Make your front sway bar adjustable.
Kudos for doing such a difficult mod by hand.
I can suggest to use a smaller drill bit first, that will make the larger drill go through easier, and keep it from drifting off center.
I can suggest to use a smaller drill bit first, that will make the larger drill go through easier, and keep it from drifting off center.
This looks like a good mod. I want to do the front and put my adjustable 25mm rear Progress bar back on. Goals:
1. Keep the balance I have right now with my Ohlins.
2. Increase overall roll resistance without making the rear loose.
3. Maintain my fairly comfortable ride: ie, no stiffer coilover springs.
4. We still need to dial out a little understeer. I'm thinking the combo of the front bar mod and one of the three adjustments in the rear bar will give us ultimate front grip, minimal understeer, and more roll resistance....
Your thoughts?
1. Keep the balance I have right now with my Ohlins.
2. Increase overall roll resistance without making the rear loose.
3. Maintain my fairly comfortable ride: ie, no stiffer coilover springs.
4. We still need to dial out a little understeer. I'm thinking the combo of the front bar mod and one of the three adjustments in the rear bar will give us ultimate front grip, minimal understeer, and more roll resistance....
Your thoughts?
So this mod should make the front end stick better or push?? Its seems like it would make the front push more but not like i have any clue the rear comes out a little easier when i put i on full stiff (RRE Bar). Any more input would nice..
So this mod should make the front end stick better or push?? Its seems like it would make the front push more but not like i have any clue the rear comes out a little easier when i put i on full stiff (RRE Bar). Any more input would nice..
Bump.
Hmmm. Buy the Whiteline front sway bar for $195 and spend a crap load of effort installing it. Or, drill two holes in the stocker and possibly have the same benifits....
Hmmm. Buy the Whiteline front sway bar for $195 and spend a crap load of effort installing it. Or, drill two holes in the stocker and possibly have the same benifits....
Did the mod today and thanks to the warnings of those who did it before, my experience was completely trouble free.
I used a $50 dollar Bosch electric drill, some lubricating/cutting wax, and a single good bit and did both sides in less than 25 minutes.
Car is not together yet so I can't comment on how it works, but will let you all know as soon as I can.
I used a $50 dollar Bosch electric drill, some lubricating/cutting wax, and a single good bit and did both sides in less than 25 minutes.
Car is not together yet so I can't comment on how it works, but will let you all know as soon as I can.
Jack up the car and remove the wheels, place jack stands under the lower control arms.
Remove the tie rod end from the spindle. Undo the end links. Using a 27/64”drill bit I drilled center-to-center ¾”. The sway bar mounting tabs are an inch thick. You will need to mark ½” down to center. Place a two by four under the sway bar. Drill…drill and drill. This may take some time. The sway bar is made out of hard spring steel. When the hole is done you can put it all together.
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
Remove the tie rod end from the spindle. Undo the end links. Using a 27/64”drill bit I drilled center-to-center ¾”. The sway bar mounting tabs are an inch thick. You will need to mark ½” down to center. Place a two by four under the sway bar. Drill…drill and drill. This may take some time. The sway bar is made out of hard spring steel. When the hole is done you can put it all together.
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...MXk1NDE%3D.jpg
I did the mod this last weekend to the front bar. I barely noticed a difference at the autocross, but time will tell if I liked the modification.
Do yourself a favor and get the right drill bit. I got a Heavy Duty Cobalt screw machine 25/64" from McMaster Carr. Their part number is 28765 A34. Cost me $7.25. I tried 2 High speed steel bits before that, and they just went dull. Even with the good bit from McMaster, It took about 20mins per side with a good Dewalt drill. I even used machinist's tapping oil to keep everything lubed. The trick is low speed drill application with very high pressure. Get ready to flex some muscle.
Also, I noticed something very unusual. The driver's side flange on the swaybar was a different length than the passenger's side. The passenger's side flange must have been at least 1/2" longer. It appears that the flange is just swaged (forged), so I can understand some variance, but as you can see from the pictures, it was hard to fit a second hole in on the driver's side. Anyone else ever see this?
Do yourself a favor and get the right drill bit. I got a Heavy Duty Cobalt screw machine 25/64" from McMaster Carr. Their part number is 28765 A34. Cost me $7.25. I tried 2 High speed steel bits before that, and they just went dull. Even with the good bit from McMaster, It took about 20mins per side with a good Dewalt drill. I even used machinist's tapping oil to keep everything lubed. The trick is low speed drill application with very high pressure. Get ready to flex some muscle.
Also, I noticed something very unusual. The driver's side flange on the swaybar was a different length than the passenger's side. The passenger's side flange must have been at least 1/2" longer. It appears that the flange is just swaged (forged), so I can understand some variance, but as you can see from the pictures, it was hard to fit a second hole in on the driver's side. Anyone else ever see this?
The pictures in post #11 look like the swaybar ends are not very close if not touching the front wheel drive spindles?
Is there a limit to how close to the round section of the bar you can drill because of this? I was thinking of drilling further away from the first hole but I want to make sure this wont make any interference issues with other parts.
I just drilled both the front and rear stock sways today. Took most of the day.
I drilled the hole for the front sway such that I did not have to modify the bar to reconnect the end link. For the rear, I went a little further and with the handy dremel I modified the bar to make the end link bolt up correctly. I was way too dirty to snap any pictures, I am sure that I will have the wheels off some time soon enough and can take some pictures. I only had time to go for a quick spin around the block afterward to make sure there were not any abnormal noises or anything. I will be at the auto-x on 3 Aug so I will see how things go there.
I drilled the hole for the front sway such that I did not have to modify the bar to reconnect the end link. For the rear, I went a little further and with the handy dremel I modified the bar to make the end link bolt up correctly. I was way too dirty to snap any pictures, I am sure that I will have the wheels off some time soon enough and can take some pictures. I only had time to go for a quick spin around the block afterward to make sure there were not any abnormal noises or anything. I will be at the auto-x on 3 Aug so I will see how things go there.
Last edited by jebjkey; Jul 28, 2008 at 12:50 AM.
