I've installed a DC Sports carbon steel strut bar, but the bar puts considerable pressure on what seems to be a vaccum hose that goes to the valve cover, at the point where it exits the throttle body. The location of the contact is the outlet where 01915Q in the top illustration in the following CAP attaches to the throttle body:



Since the outlet seems to be of a stiff rubber compound with a bit of flex, I let it go, but with the engine moving around, it could put additional pressure at this point. That bothers me, as the deflection now is already considerable.

On the other hand, this is the correct bar for the car, so there must be a fairly large installed base with this combination out there that has the same problem. Then again, instructions imply this contact shouldn't exist, as they caution to make sure the bar "does not interfere with any part of the vehicle".

My question: Is this contact a potential problem, and if so, what have others who own the carbon steel, twin-tube strut bar from DC Sports done?

Thanks!

That is the pcv valve hose you are crimping, and yes it is important. I'd try to reroute the hose if possible.

Thanks--I wondered where that thing was <g>. (Last engine I **really** worked on & knew anything about was a '63 MGA. Rebuilt it with with a 3/4 cam, flat pistons and shaved head, had the tranny rebuilt, and then sold it because I was moving & needed something lager. The idiot I sold it to blew the engine in a week, but that's another story...)

Unfortunately, the bar is pressing on the valve itself, so the point that's actually taking the stress is where the pcv enters the throttle body. This doesn't leave rerouting as an option. It just seems strange that with a bar designed for this car, and everything in that area being stock, this would happen. I tried reversing the bar, but it blocks the oil cap, and besides, the hood wouldn't close on the passenger side.

I don't think there's enough thread left on the studs to do this, but if I were able to stick a couple washers under the bar's mounting points to raise it a bit and thereby relieve the pressure on the valve, would that introduce too much potential play in the bar to negate any additional stability the bar is designed to introduce?

Just thinking out loud, but the alternative might be to add flat plates instead of washers to the bottom of the mounting flanges to maintain contact across that entire area, but again, I just don't think there's enough thread on the studs. (I have a feeling this bar is going to get expensive--I already had to replace the battery because the one in the car was too tall to clear the bar!)

Actually the PCV valve is inbetween 2 piece of hose. It doesn't go straight into the plenum. Perhaps you got the wrong bar. Also how much did it cover the oil cover? It will slightly.

Thanks for the clarification. As to the oil cap, it's only covered when I try to reverse-mount the bar so the offset is toward the front of the car instead of to the rear. When the bar is mounted as designed, the oil cap is clear, but the pcv line is fouled as described. There is a clearance problem with the hood on the passenger side if I reverse-mount the bar anyway, so that option is out. I've checked and rechecked to make sure the bar I have is correct for my '95 non-turbo 2WD, and the only possibility left for an error there might be that they packed the wrong bar in the box at the factory.