Review: Ingalls Rear Shock brace and Brake Lines

[coppermine18]

Hey everyone - My name is Paul I am a member of quite a few forums out there.

I'm here today to drop a review - I review lots of stuff as I race AutoX and I spend lots of time finding good products reading - researching etc.

I own a 05' Super White tC - it is the other other love of my life.

I recently picked up a few parts from Ingalls Engineering (ingallseng.com)

I spoke with Rob there he is very outgoing and helpful - he puts a real personal touch on the product and it gave me some good assurance on the items.


This is what I picked up and installed from ingallseng.com:

Rear Shock Brace
Steel Braided Clutch Line
Steel Braided Brake Lines
Torque Damper

Ok. First my car - and later you will see I took of my cf hood for awhile because they made me run street mod with it *grrr!* I'll talk about some of my install with pics.



Picture 2 - Steel braided brake line goodness - copper washers - new banjo bolt great quality. Brakes are important to me in a big way.

Installation was a breeze I - just remember to wipe off the surfaces around the bolts on the ends of the lines you do not want to get particles from the old lines into the brakes... Its simple to use caution and take the extra minute and save yourself from locking up a caliper someday.



Picture 3 - perfect fittament went in with ease.

Remember to reference you OEM brake lines position and mimick it with the new lines. ( I didn't pay attention and replaced a caliper back with the line twisted not paying attention once when I did my first brake job ever - twisting or rubbing lines can = BAD. Attatch the end opposite of the banjo (round end) first but do not tighten it until you attatch the caliper end that way it is easy to manipulate the cable into the proper position without twists. I also noticed the clip you have to remove on the side opposite the caliper removing the OEM is a little annoying to take out. I used pliers and pulled a lil on the sides until it was out enough I could get a good grip on it.



The rears were a BREEZE after the fronts.



The car sittin there (without my CF hood =(... ) I made sure that I had the Fluid nearby ready to fill. When bleeding the brakes or the clutch line. You do not want to let it get too low it will syphon air unless you feel like bleeding it all over again. When you start pumping the brakes you will notice how much more pressure your brakes have when the pedal tightens up fast!

(I had to make a fairly quick stop today behind a girl in a civic that couldn't get out of her own way and when I layed into the pedal I don't think my foot went down much at all - that pedal was tight and the brakes were wayyy ahead of me. The response was awesome.) Also when bleeding the brakes the pedal got stiff FAST like there was no tomorrow.



This is just some painted interior stuff ... intermission dun dun dunnn



The SHOCK BRACE - its just so ... BIG and STRONG. Much more durable than others I have had my hands on!!! Well - a little suffice for a big benefit I say.

The 'big' problem is - not very big at all as you can tell it is obviously in the way of the cubby's and if you like your trunk stuff in there that is a hassle but you can cut the foam to fit quite neatly and put the provided spacers on the bottom of the car so the bar sits closer to the surface of the trunk.

If anyone wants I could dig up a photo of the cubby's cut and installed I've seen a pic of it.



When you lay down the brace you will notice - you need to drill out the holes on the brace mounts at the rear of the car a little larger to fit the bolts provided.

That metal is TOUGH to get through - trust me I had to use a battery powered drill where I was (I recommend a corded one).

To judge the size it was easiest for me to lay the bolt up to a bit and find one slightly larger in diameter. I Quickly punched the top hole bigger quick then jumped under the car and ended up using a slightly smaller bit it to even the metal in the hole my corless was catching up on an inner layer that protrudes a bit. After I got the hole smooth I then used the proper bit to drill the hole out to the proper size I kept a bolt close to check it with.

USE EYE protection and long sleeves as well or the little metal bits might burn a bit when they hit your arm *not that I would know abou that COUGH*

Otherwise the install is VERY fast and simple.



Lastly the installed brace - I hadn't finished the brake lines yet so I didn't get to drive it for a little bit after I got it in. I hate waiting!!! Who doesnt?

After driving: Once I put my hand on it I could just tell it was a whole different ball game than other braces I've had in my hands. Once I put it in my car - it tamed my frame. You will love it.

The tC creeks and rattles when you drive hard or get on uneven surface. This pretty much takes care of that. At work we have a entry way that rolls up and back down I used to drive slow over it cause I could hear the sunroof knock around a little and it was very easy.

Today I drove over it no noise - so I was like hmmm

Guess what I did? Thats right. I went ahead and just slammed through it till it made the rattle. Gotta test it right

Just eliminating those rattles was worth my time on this.



The Torque damer I feel is a must if you don't have poly motor mounts - Ingalls put out a damper that does a great job in my car. It is great quality construction and is adjustable as well.

On my NA tC it made the motor sit tight making shifting smoother and power immediately available - there is a bit of rattle you will feel though as well as some cabin noise (not harsh to me but others I hear it gets a little lout - but you can use some dynamat etc under it to take care of that.)



Overall - I've picked up and put in the cables - brace and damper and I LOVE how much my car feels more in my hands. I also did not post on here the clutch line as well which I replaced with a braided cable. Clutch peddle feels like I hit the friction point a bit quicker and pressure is very even and smooth on the peddal.

Anyways if anyone has any more Q's about the performance lemme know - it was a fun experience.

[Alex8181]

Great reviews. Is the Ingalls brace already available to the public? How much did you pay for it (assuming you're not sponsored)?

[coppermine18]

Ummm... I just checked out dezod.com they have em for $175 it looks like with FREE shipping -

http://www.dezod.com/pd_ingalls_engineering_rear.cfm