suspension techniques sway bar issue or not???

black89t

boost'en down 101
Oct 27, 2007
951
0
0
36
humboldt, ca
so i crash my supra this past january and ive been in the process of getting it back to its previous glory. i hit a sign and the front passenger side wheel got creamed backwards. bent the upper and lower control arm, upper and lower balljoints, subframe, holes where balljoints go into the knuckle, and thats just the suspension parts :aigo:

anyway i got all that replaced and when i went to bolt up my sway bar the holes didnt line up perfect with the endlinks.... so i measured the ends of the sway bar to the chassie by the shock towers sorta and there was a slight difference. i figure well it musta got bent too cause the side that was lower was the side that got hit so i assumed the wheel being dragged back bent the bar. so i bought a new set of st sway bars. and guess what........the new one is off almost exactly the same amount as my old one!?! so now im thinking i bought the dam set for no reason!!! cause my rear one was fine and i bought the whole set cause it wasn't much more than just the front. heres some pics to get and idea of what im talking about. pretty annoyed. when i put them on before i just threw them on and didn't really think about it much. i have a stock one from my parts car and its when its layed on the ground both ends rest on the ground even. i guess its just how the st bar is are made. to me it seems it should be perfectly even. since thats whole point of the thing is to keep the left and right side even when turning...so my question is has anybody else noticed this before? am i being crazy and to picky to think this is a issue?? basically what would you do?




 

black89t

boost'en down 101
Oct 27, 2007
951
0
0
36
humboldt, ca
my issue is why dont both ends sit flat? i thought i explained it pretty well. i don't see how you dont see the issue lol

the stock toyota bar sits flat and both ends are perfectly even to the ground/chassie when bolted to the car. the st bars arent. they are off the amount you can see between the floor and bar end...
 

Silver MK3

New Member
Jan 24, 2011
1,517
1
0
Madison, AL
I'm kinda confused too. Are you saying that both the bars are shaped the same with the same gap from the floor on the one side, but when you put the ST bar on it does not line up?
 

hvyman

Dang Dude! No Way Man.
Staff member
Apr 17, 2007
12,568
1
0
Fullerton,CA
Bars are not designed so they sit flat on the ground.

Also that why you get adjustable end links. So you can adjust an aftermarket sway bar.

Sway bars are either hollow or solid and are made and tested and designed in different diameters to provide better roll stability through corners. Not so they sit flat on the ground.
 

black89t

boost'en down 101
Oct 27, 2007
951
0
0
36
humboldt, ca
yeah well if you guys don't see how thats an issue then oh well haha. i think its just sorta bs that they aren't made perfectly even where as the toyota one they should base it off is.............................................looks like somebody can pick up a set of sway bars for cheap then cause the front one didn't get bent like that from the cash. theyre just made like that. and yes i can force the stock end link on there but you shouldnt have to.........i was the mechanic at the biggest body shop in town and did all the suspension work and alignments and know how to determine if parts are bent or off pretty good. and these bars are off a slight amount. no two ways about it. their jig must be off a little or something. at least i can make some money off the front one i thought was garbage though :biglaugh:
 
Last edited:

hvyman

Dang Dude! No Way Man.
Staff member
Apr 17, 2007
12,568
1
0
Fullerton,CA
its preload if you have to pull it down to get it on.

On mercedes you have to use a jack to get the endlink on.

the st sway bar was designed to be stiffer no sit flat to the ground or be just as easy to go on.
 

Jeff Lange

Administrator
Staff member
Mar 29, 2005
4,919
5
38
38
Sunnyvale, CA
jefflange.ca
It seems that it is as it is designed to be, there is nothing wrong with it.

This is an upgraded bar, of course it is different than the factory one. If it was the same as the factory one, you might as well just buy the factory one, lol.

Jeff
 

black89t

boost'en down 101
Oct 27, 2007
951
0
0
36
humboldt, ca
thanks for clearing that up. helps when you have a explanation behind your reasoning instead of saying oh its fine. i guess all the stock ones ive messed with that have preload its so light it had been unnoticeable too me when installing them. anyway cool gonna sell my old set and have the nice new set on my soop :naughty: