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      08-09-2020, 05:15 PM   #1
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G20 Strut Brace?

Has anyone with a G20 installed a strut brace?
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      08-09-2020, 08:28 PM   #2
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I have actually been thinking of this for the past few days. The BMS one looks nice but it around $220-240 shipped i think. The OEM BMW one (for the Z4 and 2021 Supra) is considerably cheaper. I'm thinking of ordering that and test fitting it.
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      08-09-2020, 09:31 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VipinLJ View Post
I have actually been thinking of this for the past few days. The BMS one looks nice but it around $220-240 shipped i think. The OEM BMW one (for the Z4 and 2021 Supra) is considerably cheaper. I'm thinking of ordering that and test fitting it.
If you do let me know- was literally having the same thoughts myself!

Think this would help stiffen up the chassis nicely
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      08-09-2020, 09:35 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gdiddy23 View Post
If you do let me know- was literally having the same thoughts myself!

Think this would help stiffen up the chassis nicely
My only issue is that the brace that comes as OEM on the Z4 looks exactly the same as the ones that came OEM on my B9 A4. It was extremely light and felt cheap. I had upgraded it to an 034 brace in my A4 and it was significantly better. But I hope there's some difference with the Z4 brace. I'm going to contact my local BMW dealer tomorrow to see if they can help get it for me (I can save on shipping). I'll also contact the local toyota dealer since the 2021 supra comes with it too.. If not, I'll probably order and see how it goes.
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      08-10-2020, 07:05 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by VipinLJ View Post
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Originally Posted by Gdiddy23 View Post
If you do let me know- was literally having the same thoughts myself!

Think this would help stiffen up the chassis nicely
My only issue is that the brace that comes as OEM on the Z4 looks exactly the same as the ones that came OEM on my B9 A4. It was extremely light and felt cheap. I had upgraded it to an 034 brace in my A4 and it was significantly better. But I hope there's some difference with the Z4 brace. I'm going to contact my local BMW dealer tomorrow to see if they can help get it for me (I can save on shipping). I'll also contact the local toyota dealer since the 2021 supra comes with it too.. If not, I'll probably order and see how it goes.
So, BMS is better for this? Better than the OEM BMW braces?

I will give a shot to the BMS, more expensive but they seem to have some.good reviews...
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      08-10-2020, 10:56 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tenembaiken View Post
So, BMS is better for this? Better than the OEM BMW braces?

I will give a shot to the BMS, more expensive but they seem to have some.good reviews...
Not sure if BMS is better than OEM. The thing is, since our cars don't have strut brace to begin with, there might be a difference even with the oem brace.
With the A4, it came with braces from the factory. It looked exactly like the OEM BMW braces. The 034 braces I got were 3 pieces (left, right and a centre piece that connected the left and right together). I'm guessing the middle piece was the reason it was noticeably better than OEM? I contacted the local dealership but they couldn't help me out. There's another dealer that I'll reach out to. They're a bigger dealership and have Z4s in stock. I also noticed that the X3 has braces (at least, the X3e has it). Let me see if that has the same part number and if so, if I can get it since the dealer I contacted needed a VIN number of a Z4 and they don't have any Z4s in stock to pull a VIN.
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      08-10-2020, 11:02 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VipinLJ View Post
Not sure if BMS is better than OEM. The thing is, since our cars don't have strut brace to begin with, there might be a difference even with the oem brace.
With the A4, it came with braces from the factory. It looked exactly like the OEM BMW braces. The 034 braces I got were 3 pieces (left, right and a centre piece that connected the left and right together). I'm guessing the middle piece was the reason it was noticeably better than OEM? I contacted the local dealership but they couldn't help me out. There's another dealer that I'll reach out to. They're a bigger dealership and have Z4s in stock. I also noticed that the X3 has braces (at least, the X3e has it). Let me see if that has the same part number and if so, if I can get it since the dealer I contacted needed a VIN number of a Z4 and they don't have any Z4s in stock to pull a VIN.
If you look on the Supra forums people were posting part numbers for the stock Z4 strut braces and the screws necessary for them. They were pretty cheap and you could probably order from get BMW parts or BMW parts pros.
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      08-10-2020, 11:09 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by pneumodoc View Post
If you look on the Supra forums people were posting part numbers for the stock Z4 strut braces and the screws necessary for them. They were pretty cheap and you could probably order from get BMW parts or BMW parts pros.
Yes. The supra forum was where I got the idea from. I was trying to save on shipping I'll contact one more dealer before ordering from online.

