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As I understand it, a Kafer Bar is used extensively in VW sedan racing in Europe. I've read it's primary purpose is to stiffen the chassis to allow the engine to apply torque to the tires sooner when coming out of sharp turns. In other words - to prevent wheel spin, and get on the gas sooner. Autocrossing might be the US application?

The set up on a Kafer Bar can be very tricky. You have four bars connected (hopefully) by ADJUSTABLE heim joints. To counteract torque, you have to preload some bars and unload others. After acheiving a basic setup you can fine tune it to suit each track requirement or different tires, etc. My impression is it takes some know-how to make that thing work.

But anything that stiffens up a chassis can't be bad. I have a rubber-isolated tranny strap that wraps around the tranny and the frame horns and supposedly stiffens up my pan-based chassis. But I don't race, just an enthusiastic street driver with a SEG.
It is sort of a traction system. When the wheel torque is transferred to the chassis the engine mount horns tend to flex up . They are only stamped sheet metal you know. When you get the flex .. you get wheel hop. The K -bars will prevent fatigue failures from hard accelerations. Are they worth it ? Yes if you drive your car hard. If you Granny drive it ... it's not.
Bob:

Informational Overload, huh?

OK, in plain English:

You're running a 2,110 cc engine putting out 140hp.

You're probably going to be sedately cruising the hills and NOT blasting out of lights or racing it at the dragstrip.

You do NOT need a Kafer brace.

If you were running a 2,332 or larger or had a turbo on that 2,110 so you were seeing 200hp or greater and, especially, were experiencing severe wheel hop off the line under very hard acceleration, then a Kafer brace might do something for you. I bet you're not getting any wheel hop now, (you would surely notice it if you did - shakes like your teeth are gonna fall out) so don't worry about a Kafer brace.

Gordon
The Speedstah Guy from Beaufort

Hey Soltis! Where in the World are you THIS month?
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