Steeda Front Sway Bar! It is awesome. Transforms the car into what it should be.

[Supertayt]

I have had both bars on a week now, so it is time to fully share my impressions.

Since so many are interested in how it impacts bounce, it changes it but does not tame it. I was hoping the fact the Steeda bars move smoothly in the bushings would help with bounce, but after a week of driving, I can say they do not. However, the bounce is different, and much more controlled.

Before I put the bars on, I had two big complaints regarding the suspension. 1) side to side stability, and 2) bounce. I was more annoyed by the stability, so thankfully, that is no longer an issue. When I hit a bump, there is very minimal waffling around, and much more of a direct bounce. It feels very good. If feels predictable, while before it felt out of control.

Here is a diagram that helps explain what I am feeling:

Motion B is the straight up and down bounce. This is due to poor damping in the shocks, and it is exactly the same after changing the bars. Unfortunately.

Motion A is the side to side "rocking" or "swaying" that I feel when going over uneven surfaces. I think one of the reasons A is bad is because of poor damping in the shocks. However, the Steeda sway bars make the side to side motion much more stiff, and that motion is practically eliminated.

I think this explains why the ride feels smoother. Mark commented he thought it felt smoother, and I agree. I think it is because when traveling over uneven surfaces, the car is more flat and has less side to side movement, which makes it feel smoother.

There is a patch of very rough pavement just before an overpass on I64 north of Williamsburg that I hate going over when my wife is in the car. Now it rumbles over it much more smoothly. The change is dramatic at that part of the road.

If the surface is even but with a bump, the car still shoots up like it did before. Speed bumps feel the same if you hit them evenly. If you hit them at an angle, the car feels a lot better than before. In fact, hitting them at an angle is the way I will hit them when trying to reduce bounce.

The big test, and the main reason I was waiting to post this review, is an overpass I take when coming home from DC. It is the connector between I295 and I64 going south towards Virginia Beach / Norfolk from Richmond. The ramp has a 45 mph speed limit, but I like to take it fast. I used to do the curve at around 80 mph in my E320, which was a lot of fun. I tried that in my MME, and it wallowed and rocked so much I had to back off on the speed. Here is the ramp:

Starting about where the blue circle is, and ending about where the orange circle is, the road is smooth but has a few gentle dips. That causes the car to move around a bit when hitting the curve fast. Now, NOW it feels awesome.

When coming home this week I was so looking forward to hitting that curve at 80 mph. As I approached it, there was a lot of traffic around me. Luckily I was able to get past the trucks and cars and I hit that curve exactly like I wanted. Man, I could not ask for it to handle that curve any better.

Keep in mind I have my front tire pressure at 32 psi cold, and rear at 40 cold. While I could make the front bars less stiff and bump up the tire pressure, it will reduce the super stable ride I have now, and bring back some of the wallowing. I can't handle that. So 32 it will be.

These bars change the car. I don't know why Ford didn't put stiffer bars on the MME to begin with. I cannot see any downside. The only reason I can think is they were worried about understeer at the recommended tire pressure, but still. This is the way the MME should handle. The transformation is freaking amazing. At least to me.

Please note that I am so happy because I was so annoyed by the side to side wallowing over uneven surfaces. If this doesn't bother you like it bothered me, you might not be as impressed. The change is definitely subjective.

I told my wife how happy I was with the change and she gave me the half smirk. I don't think she can tell the difference unless I gave her a before and after comparison ride, and pointed out why it is better. But for me, it is amazing. I love it.

Booooyyyyy do I know that Ramp. I live in Norfolk and take 64 frequently. That ramp is a white knuckler in my Jeep. Not much more fun in the MME I would like to add.

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[mkhuffman]

Booooyyyyy do I know that Ramp. I live in Norfolk and take 64 frequently. That ramp is a white knuckler in my Jeep. Not much more fun in the MME I would like to add.

Put these sway bars on, and then - instant fun on that ramp!

 

[Mach-Lee]

I have had both bars on a week now, so it is time to fully share my impressions.

Since so many are interested in how it impacts bounce, it changes it but does not tame it. I was hoping the fact the Steeda bars move smoothly in the bushings would help with bounce, but after a week of driving, I can say they do not. However, the bounce is different, and much more controlled.

Before I put the bars on, I had two big complaints regarding the suspension. 1) side to side stability, and 2) bounce. I was more annoyed by the stability, so thankfully, that is no longer an issue. When I hit a bump, there is very minimal waffling around, and much more of a direct bounce. It feels very good. If feels predictable, while before it felt out of control.

Here is a diagram that helps explain what I am feeling:

Motion B is the straight up and down bounce. This is due to poor damping in the shocks, and it is exactly the same after changing the bars. Unfortunately.

Motion A is the side to side "rocking" or "swaying" that I feel when going over uneven surfaces. I think one of the reasons A is bad is because of poor damping in the shocks. However, the Steeda sway bars make the side to side motion much more stiff, and that motion is practically eliminated.

I think this explains why the ride feels smoother. Mark commented he thought it felt smoother, and I agree. I think it is because when traveling over uneven surfaces, the car is more flat and has less side to side movement, which makes it feel smoother.

There is a patch of very rough pavement just before an overpass on I64 north of Williamsburg that I hate going over when my wife is in the car. Now it rumbles over it much more smoothly. The change is dramatic at that part of the road.

If the surface is even but with a bump, the car still shoots up like it did before. Speed bumps feel the same if you hit them evenly. If you hit them at an angle, the car feels a lot better than before. In fact, hitting them at an angle is the way I will hit them when trying to reduce bounce.