And also. The X3 strut brace probably won't fit. Part numbers for the X3 and Z4 braces are different.

We also will have to buy different nuts and bolts since the holes in our cars don't have threads to screw a bolt in.
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      08-13-2020, 10:08 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VipinLJ View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by pneumodoc View Post
If you look on the Supra forums people were posting part numbers for the stock Z4 strut braces and the screws necessary for them. They were pretty cheap and you could probably order from get BMW parts or BMW parts pros.
Yes. The supra forum was where I got the idea from. I was trying to save on shipping I'll contact one more dealer before ordering from online.

And also. The X3 strut brace probably won't fit. Part numbers for the X3 and Z4 braces are different.

We also will have to buy different nuts and bolts since the holes in our cars don't have threads to screw a bolt in.
If the strut braces from the X3 fits the G20, then we could even consider the ones from the X3M Competition that looks a little stronger....
The other option is to wait a little and see what is included on the G80... I believe that will be something similar to the X3M comp..
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      08-13-2020, 10:51 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ergarza View Post
If the strut braces from the X3 fits the G20, then we could even consider the ones from the X3M Competition that looks a little stronger....
The other option is to wait a little and see what is included on the G80... I believe that will be something similar to the X3M comp..
Which is exactly why I'm waiting. The X3MC bars look really nice. But isn't it CF? I saw a few pics and it looked like CF. If so, it'll probably be expensive. But yes. I'm waiting to see what the M3 ones look like.
The local BMW dealers I contacted couldn't help me out. I was about to order a set from online but then thought I'd wait for the G80 to be launched and see what that looks like.
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      08-13-2020, 12:40 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VipinLJ View Post
Which is exactly why I'm waiting. The X3MC bars look really nice. But isn't it CF? I saw a few pics and it looked like CF. If so, it'll probably be expensive. But yes. I'm waiting to see what the M3 ones look like.
The local BMW dealers I contacted couldn't help me out. I was about to order a set from online but then thought I'd wait for the G80 to be launched and see what that looks like.
Non-US markets apparently have a CF brace option for the X3M; those are probably the photos you saw. The standard, OEM brace for the X3m is not carbon.
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      08-13-2020, 04:44 PM   #12
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Non-US markets apparently have a CF brace option for the X3M; those are probably the photos you saw. The standard, OEM brace for the X3m is not carbon.
Yup. I checked realoem after. Standard parts aren’t CF. And the X3M has a few other bits as well which will make it stiffer. The left and right braces are around $50 each. There’s also a connecting brace that is around $420 or so. I’ll wait till the M3 is out and then get the left and right brace alone.
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      08-13-2020, 09:03 PM   #13
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Anyone else running the BMS strut braces?
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      09-28-2020, 03:08 AM   #14
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A new challenger has entered the game... Obviously the back piece over the engine won't work, but what about the front.

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      09-28-2020, 09:03 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gdiddy23 View Post
Anyone else running the BMS strut braces?
Yes installed them a couple of months ago. I can throw up some pictures if you'd like to see them.
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      09-28-2020, 09:05 AM   #16
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Originally Posted by Gdiddy23 View Post
Anyone else running the BMS strut braces?
Yes installed them a couple of months ago. I can throw up some pictures if you'd like to see them.
That would be awesome!

Any noticeable improvements?
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      09-28-2020, 11:21 AM   #17
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Originally Posted by placebo0311 View Post
Yes installed them a couple of months ago. I can throw up some pictures if you'd like to see them.
Pics would be awesome!

