[GoodTimes]

Originally Posted by La Mer

a solid bar, which is a true solid round bar of metal vs a hollow bar, which essentially is a tube. think about it.

Well i new that lol . But what are the benefit of one over the other?

[Greg]

Originally Posted by GoodTimes

Well i new that lol . But what are the benefit of one over the other?

Weight savings over torsional strength. A hollow bar is lighter, but only looses some of of its torsional strength. If you are a weight hound and can stand the loss of some roll resistance, the weight savings may be of interest to you. Most here seem less concerned with the few pound differnces in the hollow bars. Plus of you are following the "large front bar" crowd, you'll want a stronger bar like the solid WL 27-29 bar set to 29mm.

Unless you are going for an ubber light STI, I wouldn't start the roll bar decision with the relative weights. Figure out how much bar you need first then, decide between the hollow and solid bars that fit your roll resistant needs. Generally if you need lots or roll resistance, you will need a solid bar. If you are running higher spring rates, then you can go to a smaller bar. If you are tracking the car with R-Compounds, you are likely to need a big solid bar unless you are running high spring rates.

[TucsonSTi]

Here are the comparisons that Hotchkis posts on their site comparing their bars to solid bars:

Hollow VS Solid Comparison
Front Bar Rate
Hotchkis Hollow Bar = 880 lbs/in.
Solid (7/8") = 725 lbs/in.
Solid (15/16") = 955 lbs/in.

Rear Bar Rate
Hotchkis Hollow Bar = 350 lbs/in.
Solid (15/16") = 300 lbs/in.
Solid (1") = 390 lbs/in.

In comparison to stock, the Hotchkis (hollow) Front is about 50% stiffer than stock.

[TucsonSTi]

Thank you to all who posted on this thread. I am swapping to the Whiteline bar. I appreciated all of the input.

[KarlSTI]

^^You won't regret it. I love mine!