# How do I enlarge a bolt hole? Car strut bar question **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 11, 2018, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252 "2018-04-11T22:58:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tired_and_Cranky)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2018, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/21 "2018-04-12T16:03:55Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > Seriously dude, you’re about to enter an endless game of throwing money into a used car that will never be a track car, and if you get it close to a track car, you’ll hate it on the street. Save your money and buy a used Porsche 911. You’ll never be sorry. I think Jennshark is working on a track day car and not a daily driver. Everybody seems to have their opinion on the best track car. One of my track day acquaintances traded his used 911 for a brand new 2016 Chevy Camaro SS 1LE because the maintenance costs on the Porsche were killing him. The Camaro was significantly faster and it has all the track goodies like big brakes, aero package, and track camera with recording feature and a lap timer. Car and Driver’s Camaro set a better time than the 2011 Porsche 911 GT3 RS, the 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo, and a bunch more 911s. Some of the newer 911s are faster but even used, they still aren’t as cheap to buy or maintain as that Camaro. [https://www.caranddriver.com/features/chevrolet-camaro-ss-1le-at-lightning-lap-2016-feature](https://www.caranddriver.com/features/chevrolet-camaro-ss-1le-at-lightning-lap-2016-feature) [https://www.caranddriver.com/features/lightning-lap-20062017-historical-data-every-lap-time-every-car-feature](https://www.caranddriver.com/features/lightning-lap-20062017-historical-data-every-lap-time-every-car-feature) For what it’s worth, when I was looking for a track car, the BMWs were generally solid values for the performance they offered. I wound up with something different but I think that I would have been very happy with a couple of the BMWs that I decided to pass on. ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2018, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/22 "2018-04-12T21:21:27Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > If you’re intent on doing this, go to a processional driving school. A one or two day course, where the pro rides with you. Loose your bad habits (and you have many, everyone does) and just practice driving slow but correctly around a track. Then when you can recognize, analyze and understand things like weight transfer and polar moment, understeer, oversteer, etc. you’re ready for step 2. A day class with a professional driver will save you way more than the class costs. Start there BEFORE modifying your car. Then start with upgrading the brakes. You’ll find why out after 10 minutes on the track. > > Seriously dude, you’re about to enter an endless game of throwing money into a used car that will never be a track car, and if you get it close to a track car, you’ll hate it on the street. Save your money and buy a used Porsche 911. You’ll never be sorry. > > I’m speaking from experience. I had a 1987 Mustang interceptor (the one that looked like a cop car) that I dumped about 7,500 bucks in suspension/engine upgrades, and I did _all_ the work, except the welding. It hauled ass but it lost so much drivability for a daily driver it was a PITA to drive. I’m going to my third HPDE this weekend and I’ve done some autocross. So, I’m an amateur but an experienced one. I have three BMWs, I bought this 2004 (330ci ZHP) in March for tracking. So, I’m not concerned about it as a daily driver. The E46 has a reputation for strut tower mushrooming and experts recommend a strut bar as a preemptive measure for both daily driving and tracking. The seller never tracked the car, but he did install M-style suspension, Brembo brakes, and stanced Pirelli Pzeros (19x8.5 - 235/35 and 19x9.5 - 245/35). He owns a car part import company, so I lucked out. The tower bar is the only mod I need to do. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2018, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/23 "2018-04-12T21:33:33Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > Aww…hey, um, looking at [the pictures](https://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fc1552172.ssl.cf0.rackcdn.com%2F558749_x800.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ecstuning.com%2Fb-ecs-parts%2Fecs-carbon-fiber-strut-bar-kit-silver%2Fecscf03b03-ace%2F&docid=b-LWFXUokyJe_M&tbnid=VUBN2YGQ_DtkMM%3A&vet=1&w=800&h=600&source=sh%2Fx%2Fim), is it possible the holes on the rod mounts aren’t all 130 degrees apart? Like, is it possible all 3 holes WILL line up if the base is spun & oriented in a particular way? This would be my starting point, rotate the base to start. It really should fit as is. Might be a waste of time but I would spend some time finding out why it doesn’t fit. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2018, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/24 "2018-04-12T22:26:33Z")
I agree that the part _should_ fit. But, I just replaced the water pump and heater inlet tube in my F150, and the inlet tube would not fit into the water pump - no way, no how. I finally took a grinder to the end of the tube to make it small enough to fit. Both parts were after-market, so one (or both) may have been out of spec. The point being - sometimes parts are made outside of tolerance. ---
