Rear sway bar good or bad on street?

[ZEKE68]

Looking for some knowledgeable input about installing a rear sway bar on our trucks. I like a vehicle that handles curves well, but will a rear bar on my short step just cause too much oversteer? I have a Helwig 1 1/8" front bar, and am installing a No Limit 1 1/8" out back. I have an iron big block which will add some under steer I believe. Let me know what you think.

[brad_man_72]

Depends on your setup, tires, ect. Read the make it handle thread in the suspension forum.

[Metaldoc]

Not that I'm a pro suspension but I have a rear sway, custom made, and it's dia. is smaller than the front sway. I have 1.125" front and 1.00" rear. It handles great.

[mike16]

rear sway bare is a good thing and Metaldoc has the right diameter combination You could go a bit smaller on the rear with a standard suspension set up.

[brad_man_72]

Diameter, arm length, and mounting point will all affect stiffness.

[HO455]

Rarely does a vehicle use the same size bar from and rear (Like AWD Subarus). I'm guessing you haven't talked to Rob at No Limit as to what bar he sells to go with his 1 1/8" rear. I would bet it is at least a 1 1/4". To large of rear bar will cause the rear axle to steer the car which usually means oversteer.
Here is a link to help understand a subject that isn't black and white.

http://www.tsimportedautomotive.com/...ateschart.html

[68 P.O.S.]

I have the 1 1/4" front bar from ECE and the 1 1/8" rear bar from CPP. It handles really well and stays flat in the turns. My truck is a long bed and has a small block. I don't know a big block will affect it tho.

[ZEKE68]

Their front bar is a 1 1/4" tubular. Yes I would have felt more comfortable with a slightly smaller rear bar. But as we know there are a lot of variables, Not easy to say how stiff the 1 1/8" solid bar is compared to a 1 1/4" hollow.

[70 CST 4X4]

Originally Posted by ZEKE68

Their front bar is a 1 1/4" tubular. Yes I would have felt more comfortable with a slightly smaller rear bar. But as we know there are a lot of variables, Not easy to say how stiff the 1 1/8" solid bar is compared to a 1 1/4" hollow.

Who's 1 1/4" sway bar is hollow?

[toolboxchev]

Hellwig makes one for our rigs also. Couple of bolt holes and its in.

[BossHogg69]

Originally Posted by Metaldoc

Not that I'm a pro suspension but I have a rear sway, custom made, and it's dia. is smaller than the front sway. I have 1.125" front and 1.00" rear. It handles great.

That's a very nice setup there!

I run sway bars front and rear on all my street vehicles. Definitely makes on ramps and round abouts more fun.

[69RDMo]

hotchhis makes one or two for the rear as well

[Stocker]

I think on most factory setups, the front bar is stiffer than the rear bar. This results in more neutral handling with a bias towards understeer, suitable for street/highway driving. Besides hollow vs solid bars, the length of the bar and the length of the arms (at the ends of the bar) can all affect the stiffness. Plus the type of metal used.

I once owned a 1971 Camaro and I unwittingly put bars at both ends that were too stiff. Unless the road was smooth as glass, ride & handling were both less than ideal. A friend had a similar car with a stock front bar and a street rear bar added. Its ride & handling in normal daily driving were very nice. If I were adding bars to anything now, I would get a matched set from the same manufacturer to help ensure they are made to work together.

[70 CST 4X4]

Who is selling a hollow sway bar for these trucks?

[ZEKE68]

No Limit Engineering http://nolimit.net/products#!/Front-...tegory=6157532

Description:
No Limit Tuned hollow tube front sway bar.
Fits stock and tublar a-arms
1-1/4" x .188 wall
Comes with bearing links and urethane mounts

[70 CST 4X4]

Originally Posted by ZEKE68

No Limit Engineering http://nolimit.net/products#!/Front-...tegory=6157532

Description:
No Limit Tuned hollow tube front sway bar.
Fits stock and tublar a-arms
1-1/4" x .188 wall
Comes with bearing links and urethane mounts

Thanks for the reply

[davepl]

I have a super-rare one-of-one 2+2 convertible that is the ONLY one made that year with the F41 rear sway bar! Supposedly John Delorean who was head of Pontiac hated them. The only way to get one in a 2+2 was to get the car from a Canadian factory and have it optioned with the required Corvette L36 427 and -then- and only then could you add F41 rear sway bar.

