Stilo How to fit a front upper strut brace!

Tools you will need.

1. 3mm drill
2. 4.5mm drill
3. 5.5mm drill
4. Small tube of copper grease
5. 1 large cable tie (selespeed models only)
6. Small open 10mm spanner
7. 10mm socket, ratchet & extension bar
8. Marker pen
9. 17mm spanner
10. 24mm spanner
11. Hobby/hack saw (selespeed models only)

Please note: When drilling the suspension turrets, if you've got some wear protective goggles, don't push too hard on the drill as the suspension turrets are very thick metal & you may damage your drill or possibly snap your drill bits.

Using the socket & spanner undo the nuts holding the selespeed resevoir to the suspension turret. Lift the resevoir & move it out of the way allowing clearance to the suspension turret, please note if you have a manual stilo this process is unnecessary as you won't have a selespeed resevoir. Place the strut brace & adjust it's length to the required position so it lays flat on both turrets. With the marker pen mark out where the holes on the brace should line up.

Fit the 3mm drill bit to your drill & drill a pilot hole in each of the marked out areas. Then fit the 4.5mm bit & open each hole out & repeat the process with the 5.5mm bit on both suspension turrets.

Apply copious amounts of copper grease to the self tapping bolts which should come with the strut brace. Put the bolt into the holes & very gently do them up, constantly winding back & forth so that they tap the holes out correctly. Take your time because if you snap the bolts they will be a bugger to get out!

Once you have tapped the holes out with the bolts, fit the brace in place. Again apply copious amounts of copper grease as this will help with anticorrosion & also help the bolts do up. Do the bolts up, probably best to do them up a little at a time one at a time. With a 24mm spanner undo the adjusting nuts on the strut brace & with the 17mm spanner adjust the centre nut so that it pulls the ends of the brace inwards. Do the 24mm nuts up & it will be locked in place.

Once you have fitted the brace & tightened all the fixings put all the wiring bits that are mounted to the turrets back on their fixing points & replace the battery cover. & that's it!
Unfortunately not for us selespeed abarth owners though! If you have this model then you have a little more work involved! Take the battery cover & flip it over, you will see underneath it has a wall going round the back of it, with a hack/hobby saw cut this off (yes you have to hack it off! ) Align the selespeed resevoir up to the brace in a position it used to go. Push it down onto the bottom mounting point & with the 10mm spanner do the nut up. Pull it forward & with the large cable tie, feed it through the rear mount & around the strut brace. replace the battery cover, you will only be able to use the front 2 bolts because of the new slightly raised position of the cover, don't worry it won't move & that's it.