If you’ve wondered where I’ve been for the last 6 months, the short answer is: life happened. My friend group and I hit that chapter where “growing up” forces a brutal reprioritization. We’ve scattered geographically, adjusted to shifting incomes, and swallowed some hard pills. For me, welcoming my daughter into the world three and a half years ago changed everything. It slowed down the car life in a way I didn’t see coming, and honestly, the same thing is happening to my buddies too. Track days, garage installs, and detailed blog documentation have completely ground to a halt. The passion is still 100% there, but time isn’t, forcing this space onto the back burner. Long gone are the days of monthly, in-depth install guides… heck, these days, I’m lucky if I can get one out a year. So when a miracle happened and the stars aligned just enough for Pat and I to get together and install some parts on his car, I knew I had to take it.
In July, Pat hit me up to let me know he had ordered some parts and wondered if I’d like to blog the install. Of course, my first instinct was “hell yeah.” But then the responsible adult voice popped into my head: What about the work schedule? The home schedule? Everything in between? I replied with a cautious, “Sure, I might be able to make that work,” secretly knowing it probably wouldn’t. Our conversation ended there. Then, a few weeks later, Pat reached back out to say the parts had arrived and asked if I was still down. I told him I actually had some PTO planned for the last week of August. My company caps our PTO accumulation, a use-it-or-lose-it type situation. By total fluke, Pat was also taking some time off at the end of August, meaning we could both finally carve out a window to make this happen. Pat has three kids of his own, so squeezing in garage time has been reduced to a mere once-a-month luxury for him, too. As you’ll see in the pictures, he has a Porsche 911 that he loves to tinker with, with the long-term goal of making it more track-focused. For now, he’s got a lot of the car in pieces and is just taking it slow…one day a month at a time.
August 29th was the date we set. Pat had swimming lessons to attend with the kids that morning, so we weren’t able to kick things off until noon. No worries there, I’m well aware of how those extracurricular activities burrow into any potential free time you try to carve out for yourself. As if it weren’t obvious by now, the project of the day was installing front knuckle braces on his S2000. I arrived at Pat’s house right at midday, and we jumped straight into it. Unfortunately, it was a classic, scorching afternoon in Las Vegas with some typical august monsoon humidity, and Pat’s garage wasn’t exactly well-insulated (if you catch my drift). But no worries, I’ve lived in Vegas for nearly 25 years, and as any local will tell you, life doesn’t stop just because it’s hot out. You can’t just hibernate all summer; the builds must go on.
If you’re scratching your head and thinking, “WTF is a front knuckle brace?”, you aren’t alone. A front knuckle brace is more of a peace-of-mind modification rather than anything else, and that’s exactly what makes it so uncommon. To be honest, most S2000 owners are not going to be pushing their cars hard enough to ever truly need this.
But Pat isn’t “most” S2000 owners. Pat’s S2000 looks somewhat restrained and vanilla simply because it doesn’t have big aero, crazy vents, or brightly colored aftermarket parts. No, Pat’s S2000 is what a real enthusiast would drive. You know the kind: the ones who don’t spend time on social media, the ones who think TikTok is just the sound an analog clock makes, and the ones who couldn’t care less about what clout-chasing trends are popular right now.
Instead, Pat has a very simple recipe: take the best sports car chassis ever made (there might be a slight bias there) and stick some quality parts on it. This includes MCS coilovers, 17×10 wheels, a StopTech big brake kit, sphericals all around, roll bar, and a decent set of 255 tires. Internally, the engine is a stock F20C with a mild tune, a custom-made intake, Urge Designs header, and a Renegade Motorsports exhaust. Honestly, the flashiest modifications he has are the EVS mirrors, and that’s really only because they look fucking sick.
So, from what I gather, there is currently only one company that makes these: FDF Race Shop, a Canadian-based company. However, ASM Motorsports is a US-based distributor of these as well, offering them in a proprietary grey color. The green ones that Pat has are direct from FDF Race Shop. Through FDF, you can opt for a custom color, but it’s 200 bucks more. For something you’ll rarely see, unless you’re a baller, getting either the green or grey color should be just fine.
Below are some images of exactly why you might want to install these: the knuckle actually breaks. (I snagged these pictures from S2KI and the Trackspec Motorsports blog).
