I'm currently in the market for a nice adjustable torque arm. I drove a 2000 SS with one installed and felt a nice difference. I'm confused about how to order one and was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction. I'm pretty sure I want a transmission mounted piece. I have MAC mid-length headers on the car but someday I would like to pull those off and upgrade to some LT's. Would I have to buy a different torque arm if I were to install long tubes?

I'm looking at UMI's, BMR's, and Spohn's. They are all priced around the same. If any sponser(s) would like to chime in on why their's is the best I'm open ears. I'm pretty new to this stuff so bare with me!

 

I have a UMI adjustable torque arm with long tubes and an ory. The clearance is great on it. In reality umi and bmr's transmission mounted piece will clear virtually all aftermarket exhaust systems so you cant go wrong with either.

 

Personally I like the Spohn products. Everyone I know around here uses them. I have their trans mounted adjustible unit. It will fit with Macs or long tubes. Get the longer bolts for it as well. Click for a pic.

 

Hello, just to give you another option. We offer several different styles of adjustable torque arm. From our full length adjustable dom steel made 1.25" x .120 tubing or the 1.25" x .85 moly version. We also offer shorter versions that work very well for drag racing applications. If you have any questions please give me a call.

 

Hello,

Thanks for the interest

The transmission mounted torque arms are a very nice set-up... they are a direct bolt in and very street friendly. They won't effect your ride quality or add any additional road noise to the vehicle. Our transmission mounted arm will clear all exhaust systems on the market so there would be no need to change the item out when you replaced your exhaust system. I posted a link to our items below, if you have any additional questions please ask.

www.umiperformance.com/2205

thank you!
Ryan

 

Definitely go with a tranny mounted arm. I have the chassis mount and hate it for the street. Most of the people that I've talked to on here agree.

 

Def go with the full length and a relocation kit

 

You won't have an issue with any of them (and a lot of others) on the quality side in terms of how they are welded and put together.

The deciding factors are (and should be) things like fit, finish, who you get the best information from, and who offers the best solution for your wants.

I'm a UMI guy. It's mostly what I sell, and I use it too. I have other TA's from other companies too, but I feel UMI has the best variety of solutions to offer folks.

Ryan linked to the Tranny mounted + Adjustable unit it on his page, and here's the link off my website:
http://www.stranoparts.com/partdetai...=107&ModelID=2

On top of that, you can add this TA Relocation bracket at any time if you want the TA off the tailshaft: http://www.stranoparts.com/partdetai...=107&ModelID=2
This bracket has a few things going for it that tunnel mount TA's don't.

1. Being it's a replacement transmission crossmember, the TA loads are put in a part of the unibody meant to take driveline loads. The Tunnel Brace location is not.

2. It's a bolt in. No welding, no hassles.

3. The TA is still bushing mounted and because the loads aren't being put into thin sheetmetal the noise isn't an issue.

4. It can be added at any time (no requirement to buy the TA and the bracket together). When/if you decide to remove the TA from the tailshaft, you can do it and it'll work with the existing TA and any normal exhaust.

5. If you opt for the TA Relocation bracket, you have another way to adjust instant center for greater straight line bite, and without having run your LCA's in a compromised tail-down angle on the street (which promotes roll oversteer).

 

Does it add any additional noise if you mounted with the crossmember. Im about tired of my Spohn chassis mounted arm, it makes my car so uncomfortable. Then the crossmember hits everywhere, theres a constant thump. I think im going back to the tranny mounted arm.

 

Sam,

Thanks so much for taking your time to help me and type up all that useful information. This torque arm and relocation braket sounds like it could make the car even more fun by really feeling a better power transfer. Would more power show up on the dyno as a result of less power less through the chasis? Also, I have some weld-on UMI LCA relocation brakets waiting to go on as well. Do these have anything to do with running the LCA's in a "tail-down" angle?

Thanks!

 

Yes. In my case the tranny mounted arm with my relocation crossmember makes just about as much noise as my old tunnel mounted arm.

 

The TA relocation bracket isn't anything drastically different from what's on the car stock.

It's replacement transmission crossmember (bolts in place of the stock one, and the tranny bolts to it the same way). But it has a mounting location for the TA as well so instead of being hooked to the tailshaft which in turn hooks it to the crossmember, you just mount it right to the crossmember.

