Has anyone tried making their own front upper strut brace?

Im only asking as i want one for my car.

I realised if i get my mates sparco brace & measure thickness of steel tube etc then i can buy the steel and make my own bending the steel to match his brace & weld the same steel at each end for nuts with washers to go into.
This will be just as strong as a sparco brace and probably less than a quarter of cost, A simple job in my opinion for anyone good with their hands like me
let me know if you have done this yourself.

i thought about it, i think the brace is more engine bling! Can't see how it wont flex as it has bends in it. a straight piece of tube would be a lot stronger

It definitely works - many owners have reported increased handling precision with it fitted

I agree it would be stronger as a straight tube, but it doesn't seem to suffer any flexing under load

I designed a lower subframe brace a few years ago, which took a fair bit of effort and wasn't cheap, as it was built in stainless steel - no need for an upper brace to be in stainless though

I'm going to make it out of mild steel once i know the guage & diameter of it & because it's made specifically for my car i don't need the adjuster link in middle like sparco ones have.

I have priced up some mild steel tube and for 2000mm x 43mm diam x4mm thickness is just £21 the rest is just my time so i think a significant saving and a brace that will do as good a job as any other.

Once made and it fits i will prime and spray same colour as car (porto) & maybe etch something on top to personalise it, Depends how creative i feel
Ill post pics once done so watch this space.

As for people wondering if they actually make a difference...
I have had them on both my coupes & noticed a real difference on handling with them on.. its not just engine bling.

At risk of heresy - I don't think it makes any difference on the road. But I've got one anyway

Yup - heretic....

A lot depends on the type of roads you drive on. For several years, my commute included some amazing B roads, which when clear, were hugely entertaining and the strut brace certainly made a difference

My current commute is mostly open A road, DC and motorway and a tuned and modded Coupe would be a waste, so I use a diesel Alfa

One question.... why did Fiat put them on LE's as standard and not on lowly 20vt's was it for bling or just to make owners feel a bit more special?

also came on the plus's as standard

Bling

If you're concerned about the strength I suppose you could change the design slightly to stop it flexing, e.g. weld some flat edge on to the side of the tube... O-

Scratch the last comment - in the cold light of day I've just realised that although that would stop front to back flex it wouldn't stop flexing up and down......
I'm guessing there's not enough room for something on top or underneath, and it would be starting to look a bit over the top - just short of an RSJ!