**Author:** ![Jennshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jennshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennshark)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2018, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/25 "2018-04-12T23:24:16Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > I agree that the part _should_ fit. > But, I just replaced the water pump and heater inlet tube in my F150, and the inlet tube would not fit into the water pump - no way, no how. > I finally took a grinder to the end of the tube to make it small enough to fit. Both parts were after-market, so one (or both) may have been out of spec. > > The point being - sometimes parts are made outside of tolerance. Yeah, I have the right parts, the car has just shifted about in 156 K. In good news: I’m within .000000000000000009 of having the last hole fit over the post. I jacked it up and it gave some play, enough to get all but this one post in. To be continued tomorrow! ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2018, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/26 "2018-04-13T04:28:03Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Hey, before you do anything, could you use a slightly smaller bolt/nut? The bolts are integral with the upper strut mount and cannot feasibly be replaced with something else. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2018, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/27 "2018-04-13T04:36:34Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > Assuming the bar kit is all of 1/16 too short, then the result of this operation would be to pull the top of each strut tower inward by 1/32 of an inch. Translating down to the bottom of the tower, to the wheel, wouldn’t this add a metric gob of positive camber to the system, hopefully evenly distributed between the front wheels? [Negative](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IA4VNs-4gEk/UECbC63HZWI/AAAAAAAAAoY/MbGzILmacRQ/s1600/Camber.jpg) camber, not positive. I’m too lazy to try calculating the angle involved, but I’m fairly sure it wouldn’t be much. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2018, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/28 "2018-04-13T11:40:05Z")
Positive/negative…I’m still on fractions… ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2018, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/29 "2018-04-13T14:58:01Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > The bolts are integral with the upper strut mount and cannot feasibly be replaced with something else. Where have you been? 🙂 (Between you and me, I have no idea what I’m looking at in the OP, so you’re getting no argument here.) ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2018, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/30 "2018-04-14T16:43:31Z")
> [@Jennshark](#): > > I’m within .000000000000000009 of having the last hole fit over the post. Wow, that’s quite the set of feeler gauges you have there. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2018, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/31 "2018-04-14T17:44:32Z")
^ Fresh! ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2018, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/32 "2018-04-14T22:18:33Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > (Between you and me, I have no idea what I’m looking at in the OP, so you’re getting no argument here.) For those who are curious: The photo linked to in the OP shows two of the three strut mount nuts (external hex), the third is under the arm that has two internal hex bolts. The strut tower without this gizmo bolted onto it is in the next photo over in that link (click on it), and as in [this photo](https://www.nissanhelp.com/diy/altima/projects/images/bt2580/nissan_altima_front_strut_tower_brace_1.jpg) all three nuts are clearly shown. The “gizmo” is a strut bar, which connects the left and right strut towers to enhance the car body’s rigidity, which can improve handling. [Here’s](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.agency-power.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2FAP-BK20-250_5.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.agency-power.com%2Fshop%2Ffront-strut-bar-hyundai-genesis-coupe-20t%2F&docid=4GzBOt8nnDtjSM&tbnid=PIDF_cSgMF8MgM%3A&vet=1&w=800&h=640&bih=887&biw=1280&ved=2ahUKEwj6zJje37raAhUwT98KHSTCA_84ZBAzKA8wD3oECAAQEA&iact=c&ictx=1) how one looks installed (silver bar with red ends). The [strut’s](https://www.carid.com/images/monroe/suspension-parts/139105.jpg) three mounting studs stick up through the strut tower. These hold the top of the strut in place in the vehicle, and are also used to mount the strut bar. The studs are part of the strut’s [upper mount](http://i.ebayimg.com/images/i/170880982683-0-1/s-l1000.jpg) (i.e. welded onto it) thus not feasibly replaceable; furthermore smaller studs would allow undesirable slop in the mounting position. Anytime you’d like a lot more info than you ever wanted, just let me know! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2018, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/33 "2018-04-14T22:50:15Z")
Hey, **Gary T** , thanks for the tutorial; I enjoyed it. The right pix with the right instruction and it all makes perfect sense. We should pay you for this. I wonder if **Jennshark** got the part installed? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2018, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252/34 "2018-04-15T03:26:36Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > I wonder if **Jennshark** got the part installed? Of course she did! She’s out driving like a maniac right now, hence, not posting. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-enlarge-a-bolt-hole-car-strut-bar-question/812252.md?page=1)