How to Install a Strut Tower Brace in a Porsche 993 (and drill-out a broken strut stud!)

Installing a strut tower brace in Porsche 993 is really pretty simple, but I still managed to make it take forever.  The  brace discussed in this post is a TechArt model I bought used.  The seller shipped it with absolutely fantastic packaging -- I've received new items with less professional packing.

Read on for a few notes on the install.











Full-disclosure:  I do not have any proper instructions on how to do this install, so this may not be the best method.  It is just the one that made sense to me.

1. Loosen the angle adjustment bolts and tension lock nuts on the brace.  I actually found that I needed loosen the tension lock nuts in step 4 where I could use the studs to hold the brace in position, but if you have a second set of hands available I would recommend trying that first.
   
2. Remove the two forward nuts holding the strut in place on both sides of the car.

3. (Optional)  I placed a quick coat of Finish Kare 1000p on the metal.  Maybe this a pointless (it will wear away) or harmful (lubricant for motion), but I cringe at making metal-on-metal contact.

4. Position the strut tower brace on the studs.  Check that the bar is flush against the car's metal.  You may have to adjust the length of the brace.  I worked back-and-forth between checking for flushness and making sure there wasn't any tension on the brace (a small twist either shorter or longer should be easy).  




5. Once the brace appears flush on both sides, hand-tighten the strut tower nuts.  Again check for flushness and tension in the brace, and adjust as necessary.
6. Use a torque wrench to tighten the strut tower nuts to the proper torque spec.  Be very CAREFUL here, as it appears quite common to break one of the studs.  This happened to me, even being very careful and using a torque wrench.  The stud broke several Nm's short of the spec.  I am not sure what I could have done to prevent it.

7. Tighten the angle adjustment bolts and tension lock nuts on the brace. I do not have the torque specs for this; if anyone does pleases post in the comments.

You think you are almost done, and then this happens...despite the utmost care with the torque wrench the strut tower stud breaks off.  I tried many "wrong" ways to get the stud out, but the solution turned out to be easy (and obvious).  As a note, I have read that several people have been able to pound their's out.  I tried that for a long time, but I could not get it to budge, so I had to go with drilling.  It is absolutely critical that when you start drilling, the drill is centered on the stud.  With the other three studs holding the brace in place, you can use the brace itself as a drill guide.

Here are the remains of the stud after drilling it out.

Based on recommendations from rennlist, I chose to replace the stud with a Class 12.9 (higher tensile strength) Allen head bolt rather than replace it with a new stud.  The bolt I could install in-place, while the stud would require removing the strut and having the alignment adjusted.  Not to mention my low confidence in being able to get the stud inserted.