understand why it isn't just a cosmetic upgrade.

HyperS4

That's an excellent question and I plan to answer it very easily. Basically the main function is to reduce flex. The standard oem bars just connect from the strut towers to the firewall in flimsy metal. The new 034 strut brace is made of much stiffer metal and has an additional support connecting in the middle thus reducing movement even more. So by stiffening up the engine bay it's reducing twist in the front end.

sprior

I've got the adaptive comfort suspension in my 2017 A4, my previous A4 had the sport suspension which I liked. I've only had the car 2 weeks so I'm still getting used to it, but it feels like it rolls more around sharp corners and generally feels softer even in dynamic mode. Would installing this strut brace be a good first step in the right direction, or should I do something else first?

HyperS4

Odd that you still feel it being soft in dynamic but yes, you will notice a more precise steering feel and turn-in. Body roll is more suspension than anything else.

VipinLJ

I didn't feel like creating a new thread so here goes.

I installed the 034Motorsport front brace and honestly, installing it was easy. I did face a few problems though. One is that I'm short and had to stretch a bit to comfortably reach the two bolts under the plastic since the hood is pretty long. Another problem is that the plastic trim doesn't come off completely and it can be difficult to unscrew and screw the bolt.
Other than that, it is an easy install and it literally took like 10 minutes at most. I was shocked at how easy it was to remove the bolts (I expected it to be bolted on very tight). I didn't even have to use the PDF guide. It was straight forward. I took HyperS4's advice and didn't tighten all the bolts (it doesn't align correctly if you tighten all the two bolts and two screws.

Anyways. Long story short. The strut brace works.

Pros:

1. Flex - My driveway is angled and whenever I back out or get into my driveway, I could feel the car flex and creak a bit. It never bothered me though since nothing is perfect.
But post install, I backed out and drove back on a few times and the flex was non-existent. No creaks due to flex either. It also felt stiffer compared to before.

2. There's a nice round about like thing in my community which I use to test the road holding capability of my car (don't worry. It's a dead end and no one lives there/no chances for me running over people). It is a tight turn. With the stock brace, I could only do like 20MPH before I thought the car would ever off course. With the new brace, I did 25MPH easily and could have done more. Car felt perfectly stable.

3. Turns are negotiated better. There are lots of turns in the community I live in. I found out that I can carry a higher speed into the turn compared to stock.

4. The biggest positive is none of those though. I basically live in the middle of nowhere and there are long, unending roads where basically, if you want, you can max out your car. There are empty fields on either side and plus, this being IL, winds are pretty strong. Earlier, I had to wrestle with the steering wheel to keep the car going straight when there were crosswinds. It felt as though the winds would carry my car away. I went on a very long drive today on the same roads and I was amazed to find that there was zero instability. I could hear the wind howling but I didn't have to wrestle with the steering at all. I wasn't expecting that but yes. It seems to have made the car stable (don't ask me how that happened. I don't know the physics behind that). That alone, for me, makes it a worthwhile addition.

5. It makes the engine bay look beautiful. I mean. Yes. It really does. Just one of the metal bars weighs as much as both the bars that came stock with the car. Audi definitely skimped with the stock brace. It felt extremely cheap in the presence of the 034Motorsport brace. The 034 brace is solid aluminium whereas the stock one is hollow and light. I'm surprised it did anything at all. And the clear anodized finish on the 034 brace looks really good.

Cons:

1. It isn't a con as far as I am concerned but it could be, to some people. You definitely feel the road a lot more now. I could feel almost every imperfection harder compared to before. It definitely isn't bone jarring but it isn't soft anymore. I like it though since it feels like the road is communicating with me. People who want pure comfort and nothing else might find it to be a turn off.

2. You can install only one bar in the engine bay

A few cellphone photos for now since I was raring to go for the drive. Will take better photos after I clean up the engine bay a bit and give the car a wash which should be soon.




Stock front strut brace



034Motorsport front strut brace

KevinB656

Hyper gave an accurate, concise answer. If you want more, below is a great video on the topic. As some have said, Audi used a fairly flimsy strut bar, so this would firm things up a bit. I haven't noticed enough of an issue with the existing bar that I could justify the relatively high cost of this replacement.