Are you running an aftermarket intake with them? How does the car handle after install?
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      09-28-2020, 12:26 PM   #18
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Originally Posted by helmet91 View Post
A new challenger has entered the game... Obviously the back piece over the engine won't work, but what about the front.

Yup. I've been eyeing it ever since they launched the M3 but I don't think it'll work on our cars because of the shape of the engine cover. And our cars don't have the centre bolt hole (where the two V braces meet). It might be possible to drill a hole there but I'm more concerned about the engine cover getting in the way.

But yes. The OEM M3 strut brace is gorgeous!

Quote:
Originally Posted by placebo0311 View Post
Yes installed them a couple of months ago. I can throw up some pictures if you'd like to see them.
That's lovely! Is there an improvement in the handling?

I had 034Mototsport strut braces on my B9 A4 (which had OEM strut braces that looked exactly like the ones on the BMW Z4) and the improvement was night and day, even during daily driving. The car felt stiffer, took turns so much better. Loved it! I spoke to someone who installed the OEM Z4 braces on their Toyota Supra and they said they didn't notice any difference. Which is why I didn't get it for my 330i since I didn't want something that just added some bling to the engine bay.
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Last edited by VipinLJ; 09-28-2020 at 12:33 PM..
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      10-02-2020, 08:25 PM   #19
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G20 Strut Brace?

Hi all, I just got the strut brace from the Z4 and i was planning to install it on my m340, my first impresion is that is extremely light and not convinced about the structural improvement that it could give ..... From an initial validation looks like the fit is not 100%, i will try to get some pictures but now Iam no longer interested in installing them, i will try to get the BMS ones.
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      10-02-2020, 09:54 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ergarza View Post
Hi all, I just got the strut brace from the Z4 and i was planning to install it on my m340, my first impresion is that is extremely light and not convinced about the structural improvement that it could give ..... From an initial validation looks like the fit is not 100%, i will try to get some pictures but now Iam no longer interested in installing them, i will try to get the BMS ones.
I believe the Supra, Z4 and 3 series all have the same dimensions for strut braces? Or am I wrong?

And yes. The B9 A4 has OEM strut braces that look exactly the same as the ones on the Z4. I drove my A4 with and without the OEM brace. I could hardly tell a difference (I’m assuming whatever difference I felt was a placebo effect). But with OEM and aftermarket braces, the difference was very noticeable (aftermarket was a 3 piece brace though compared to the 2 piece flimsy OEM ones).
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      10-04-2020, 08:38 PM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VipinLJ View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by ergarza View Post
Hi all, I just got the strut brace from the Z4 and i was planning to install it on my m340, my first impresion is that is extremely light and not convinced about the structural improvement that it could give ..... From an initial validation looks like the fit is not 100%, i will try to get some pictures but now Iam no longer interested in installing them, i will try to get the BMS ones.
I believe the Supra, Z4 and 3 series all have the same dimensions for strut braces? Or am I wrong?

And yes. The B9 A4 has OEM strut braces that look exactly the same as the ones on the Z4. I drove my A4 with and without the OEM brace. I could hardly tell a difference (I’m assuming whatever difference I felt was a placebo effect). But with OEM and aftermarket braces, the difference was very noticeable (aftermarket was a 3 piece brace though compared to the 2 piece flimsy OEM ones).
Thoughts on this cross brace?
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      10-04-2020, 10:18 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Fpangalos View Post
Thoughts on this cross brace?
Those should help compared to having no braces at all. I'm not sure how they compare to having two braces connecting the top of the struts to the front part (instead of connecting the top of the struts together like in the screenshot you posted).
But if you don't drive your car hard and prefer comfort, I'd suggest not getting braces. My car has the base suspension and is very comfortable and handles decently well. I'd love a little stiffness though and some more feel from the front end, which I'm hoping strut braces will provide. Your M sport has the sport suspension which is stiffer than the base suspension and handles well. I'm going to guess adding braces will make it more stiff, which can be good or bad depending on how you like ride quality.
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