Yesterday I installed some DNA-Racing components to help stiffen up the front end of my 2015 Fiat 500 Abarth. The components were shipped directly to me from Italy in just a few days. The parts include an upper strut brace which actually attaches to the upper strut towers. This is more effective than the typical easy to install chassis brace which spans the engine compartment further forward. The downside is that it’s more time consuming to install. There is a video on the Internet showing how one person installed this DNA-Racing brace, but not everything he did was absolutely correct. Watch the video anyway because most of the tips are good.
There are two plastic components in the cowl area. Removing the upper one requires you to take off both windshield wipers. Gain access to the attaching nuts by removing two snap-off covers. Use a trim removal tool to pry up the INBOARD end of the cover. Once the single locking pin releases, the cover just lifts right out and you can see how it is held in by a tab on the OUTBOARD end. Do not pry on the outboard end, only the inboard end.
Removing the windshield wiper arms may not be easy. I could not get my smallest three-arm-puller to fit and I couldn’t find the special puller I bought many years ago to solve the removal problem on a Ferrari 360 Modena. Of course, I found the special puller when I was putting away my tools after the job was finished. So, I pried a little bit with a screwdriver while I tapped the shaft with a hammer. If you have to do this, partially reinstall the nut so you don’t ruin the end of your wiper shaft (you will surely regret doing that) and DON’T HAMMER TOO HARD. A bit of penetrating oil might help.
Once the wiper arms are off, you can remove the push-pin fasteners and four plastic nuts securing the cover. Then try lifting the forward edge and try to slid the aft edge of this plastic cover forward and down to release the clips which are hooked under the lower edge of the windshield.
Now you can remove the lower/forward cowl piece which is held in by several Philips-head screws.
The DNA strut bar kit includes a pair of brackets which attach to the left and right strut towers. There is an existing hole (which I had to enlarge a bit). By dropping a bolt through that hole, it was easy to align the bracket and mark the position of the other two holes. It helps to center punch the correct spot and start with a smaller pilot hole. Then enlarge the holes to fit the including mounting bolts.
Do NOT follow the advice on the video which suggests to install only two of the three bracket mounting bolts. This is not some sort of decorative piece. It’s designed to take significant loads, so the mounting brackets should be secured properly.
Drop the three mounting bolts through the holes in each bracket and loosely fit the brace to get a feel for how it is going to mount. Your challenge is to cut a hole in the lower plastic cowling piece to allow the bar to pass through and that will require you to remove and reinstall both the brace and plastic cowling piece several times. You want these holes to be as small as possible because this cowling component seals the engine compartment from the fresh air intake. Speaking of that now is the time to remove all the accumulated leaves in the cowling area.
Take a look at my holes, which are OK but certainly not perfect. They’re larger than absolutely necessary, but the geometry of the cowling and the bar makes guessing where the holes should be a rather tricky challenge. In fact, the holes can’t be made to fit perfectly because you need extra room for the welded fitting on each end of the strut brace. Refer to my photos and do the best you can. I used a drywall trim bit on my Dremel tool to cut the holes and then smoothed the edges with a 1.5” sanding drum chucked up in my cordless drill.
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Note that you will have to grind into the rubber seal strip a little bit. It has a metal reinforced lower edge and you will have to sand into this area SLIGHTLY. But if you do this with care, you can preserve the function of the seal.
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Once you’re satisfied with the holes, it’s time to install the bar. Offer up the bar together with the plastic cowling piece and fasten the bar to the bracket using the supplied bolts. Only then do you want to put the nuts on the three bracket mounting bolts. You’ll need to have the wheels off for this step which is a bit frustrating because there is not much room to work. The upper spring perch is in your way. Non-arthritic hands and a helper would be nice at this stage. I did it all by myself with my 76-year-old, semi-functional hands, but it required significant cursing.
I have a set of Ratcheting Flex Head Combination Wrenches that look like this:
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I’m not sure how I could hold the bracket nuts without this tool. You will have to figure out how to tighten the bracket bolts but be warned it won’t be easy to get a wrench on those nuts.
Once the brackets are torqued down, refit the lower cowling piece followed by the upper cowling plastic trim piece. Unlike the procedure shown in the Internet video showing how to do this job, you do NOT have to cut or modify the upper plastic cowling cover in any way.
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I also bought the tubular braces to replace the stamped metal vertical braces inside the wheel well. Fitting the new parts is obvious using the factory bolts.
The final component is the lower cross brace which replaces the factory stamped metal transverse component connecting something on one side to something on the other side. You’ll have to remove the two Torx screws (one on each side) holding the plastic belly pan in place and you must back off the two Torx screws (a different size on my car for some reason) in order to slide the factory cross brace out. Installing the new brace is simple using the factory bolts.
It started to rain just as I pulled out of my driveway for a test drive, but I could still detect a significant improvement in the handling. The car, which I’ve only owned for a couple of months, felt sort of “darty” when driving in a straight line and seemed to be particularly sensitive to uneven pavement. It tended to wander left and right when crossing over a crown in the road, such as you find when passing another car on a two-lane road for example. With the DNA-Racing braces it feels rock solid. Turn-in is crisper too. I’d say the mod is well worth it.
Now wash your filthy hands, take a shower, and reward yourself with a mild sedative of your choice. I medicated myself with an XL sized Rum and Tonic.
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Originally Posted by sportfan
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