Howto fit a front tower brace

Here’s manual on how to mount a front tower strut brace. I have mounted one made by Greddy, which is mounted not on top, but between the two towers. Most other manufacturers; like Cusco for example, use the same type.

Time estimate
It took me two hours, but I’m always very slow when mounting parts and I like taking my time. If I had to do it again I would do it in 60-90 minutes.

Summary

  • Remove wiperblades
  • Remove the cowl (plastic part below windscreen)
  • Remove wiper motor
  • Remove protection plate
  • Mount brace brackets
  • Remove front wheels
  • Tighten bolt in wheel well
  • Tighten brace brackets
  • Mount tower brace
  • Mount everything back

Step-by-step guide

  1. Remove wiper blades
    Remove the cap of the screw and loosen it. Now you can remove the wiper arms.
  2. Remove the cowl
    Remove the 6 clips as indicated by the red circles. Use a screwdriver to press the middle down, than you can pull them out. If all clips are removed you can remove the cowl by pulling it up, there are no other screws or clips.Fitting a tower brace

    Fitting a tower brace

  3. Remove wiper motor
    Its connected with 3 screws in rubber. Remove the connector before you start with the screws (red arrow).
  4. Remove protection plate (no idea what this part is called…)
    The iron plate below the wiper motor can now be removed by removing all 6 screws.
  5. Mounting the brace brackets (loosely for now)
    Remove the left and right bracket from the brace and mount both brackets with the top 2 bolts and nuts. Don’t tighten them up yet because it will make mounting the 3rd bolt (circled) harder.
    Fitting a tower brace
  6. Remove front wheels
    Jack the ara up and remove the front wheels. The goal of the jacking is to create space between the shock and wheel well, this makes mounting that 3rd bolt a lot easier. So jack that Swift up high!
  7. Tighten bolt in wheel well
    Time to mount the 3rd bolt. Put them in from the engine bay so it sticks out in the wheel well. If you look up in the wheel wel you should be able to see the bolt. Now the hard part; tighten them by holding the nut (wheel well) and turning the bolt (engine bay) at the same time. I have long arms and was able to do it by myself. If your less fortunate you should ask for a helping hand. Below the before and after photo’s from the wheel well.
    Fitting a tower brace

    Fitting a tower brace

  8. Tighten brace brackets
    Put the wheels back on and lower the car. Make sure the car is on a flat surface. Now you can tighten the other screws of the brace brackets.
  9. Mount tower brace
    Now you can mount he brace bar between the brackets. I noticed that the bar was touching some cables in the middle. Ive twisted a hose clip so it wouldn’t touch (red circle below), this avoids damage to the brace and rattles too. To create some extra space between the cable and the brace I bent the cable bracket slightly. I did this by putting a wrench between the cable bracket and firewall and slightly pulling it, just a little bend is enough to ensure the brace is always free.
    Fitting a tower brace

    Fitting a tower brace

  10. Mount everything back
    Put everything back and enjoy the result, its a shame it isn’t more visible!Fitting a tower brace

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