The two bolt holes where the ball joints attach begin to develop stress cracks or fracture, and they eventually shear completely off. I’m sure this failure point was never a concern during the initial engineering and development stages of the S2000. Back then, Honda’s engineers could have had no idea how much tire technology would evolve over the coming decades, allowing enthusiasts to achieve levels of grip out of a modern street tire that were once thought possible only with a full racing slick. Another catalyst for this failure is the added leverage put on the knuckle by aftermarket ball joints/spacers, which are often used to increase negative camber and provide roll-center correction.
So, here we are. I arrive and Pat’s got his car jacked up and ready to go. You’ll only need to jack up the front of the car, because you’ll only be removing the front two wheels.
With the wheel removed, you’ll now begin to disassemble everything attached to the front knuckle to allow for its complete removal.
Start by unbolting your brake caliper. You don’t have to disconnect the brake line; simply hang the caliper out of the way. Pat uses some super tiny bungee cords, while I use either bailing wire or zip ties. Either way, they all do the job just the same.
You’ll need to unbolt the ABS/wheel speed sensor and the wiring for it as well, since it is also secured to the knuckle.
The caliper is now off, and it is time to remove the front rotor. Pro tip: an impact screwdriver will make light work of the stubborn Phillips head screws that are prone to stripping out.
Now, the rotor slides right off.
And now we are going in for the disconnection of the lower ball joint, upper ball joint, and tie rod.
Pull out the cotter pins to allow for the removal of the castle nuts securing each one.
Pat takes a less caveman approach than most: he uses an actual ball joint separator tool. I, myself, am more of a BFH kinda guy. But, to each his own.
These can be a bit tricky because you don’t want to rip or tear the ball joint boot, but with some precision, you can avoid doing just that.
Now you can see the knuckle is out. We popped off the upper ball joint and tie rod using his sophisticated tool, and then simply unbolted the two bolts on the lower ball joint.
Here is what the knuckle looks like completely removed and sitting on the bench.
Here are the FDF knuckle braces.
Again, as mentioned above, the braces are designed to increase the overall strength of the two lower ball joint threaded holes on the knuckle. (highlighted below)
The brace also utilizes two additional threadless holes on the knuckle as well, as you can see below. But because they are threadless, as part of the installation process, you will need to tap them yourself. It is actually a very easy process, as you’ll see a few steps below.
One:
Two:
Here is a rough idea of where the brace sits and how it’s positioned.
Inspect Your Knuckles First: Before fully installing the brace, inspect your existing knuckles for cracks. A brace will not fix a cracked knuckle; it will only mask the symptom. If your knuckles are cracked, replace them before bracing.
As I mentioned, you will need to tap the two holes to M12 x 1.25. You will need to buy a tap, as one is not included; however, all the other hardware is included.
Smear some oil in the holes that you’ll be tapping. I’m sure there is a specific type of oil that you should be using; however, Pat opted for some Valvoline VR1 that he had laying around, which did the trick just fine.
Now, with our two holes that need to be tapped (threaded) all oiled up, we can begin the tapping process.
It’s crucial to get the tap started perfectly straight and level so that the bolts apply even tension to the brace as they are tightened. The more formal term for this is coaxial alignment, which means ensuring the centerline axis of the tap and the centerline axis of the pre-drilled hole share the exact same line in space. If they are out of line, it is known as axial misalignment.
Once you get it started, make a few full rotations and then spin it back a half-turn to break and clear the metal chips. This prevents metal debris from the new threads from getting trapped in the holes, which can jam the tap and cause it to snap. This may not be as prevalent on a larger tap like this one, but you’ll thank me later if you’re tapping smaller holes. It’s just generally good practice to follow anytime you’re tapping something.
With the holes now tapped and ready to receive the bolts.
You can lay the brace on to test fit, ensuring it all lines up. We did have to remove some of the powder coat from the inside of the holes on the brace just because the tolerances were extremely tight, and we didn’t want to risk stripping out the threads on either the holes we just tapped or the lower ball joint holes. It’s super important to hand-thread in all of the bolts for at least three full rotations, the two lower ball joint ones, the two new ones you just tapped, and the tie rod one, just so you can ensure there is no binding and you won’t run the risk of stripping out any threads.
It’s worth mentioning that depending on how hard of a life your S2000 has had, the knuckle may already be slightly bent/distorted, which could prevent the brace from lining up perfectly. It’s safe to say that this isn’t a common issue; however, it’s still a possibility. Thankfully, Pat’s knuckles weren’t bent at all and aligned perfectly. Given the absolute mountain of track abuse his car has seen over the years, it’s safe to say you shouldn’t have a problem installing yours either.
