Rep Power: 0

I've seen some images of the engine compartment of the Si - G and some cars have bar running parallel to the front of the car, running over the intake manifold, like the one in the photo......... what is this bar for, and why don't all of the Civic 's have one?

 
Rep Power: 204

It's so you can impress all your friends with a shiny bar in your engine compartment.





Really, it's just a stiffener bar for between the strut towers. Like a sway bar but really just some useless 'bling'.

 
Rep Power: 0

It is a stiffening bar for the suspension top, It helps "box" the top of the chassis and gives support to the tops of the shock towers. They would work better if they triangulated to the fire wall. They help a little, but only after the rest of the suspension has been modified.

It is not, even a little bit, like a sway bar in any way. Sway bars add "roll" stiffness to the suspension.

 
Rep Power: 367

it provides more for mcpherson suspension. 6th gen is double wishbone, will improve maybe steerign feel. some improvements due to upper arm being so high, but not much, actually.