MRZ got me.. Twice

[Slinky]

Was driving down the road the other day and hit a pothole and didn't think anything of it a few days later I popped my hood and one of my MRZ strut caps flew out and was gone..

I was pretty pissed off then I go into work on the nice flat cement and try to put on their billet strut bar, Which as you can see from the photos did not fit my engine at all.. I emailed Matthew two days ago asking if I could return it and he has yet to get back to me.. PISSED
Also my engine is a little bit different than stock I'm guessing it's probably higher or something causing the alternator to hit...

[Money pit Beretta]

No your engine is fine, others have had this problem when using a MRZ STB with a V6. The best STB out there is the Cavy bar. Nothing else comes close, they fit and do not flex. The MRZ STB seems to be for the Q4 or 2.0/2.2.
Those old ABS strut mount covers work just fine and are cheap at the JY. I understand that you want more class, but sometimes class is trash. I bought some Vibrant STB's(used) for my Cavy and found out that they flex. That was a waste of money.
If you need a Cavy bar I got a few and cheap.

[speedy]

i have billet z26 covers from mrz i got a while back, and a cavy strut bar. i dont believe im all that far from you either?

[Slinky]

I have been using the cavi one for a year or so I just wanted the clean look of the aluminum stb.. And speedy i believe i will be ordering a set that is anodized and engraved with SS

[Asylum]

I had a problem with the alternator hitting the MRZ bar on the 3500.
Jon actually noticed it on my car in Albany before I did.
Common problem it turns out.
I also question the integrity of the MRZ strut bar as it is bolted together and not one piece.
Pauly (red-bra-beretta??) actually had his welded together ON THE CAR.
That would make it work properly.

[Bman Gtz]

Matthew is slow at getting back to e-mails but I ran into a similar issue, what I did is I had a groove cut out where the alternator was hitting and then Matt sent me a replacement side that is (2) bolts rather than (3) so it doesn't stick out that far, he paid to ship it to me and all I had to do was put the other in the box and he paid shipping back. He is good to work with, just hard to get a hold of.

[heavywoody]

The aluminum one flexes quite a bit... I've got a video to show if anyone wants to see it.

[3X00-Modified]

This looks totally different though, not just the cooling fins are hitting his, the whole bar looks to be laying across the top. This is why I spoke with Matt once about there being a different set of ends for the V6 and he said there wasn't and never was, but I think the V6 feet should be setting the bar further back in the bay, not that far forward.

I think the V6 bar should be made with feet that position the bar more like this

[Slinky]

Yeah Asylum i have a 3450 which is probably why i have such fitment issues.. But i was going to strengthen the bar a bit by stopping it from sliding on the end pieces by mounting it on the car than tightening the bolts than removing it, flip it over and drill/ream for 2 dowel pins to be pressed in each end so that it couldn't "slide" anymore

Bman if i cut a notch in mine it would go completely through the bar before it touched the strut tower, when the bar was hitting the alternator it was at least 5/8" off of the strut tower..
But do you have any pix of these mods?

Heavywoody i am interested, post the vid here if possible.

Jon i agree, it should fit where the cavi one does using the back 2 bolts instead of the side 2, but than i believe it would cover the brake fluid cap..

[Bman Gtz]

Here is a pic of mine, u can kinda see it, I don't have any other better pics.

[Slinky]

Yes i can make it out, i would not want one of these braces to be that thin, it is probably very weak.. Ill stick with the cavi one if i can get a refund..

[Asylum]

I don't think the MRZ bar was ever considered to be all the structurally sound. More dress up than anything.
The Cavy bar is definitely stronger simply because it is one piece.

[3X00-Modified]

Here's Eric's old bar...

[Red_Bra_Black_GTZ]

bar, what bar, all i see is a canadian beaver sipping punkin beer.

Here's Eric's old bar...

[scannerman]

Holy crap. awesome photo. brings back some memories.