VMP Strut Tower Brace & Insulation Tips

[Billycar11]

after seeing the video im not buying it anymore the amount of flex you can tell its only visual
maybe the upcoming "gt500" or "DH boss" or whatever it is will have a oem one that will fit with a supercharger

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[Junkyard Dog]

Some flex is good . . .

Why?

For the strut towers, I would think that an inflexible and rigid structure would be desirable, but I am not an engineer.

If space and cost were not an issue, a tubular bar, like a sway bar, mounted rigidly to the strut towers would be best.

 

[Junkyard Dog]

A little update after several drives with the Whipple stage 1 and the VMP strut tower brace. I haven't pushed the car as hard cornering as I've done in the past. I did somewhat and it felt planted with no discernable difference at this point.

Have you ever tracked the car at an HPDE event?

Do you intend to do it again now that you have a Whipple installed?

I am curious about whether the Whipple is as negative for the road course as others are claiming (although their posts do not indicate that they have tried it).

 

[Junkyard Dog]

Yes sir. Tomorrow morning! I've got bigger problems though waiting to find out how the 20" rims and tires will work out post whipple install or whether I have to drive out my stock HP rims and tires and have Ford mount those before end of installation. Then sell my 20s and order a set of 19s with Michelins on them.

Some people back in the S550 forums were using like washers to clear the Roush or Whipple and also removing the under hood insulation. My GT500 hood didn't have any insulation and the paint on it was fine so I imagine the Dark Horse would be same same.

Same questions for you, especially since you drive a Dark Horse now with a Whipple.

 

[MCS]

Same questions for you, especially since you drive a Dark Horse now with a Whipple.

I have not run an HPDE event in the Dark Horse (yet?). I did two events in my 2021 GT which had a Roush Phase 2 and no brace. Although it was auto so may have been more forgiving than my DH would be.

Your driving style does have to change when you are boosted however I am not sure how much of that would be attributed to not having a strut tower brace so much as the increased horsepower and torque.

 

[Junkyard Dog]

I have not run an HPDE event in the Dark Horse (yet?). I did two events in my 2021 GT which had a Roush Phase 2 and no brace. Although it was auto so may have been more forgiving than my DH would be.

Your driving style does have to change when you are boosted however I am not sure how much of that would be attributed to not having a strut tower brace so much as the increased horsepower and torque.

I tracked my Dark Horse (handling package and Trofeo RS tires) days after taking delivery, and it was great! Those tires are very sticky, and the brakes are awesome, allowing a very late braking at each turn.

Mine is an automatic.

I am seriously considering adding a Whipple later.

This is not a track car, it is a street car, but I intend to run HPDE events for fun.

I drive this car regularly on the street, though, so I am going to need to put some regular tires on it (Michelin PS 4S probably). I am considering maybe having two set of wheels - one with the Trofeo RS tires on them.

But there was such a nasty reaction by folks in another thread here about putting a Whipple on a Dark Horse if you are going to the track, that it would ruin it, etc. I just find that hard to believe. There was a C7 Z06 Corvette the day I was there, and it was a very capable track machine even with the extra weight of a blower and all of that extra torque. I know, however, that my Dark Horse is not a Corvette, obviously.

With a 500 horsepower car as it comes I already had to be gentle on the throttle even with the sticky tires, so I imagine I would just have to be a little more careful with the throttle after each apex, until I exit.

But I did not know if the reactions in the other thread were based upon anything?

Extra weight on the nose.

Extra torque.

Removal of the strut tower brace.

Any other considerations? Heat?

I would love to hear from folks who install a Whipple on a Dark Horse and track it, especially if they did a before and after. Your comments about your supercharged 21 GT give me some hope a Whipple would not be a modification that ruins the fun on track day.

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