And in 1969 exactly one convertible was built that way, and I coincidentally happen to own it!

I've added one to my non-original 2+2 and like it. I also added a rear bar to my 1970 GMC Longhorn 2500 402. I think it rides pretty decent for a 1970 truck but it's not like I did a bunch of instrumented before and after testing...

[bw46]

Lots of variables to consider, spring rates, tires, chassis stiffness, roll centers, weight bias, etc. If cost is a consideration, I would not run one; if you can discern poor handling, add it later, but you'd have to drive it pretty darn hard to tell. If cost is not an issue, you could always install it and disconnect to test.

A little roll in the rear isn't a bad thing, it'll help it stay planted under power, too. Lots of road course stock cars don't run a rear bar. I have taken a '71 Skylark (Chevelle chassis) to the track with and without rear bar and it handled better without. I have also driven cars that handle better with a rear bar. You'll just have to drive it.

A tight car is actually a safer car. This is why pretty much all OEMs set up their cars on the tight side from the factory. This may or may not be a factor to you but it's good to know.

[Stocker]

Originally Posted by bw46

Lots of variables to consider, spring rates, tires, chassis stiffness, roll centers, weight bias, etc.

How true. There's more complexity than most of us are equipped to deal with.

A tight car is actually a safer car. This is why pretty much all OEMs set up their cars on the tight side from the factory.

I assume you're using NASCAR's definition of "tight", referring to a handling characteristic also known as understeer. And I agree, it is how most cars are designed and is much safer in real-world use.

Too much rear bar (or a rear bar with no front bar) can make the car "loose", as in oversteer. This can be twitchy and is not the best setup for most people on public roads.


Tight is when you hit the wall head-on. Loose is when you back into the wall.

[bw46]

Originally Posted by Stocker

How true. There's more complexity than most of us are equipped to deal with.


I assume you're using NASCAR's definition of "tight", referring to a handling characteristic also known as understeer. And I agree, it is how most cars are designed and is much safer in real-world use.

Too much rear bar (or a rear bar with no front bar) can make the car "loose", as in oversteer. This can be twitchy and is not the best setup for most people on public roads.


Tight is when you hit the wall head-on. Loose is when you back into the wall.

Exactly.

[sKnNyPpY]

When I installed the CPP front bar I felt handling was much improved. When I added the smaller diameter CPP rear bar on my 71 GMC longbed 2.5 spindle/1" drop spring/ flipped leafspring it was an AWESOME improvement without or with a load. I had a Durango pull past me going to work the other day and totally left him behind on a 90 degree turn because my truck stays so flat in the turns. It even feels better going over bumps and railroad tracks.

[keepinitgoin]

Zeke68, I ordered the No Limit front sway bar for my '63 C10 a few months ago. Installed it over this Thanksgiving holiday time off. What I got wasn't the hollow tube, and ship weight was 30#'s. When I called to order the hollow tube front sway bar, was told they don't make a hollow tubular sway bar for the '63 C10, it's a solid bar, and that tubular bars were only for sportier model car type vehicles. The guy was surprised when I pointed out that their website listed the '63 C10 front sway bar as a hollow tube .188 wall description. A 1.25" solid front bar is what I got from No Limit and installed it. I had held off on purchasing other more economical front solid sway bars to get Rob's lighter weight front bar. I asked if it had greaseable bushings, was told no and it should be okay, but I drilled and tapped the sway bar bushing and clamp to accept a grease zerk. It does handle nicely in the quick fast turns with 2 1/2" lowered spindles and 2" lowered front coils.