Because the brace acts as a spacer for the ball joint as a byproduct of its structural design, Pat opted to go back to OEM ball joints. No dis to EVS, but there really isn’t a replacement for OEM-quality ball joints. Pat himself has actually had an EVS ball joint prematurely develop slop.
The benefit to the EVS unit, however, is that it helps increase negative camber more easily, allowing you to achieve a more aggressive, track-spec negative alignment setting. That said, it is worth mentioning that if he is unable to achieve the desired negative camber numbers he prefers, he might end up reinstalling the EVS joints and just procuring longer bolts to compensate for the additional thickness of the EVS ball joint combined with the thickness of the brace.
This kit is cool too because it features fully adjustable bump steer using washers and shims. The kit comes with different thickness shims to help dial in your bump steer preference. Additionally, it eliminates the outer tie rod ball stud in favor of a motorsport-grade spherical bearing design.
But here is the real kicker: this setup converts the entire connection to a double-sheared design. Most factory tie rods are single-shear, meaning they rely on a single bolt hanging out of one hole, leaving it highly vulnerable to bending and flexing under hard cornering. By switching to double-shear, the spherical bearing is now securely sandwiched between two heavy-duty parallel plates. This drastically multiplies the strength of the joint, completely wiping out flex or slop, putting an end to unwanted toe changes under heavy load, and delivering crisp, unfiltered steering feel and feedback straight to the driver’s hands.
Don’t forget to mark all your bolts! Marking your bolts with a paint pen, known as torque or witness striping, provides an instant visual warning if a critical fastener has loosened due to vehicle vibration. By drawing a single line across the bolt head and the mounting surface, any movement breaks the paint line, allowing you to inspect your entire suspension or steering system in seconds without a wrench. This simple step serves as a foolproof checklist during assembly, proving a bolt was fully torqued while completely eliminating the risk of over-stretching threads through repeated physical re-checking.
This image marks the line where labor turns into craft. It’s a testament to focus and the delicate balance between skilled hands and perfection. In a world that shortcuts the process, this shot proves that integrity and human effort still matter most.
Honestly, these EVS mirrors look so incredibly sick that they genuinely make me want to make a highly questionable financial decision, buy an entire S2000, and build a whole car around them just as an excuse to look at them every day.
I am always captivated by the honest simplicity of his engine bay. It is the physical manifestation of the functiontheory ethos: only what is necessary, and nothing more. Here, engineering strips away the noise, proving that true reliability lives in the absence of complexity.
His cockpit resembles the same consistency of simplicity. Just a seat, a steering wheel, and a shifter, no additional fuss that would potentially distract from your one job while sitting in there, which is driving and focusing on the track.
Surprisingly, there isn’t much mess or complexity to the installation process. It’s honestly kind of like doing a really thorough brake job.
A retro mechanic living in the modern age.
Everything all properly torqued, marked, and ready to bolt back onto the car.
As shown in the picture above and below, as above, so below, the two small holes drilled into the brace are for the brake line bracket needed to secure the brake line. Hardware is included. You’ll also see the matching holes on the knuckle where it was previously bolted to; this is why it can no longer be installed there, as the brace is now blocking them.
To begin reinstallation onto the car, start by just sitting the lower ball joint into the lower control arm.
If it wasn’t obvious, you’re going to need to get an alignment right after the install. This is simply because you are not only replacing the old outer tie rod, but you are also altering its vertical height. Changing the outer tie rod pivot location alters its arc of travel relative to the control arms, which directly disrupts the geometry and throws your toe alignment completely out of spec.
Next, you can now attach the upper ball joint.
Ensure you’ve gotten the brake line, ABS/wheel speed sensor, and wires all reattached and bolted in.
And lastly we are tightening the tie rod end.
Now the rotor can go back on.
Then the caliper.
Again, here is everything completely reinstalled. Yes, the brake shield is incredibly close, but that’s just due to the thicker aftermarket rotor you get with the StopTech kit. It may look like it’s rubbing in the pictures, but it’s not.
And lastly, don’t forget the 2mm spacer that allows for caliper-to-wheel clearance.
And bing, bang, boom… just like that, it’s all reassembled. My favorite part of this whole install was that the entire time, Pat had only one jack supporting the front of the car. No jack stands, no safety, not a care in the world. (Go ahead and scroll through all the pictures again to see for yourself).