It's tempting for many to say it's the same as a chassis mount/tunnel mount arrangement. It is not. The biggest reason is because the former setups attach the TA to parts of the floorpan not meant for driveline forces. It's a lot of plain old sheetmetal and that is not only noisy (also because it's mounted right under you), but it's not a very strong location. The TA Relocation Bracket mounts right to OEM driveline crossmember mounts which are much stronger, it mounts further away from you, and it doesn't hang down any more than the stock one does either.

If you are worried about the noise then just start with a TA only and see what you get. If you have issues that concern you, you can always add the relocation bracket later. But I don't see any sort of nasty noises coming from a bracket. The TA is still bushing mounted, and the loads are put into strong mounting points that take a fair bit of force from the engine/trans moving around in everyday driving.

And of course, different parts can lead to different results. Some things fit better than others, some situations are different. This is a situation where "YMMV", but some common sense viewing of the part, how it works and where it attaches leads most to the conclusion I just gave. There will always be those that disagree for various reasons.

 

I have the UMI non-adjustable torque arm with the UMI trans mounted relocation cross member. There is no banging and some very slight vibration on hard acceleration. I think this more due to the torque arm being mounted in poly versus rubber. It is a very slight vibration. I am very happy with the setup and would recommend it. I hated my shifter moving around on hard shifts and this just makes the car feel so much better to bang through the gears. My car is also stock height at the time.

 

It's what I do.... That's how I try and answer everyone, though I can't always do it by e-mail.

I don't really think you'd see any tangible change in power. There are no parasitic losses through non-driveline parts (these aren't things power is transmitted through like transmissions, driveshafts, rear ends, even brakes, wheels and tires). While you wouldn't free up more power, you might well plant it better.

LCA's should only be run tail down for drag racing, and you need brackets to do it. The reason is simple, as you move the LCA's tail down when the car rolls (turning) you develop roll oversteer and that's not great for stability or confidence. You should use the brackets to keep the arms level if you are lowered, and if you want to drop them down for drag racing you can. The TA Relocation allows you to get a more rearward instant center (much like the LCA's running tail down) if you want it, but *without* compromising the rear suspension geometry and causing the roll oversteer.

 

If you compare the BMR adjustable torque arm (TA001) to some of the other torque arms, you will find some significant design differences. Look closely at the front of the torque arm and you'll see that the BMR design is much stronger. BMR uses a steel tube (1-1/4" dia x 0.120" wall thickness) that inserts into the bushing. That steel tube is an integral part of the structure of the torque arm.

Some other companies use 1/8" thick sheet metal (same design as stock torque arm) for the front of the torque arm. Look closely at the pics and see for yourself. The steel tube design is stronger because there is less deflection under load.

The BMR torque arm has been track-tested on 7-second 1500+ horseower drag radial cars. No other suspension manufacturer can make that claim.

Although your car may never have 1500 horsepower, it is nice to know that your parts were designed to handle it!! Good Luck!

 

I thought torque arms break at the back where it mounts to the rear end, not at the front.

 

While I can't argue with Allan on his point about the nose of the UMI arm, we've never had one break there and it allows the owner the option of the urethane bushing, or a stock rubber one if the want to minimize vibration.

In fact when stock TA's break (and they do, they break at the back near the differential, not at the nose. And there are a number of companies that build TA's like that. SLP being one, and we also sell those if you like, but find it no better than the UMI in anyway--but it costs more.

1.25" x .120 wall is pretty much the standard. UMI uses that as well (and I think everyone else does as well). BMR uses a .250" mounting plate vs. the .375" that UMI uses. Bottom line is they are more alike than different and everyone you talk to will have reasons they feel what they do is best. It's up to you to sort through the claims and decide what's reasonable.

 

True!!! But they flex everywhere. Tubular ones deflect less than sheet metal torque arms (like the stock TA). Eliminating the torque arm flex is important for improving traction.

 

Looks tubular to me.....

In fact here's a BMR arm for comparison:

And here's an SLP:

I think it's pretty obvious there isn't a lot of difference. It's a matter of who you like, who you prefer.

 

Hmmm...looks like the front mounting point is a piece of sheet metal that is welded to a tube.