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GMPP STB - my impression

IndeedSS

IndeedSS

SS-DD Level Member
I installed my front and rear GMPP STB's with donrome brackets yesterday. I drove the car to work this morning travelling the same path as always.
To be honest, the difference is negligible. Had someone installed these without me knowing it, I would not have noticed anything was different.

They are easy to install and for right at $105, it's probably not a bad mod. Just don't expect too much.
 


Bio248 said:
normal driving you shouldnt expect much. its in the turns where it counts. and the torque steer.
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Yeah, I didnt reply earlier when I saw this because I wasnt quite sure how to quantify what I perceived as the difference. Its definitely not going to be noticed in normal day to day driving.

On my drive from work there is a couple turns that are fairly tight that I can take now a bit more aggressively and with a bit more confidence. In fact, one of them I can actually take it hard enough that I can slide out the rear end some. I didnt know you could do that in a front wheel drive car. At least Ive never been able to before and I never was able to do so at any time prior to putting in both front and rear STB's.
 
It's crooked and hilly during the first part of my drive. There are a couple of places that will give a bit of roll. Tested it again on the way back home and althought there was a very slight difference, it wasn't that much. The other thing to note is my car is an 04 and is still relatively tight. The SS Impala also got upgrade sway bars versus the LS Impala's.

A couple of other impressions. The GMPP bars, once the stickers were removed, looked better than I initially thought. The donrome brackets are very nicely done. Although he warned against overtightening, I had no problem putting a pretty good twist on the bolts without issue.
 
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the sway bars do the most for the handling of your car. thats why you didnt notice, you already had those.

i want the gmpp upgrade for mine. doesnt handle as well as id like yet.
 
Bio248 said:
the sway bars do the most for the handling of your car. thats why you didnt notice, you already had those.

i want the gmpp upgrade for mine. doesnt handle as well as id like yet.
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I had an 03 SER 5sp not too long ago. No matter what suspension upgrades it gets, this car will never be able to be thrown high speed into a cloverleaf like a stiff riding manual will.:D
 


no doubt. id like a better handling car all around, but i hate little cars with a passion. ill stick with my boat.
 
Bio248 said:
no doubt. id like a better handling car all around, but i hate little cars with a passion. ill stick with my boat.
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Amen to that....

But I agree that you won't notice that much of a difference with just the STB. It will help, but not a lot. It is the combination of things that makes a difference. And the sway bars help the most, I think.

Also, I am not 100% convinced that the don rome STB brackets don't give a little and are not as stiff as connecting the braces directly to the strut tower. But that is just my opinion.
 
I wonder if welding them together would make it a bit stiffer (although that presents a whole new issue of steel to aluminum, and I can't weld that well)
 
donrome brackets are really thick and only span the distance between two studs. I guess it is possible that they give a little, however, it appears that it would take a large amount of force. I'm only guessing though. Hmmm a spy camera under the hood.:D
 
could they be causing the strut tower to flex a bit or even the bolts? (just thinking it may add leverage the system wasn't designed for)
 


if youre really worried about that then spend slightly more and pick up the one from wbody store that has a complete circle for all of the studs. thats the one i have, but i bought it from ebay before they offered them there.
 
Bio248 said:
if youre really worried about that then spend slightly more and pick up the one from wbody store that has a complete circle for all of the studs. thats the one i have, but i bought it from ebay before they offered them there.
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They definitely have the most structurely solid STB's
 
I know when I got my front sway bar off eBay many moons ago, its a knock off of the Otto Racing one with the dual rails with connecting welds in the middle, it made for a noticably stiffer ride in the front end. I still have yet the GMPP kit for the GTX, but I am gonna put the sway bar that comes with that kit in the trunk and then see how much different it is.

But I know with the beefed up front sway bar, poly bushings for the sway bar and the tie rod ends and then rear beefed up sway bar it made a marked difference in how car the handled.

Just my 2c on that topic.
 
I bought the handling kit for my Imp, only to find out it was installed at the factory sans strut tower brace. I can still use it though on my GP, since a recent inspection of it after I bought it showed it had a cracked front sway bar! The shop is nice enough to install the entire kit for me, minus the strut tower bars. I want to install the new strut tower brace on my Imp and a junkyard brace on the GP. I am glad to hear strut towers don't make a huge difference. Well, not really GLAD, but waiting a while before I put them on will be OK.
 
just by looking at the gmpp stb you can tell that its not going to be as effective as you want. I'm thinking about either splurging for the BMR Fabrication stb or picking something up from zzp.
 


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