From time to time, when he was really pulling on the ratchet to break a bolt loose, you could see the car begin to sway. Neither one of us said anything, but I’m sure we were both thinking it. Pat and I bring a combined 50 years of working on cars to the table, and in no way am I condoning what we did, nor am I saying that you don’t need jack stands, because you absolutely do. I use them every single time.
To be completely fair, neither of us ever actually went under the car. Even if it were to fall, it wouldn’t have been a physical risk to us. I for sure would have spoken up if he was genuinely trying to crawl underneath it. But it’s just somewhat refreshing to work in the garage with someone who truly knows what they are doing, can assess the risk, and make his own calls without second-guessing himself. And let’s be honest, if I were truly concerned, I would have definitely mentioned it to him. I was making a judgment call of my own, reasoning: what’s the worst that could happen? The car falls 12 inches to the ground? I mean, I don’t care, it’s not my car getting damaged, and I also know there really wouldn’t be much damage anyway. Truthfully, I think the real reason he didn’t use jack stands is because the Porsche was hoarding them all, and I think he just likes the Porsche a lot more than a regular Honda.
With the car back on the ground, it was ready to be aligned. It honestly ended up with a ton of toe-out on both sides. Pat is most likely going to have to jack it back up and adjust the tie rods to bring the toe in a bit just so he can safely drive the car to the alignment shop. However, by this time, we were completely exhausted from the brutal heat and had other priorities to attend to, so jacking it back up and adjusting the toe will just have to wait for another day.
If you ever want to see what a complete refusal to enter the 21st century looks like, look no further than Pat’s garage, where his personal trifecta resides: an air-cooled Porsche 911, a SOHC EF Honda, and his S2000. Pat is truly an analog-over-digital guy, and this lineup is living proof. In a world obsessed with dual-clutch gearboxes, ABS, stability control, torque-vector braking, and touchscreen dashboards, this space is a sacred reminder that the best connection to the road is still a mechanical one. No electronic nannies, no driving modes… Just raw, visceral inputs, listening to what the car is telling you, and cars that require you to actually know what the hell you’re doing behind the wheel. These cars truly require a “driver mod” rather than the cars of today, which replace genuine skill with excessive power, electronic nannies, and advanced aero technology that just wasn’t democratized back then.
Which really begs the question: as modern cars continue to get “better” on paper, are they actually getting worse? By unapologetically living in the past, is Pat the only one who’s truly living in the future?
The front knuckle brace, after all, isn’t really necessary for most people, as I mentioned in the beginning. Don’t kid yourself into thinking you absolutely need this. However, it’s not a terribly pricey modification, coming in at around 500 bucks shipped (though, with them being a Canadian company, who knows what the new tariffs will do to that price in the future). Let’s be real: this mod isn’t for the clout chasers, and I bet this post won’t get a fraction of the views that a flashy wing or a JDM exhaust would get simply because there isn’t much hype around a part that does really nothing except increase peace of mind. But if you’re chasing tenths, hopping curbs, pulling immense amounts of lateral g-forces from a really grippy tire, or running big aero, this is absolutely something you should look into. It’s one of those hidden, deep-cut parts where a real track enthusiast walks up, sees it just hiding behind the brake disc maybe only noticing the double-sheared spherical tie rod end, and says in a total Napoleon Dynamite voice: “Dang, he’s got those installed… you know he’s pretty serious.” Pat is at the point where he feels the knuckle is his next weak link. He already installed Origin Fab upper control arm gussets years ago, but on his current setup, he feels like he’s living on borrowed time.
All in all, the install is very easy and can be done in a few hours depending on how good you are at tearing down an S2000’s front suspension. It’s very straightforward and really leaves nothing to guess or question. Even though I mentioned not to fool yourself into thinking you absolutely need this, it would be totally okay with me, and probably many others, if you bought and installed it anyway. There is zero flashiness to it, making it the ultimate hater-free modification; all it really does is give you total peace of mind and pure confidence when you’re flying into Turn 1 at 100 miles an hour, right before jumping the curb at the apex.
As always, thank you all for taking the time to read my posts. I hope they give you the information and undistilled truth about motorsports that is currently so absent in the community. I don’t want to say that I’m officially back and that I’ll be pumping out blogs more frequently, but just know that I truly enjoyed this whole process. It really reminded me of why I started the blog in the first place. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me via email at Billy@functiontheory.com, Instagram @Functiontheory, or simply comment on the post and I’ll get back to you.