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Old 14-09-2003, 10:11 PM   #1
Smikey
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Sway Bars

Lads and ladies,
Any experiences or recommendations about sway bars. I've heard about the Whiteline rear sway bar, but isn't it more effective to have a front sway bar rather than the rear in a front wheel drive car :?:

Does anyone know the path to enlightenment... and the answer to this question too.
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Old 15-09-2003, 03:25 PM   #2
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Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, one of my favourite subjects.......

All the guys will be smiling about now because I rave about my rear.... swaybar that is!

One of the easiest (although Tony might disagree, damned bolts!) simplest, cost effective mods you can do to your Astina with IMMEDIATE results!

As soon as you hit the first corner you feel the difference.

I have not lowered my car nor have I got big wheels on it (tinky winky 14" alloys that are just soooooooo cute! :wink: ) but the sway bar really did the job in correcting the understeer.

As we know, our Astina's can really have issues on corners, especially if we want to put the boot in and have a bit of fun.

They tend to put the nose down and lift the back leg.... for want of a better descriptive!
The rear swaybar keeps that back end solid!

For $150 it is money well spent!!!

GO FOR IT!!!

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Old 15-09-2003, 03:54 PM   #3
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what the bouncer said!

handling-wise, adding the Whiteline rear swaybar is one of the best and easiest mods to do

greater response on turn-in, flatter cornering and slightly higher grip levels
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Old 15-09-2003, 04:19 PM   #4
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You mean aaron... My attention span isnt that great when pictures of my arse are being taken...
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Old 15-09-2003, 04:37 PM   #5
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*laughs* It was a joint effort....

Stiffen rear, make front grip (camber kit) and you'll tend towards oversteer... How? Basically what you're doing is letting th car 'lean' on the front tyres more while letting both inside and outside wheel get a fair share of grip despite roll and controlling the body roll with the rear of the car. which does tend to decrease the total grip across the back end....

If you stiffen the front end it'll tend to slide more as the grip goes away on the inside tyre much more quickly....

It's easy to explain with a toy car

FWD and RWD respond in the same way except the big change is how the grip is changed by motive power (right boot).... On RWD you can pretty much control rear grip with throttle hence stiffing front is usually quite effective....
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Old 15-09-2003, 04:38 PM   #6
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I still have that pic of you handling your sausage too!
:shock:

We should do that again real soon!

Especially as Andy has us the best location for it, we need a nice group shot along the shoreline before Aaron gets his version of a BA.......

:wink:
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Old 15-09-2003, 05:12 PM   #7
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One thing that has been puzzling me, is this a 'do at home' sort of job, or is it best left to the pros (If so, any guess at time required for them to do it?)

What size sway bars are you guys putting in (ie, 16mm?)? Any part numbers etc for the whiteline bar (I'm not sure what I can get in NZ...? so any ideas would be great!)
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Old 15-09-2003, 08:05 PM   #8
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Hey Pernod.
Its a 20mm rear swaybar. The standard is 16mm. It is a do it
yourself job as there is no adjustment needed its just a bolt on and
forget. As everybody has already advised the effect of adding a rear
swaybar is to push weight off the rear to the inside front under
cornernering increasing grip and decreasing understeer.

Regards

Mal
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Old 15-09-2003, 10:26 PM   #9
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Somewhere in the Cruises thread is the Canberra CAI day, that is the same day my swaybar got done matey.....

there was also someone else asking me the same question about the part number for the sway bar..... can't remember what thread it is in though, just go to whiteline website and punch in your car details. They will tell you the part number that way!

It's all good!!!

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Old 15-09-2003, 10:49 PM   #10
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Thanks for the info peoples, thanks Aaron for the explanation, and Kitty and Rupe for the benefits... ummm sausage? better not inquire too much about that.

I read complaints about rattling after fitting this bar?
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Old 16-09-2003, 05:11 AM   #11
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Thanks for the help guys!

My only question now is why have I been putting this off for so long for the sake of only $200??? :wink:
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Old 16-09-2003, 11:43 AM   #12
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Yes.. the part number is in the Performance Part spreadsheet that I have in the General Discussion topics.. It's one of the sticky threads..

If You can't see it send me a PM and I'll email it to you..

Cheers
AP
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Old 16-09-2003, 12:20 PM   #13
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There is no rattling coming from my rear thankyou very much!!!!!

Can't figure how if you are putting a stiffer bar on in place of an existing bar, how you can get rattles? Unless someone isn't tightening something??

Honestly, when you get underneath your car and have a look at where your existing swaybar sits, and think about when you replace it with a slightly thicker swaybar, where can it rattle?

I can't see it myself, but I could be wrong.... has been known to happen.... once I think..... :wink:
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Old 16-09-2003, 12:57 PM   #14
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No rattles, maybe squeeks if you dont use enough grease on the bushes.
You are not thinking about lowered springs and the clunks from bolts
hitting the sways/body from the drop in height are you ??

Regards

Mal
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Old 16-09-2003, 06:38 PM   #15
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Ah.. make sure you use the whole packet of grease/lube when you install it.. I had the dude put the sway bar on when it was jacked up for the lowering coils and I believe he didn't use the whole packet.. I believe it's the sway creaking at the bushes.. I need to get under there and have a look.. :shock:

AP
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Old 16-09-2003, 07:49 PM   #16
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I've heard that swaybars can make your car a bit tricky in the wet is there any truth there or is it just when you are going flat out through turns???
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Old 16-09-2003, 08:07 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joely
I've heard that swaybars can make your car a bit tricky in the wet is there any truth there or is it just when you are going flat out through turns???
Anything you do to the suspension will change the way the car handels (wet or dry), even tyre preasure. When you make a change you should tread lightly untill you're on top of it.

Rod
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Old 16-09-2003, 08:35 PM   #18
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As the Kitty learnt when hitting the famous Canberra roundabouts....

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

:shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

all good, nothing to see here, move along ......

like they say, you get used to anything and everything.... and this is no exception.

And it is a whole lotta grin factor when you realise just what you CAN do on the corners with a stiffer back end......

Giddyup!!!
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Old 17-09-2003, 02:44 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joely
I've heard that swaybars can make your car a bit tricky in the wet is there any truth there or is it just when you are going flat out through turns???
only if you increase swaybar size dramatically. uprating the standard one to the whiteline makes the car slightly twitchier and more responsive to directional changes, but too much larger would make the car more prone to swapping ends under braking, from what i understand
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Old 17-09-2003, 03:39 PM   #20
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Cars tend to underster into the corners and oversteer out. By increasing
the rear swaybar and increasing front grip you decrease the understeer
but it doesn't change the oversteer so if you are not carefull you get the
kitty syndrome of oversteering in the corner and whal-la you are facing
the people that were driving behind you.
Definetely take it carefull driving till you get used to how the modification
has changed the performance of your car. That should be a guideline for
any modification.

Regards

Mal
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