The big test, and the main reason I was waiting to post this review, is an overpass I take when coming home from DC. It is the connector between I295 and I64 going south towards Virginia Beach / Norfolk from Richmond. The ramp has a 45 mph speed limit, but I like to take it fast. I used to do the curve at around 80 mph in my E320, which was a lot of fun. I tried that in my MME, and it wallowed and rocked so much I had to back off on the speed. Here is the ramp:

Starting about where the blue circle is, and ending about where the orange circle is, the road is smooth but has a few gentle dips. That causes the car to move around a bit when hitting the curve fast. Now, NOW it feels awesome.

When coming home this week I was so looking forward to hitting that curve at 80 mph. As I approached it, there was a lot of traffic around me. Luckily I was able to get past the trucks and cars and I hit that curve exactly like I wanted. Man, I could not ask for it to handle that curve any better.

Keep in mind I have my front tire pressure at 32 psi cold, and rear at 40 cold. While I could make the front bars less stiff and bump up the tire pressure, it will reduce the super stable ride I have now, and bring back some of the wallowing. I can't handle that. So 32 it will be.

These bars change the car. I don't know why Ford didn't put stiffer bars on the MME to begin with. I cannot see any downside. The only reason I can think is they were worried about understeer at the recommended tire pressure, but still. This is the way the MME should handle. The transformation is freaking amazing. At least to me.

Please note that I am so happy because I was so annoyed by the side to side wallowing over uneven surfaces. If this doesn't bother you like it bothered me, you might not be as impressed. The change is definitely subjective.

I told my wife how happy I was with the change and she gave me the half smirk. I don't think she can tell the difference unless I gave her a before and after comparison ride, and pointed out why it is better. But for me, it is amazing. I love it.

That makes sense, a sway bar is only going to absorb energy when you have unequal loading on the left and right sides. On full width bumps it's not going to make any difference. We need beefier shock absorbers to truly fix the problem. I have to wonder if stiffer shocks would make a big difference on the turns too. It's still frustrating nobody wants to sell us custom shocks only. The side-to-side rocking on hard turns is a problem I've noticed as well, it does not give you very good confidence about the stability of the vehicle and definitely means you can't take turns as fast.

I also wonder about the merits of increasing the front sway bar stiffness while simultaneously decreasing the tire pressure. Those effects cancel out as you know. I guess I'd be inclined to leave the tires at 39 psi for efficiency and tune the sway bars for the desired level of steer. Have you tried full psi in the front or does that generate too much understeer?

 

[mkhuffman]

That makes sense, a sway bar is only going to absorb energy when you have unequal loading on the left and right sides. On full width bumps it's not going to make any difference. We need beefier shock absorbers to truly fix the problem. I have to wonder if stiffer shocks would make a big difference on the turns too. It's still frustrating nobody wants to sell us custom shocks only. The side-to-side rocking on hard turns is a problem I've noticed as well, it does not give you very good confidence about the stability of the vehicle and definitely means you can't take turns as fast.

I also wonder about the merits of increasing the front sway bar stiffness while simultaneously decreasing the tire pressure. Those effects cancel out as you know. I guess I'd be inclined to leave the tires at 39 psi for efficiency and tune the sway bars for the desired level of steer. Have you tried full psi in the front or does that generate too much understeer?

I need to do more testing regarding understeer. The time I got the front to plow it was an unbanked turn going downhill into a parking lot. So really a worst case scenario for understeer. It was definitely more understeer compared to the stock bars, but again it was a pretty harsh test.

This morning I put the pressure in the front up to 41 and went to Target, a few miles from my house. I didn't go through that turn and didn't notice any understeer. I didn't push the car to get it to slide and so it really wasn't a sufficient test. But I was not happy with the harsh ride so when I got home I put the tires back to 32.

I am going back to DC on Wednesday and am planning to put the tires on 41 all around for that trip. I will try to do more testing to see how it handles at that pressure and the 295/64 on ramp to see how it does at 80 mph.

The side to side rocking is definitely mitigated now and the behavior in fast turns is very predictable. It really handles great at the limit. Unlike before.

 

[Av8tor]

Put these sway bars on, and then - instant fun on that ramp!

Ok, now I have to find this Ramp tomorrow!

Ha, it only 28 minutes from me.

 

[Mach-Lee]

@tj@steeda can you update your rate table with actual numbers instead of % over? I find that really gimmicky. I know you're probably trying to hide the hole 1 rate is slightly less than the GTPE but that doesn't bother me since you have the other two stiffer holes. That's not going to take away sales.

FRONT SWAY BAR	SPECIFICATIONS	HOLE 1 RATE	HOLE 2 RATE	HOLE 3 RATE
GT	HOLLOW STEEL	240	-	-
GT PE	HOLLOW STEEL	288	-	-
STEEDA	1" SOLID STEEL	17% INCREASE OVER GT 280	29% INCREASE OVER GT 310	39% INCREASE OVER GT 334

 

[Supertayt]

Put these sway bars on, and then - instant fun on that ramp!

As someone who built their Jeep for crawling over boulders, it was clear that sacrifices had to be made for road comfort. That bump coming off the ramp at an angle gives me a queasy feeling as soon as I see it. I was pretty disappointed that the MME didn’t handle it better. Luckily, I have the tools and gear to wrench on cars. I wasn’t planning on doing it to the Mustang, but here we go! Ordering both bars tonight!

 

[HuntingPudel]

I just placed my order for both bars, kibble level be damned. ?? Had some problems with my login at Steeda so i forgot to enter the coupon code. ??

I might remove the frunk again in order to make sliding the front bar into the car easier. We’ll try it without a frunkectomy first. ??

 

[tannerk89]

I’m so ready to have my car back… I have the rear sway bar kit sitting in my garage and the front on the way. I’ll end up with a coil over kit if I have to wait to get my car back much longer.

 

[markboris]

I just placed my order for both bars, kibble level be damned. ?? Had some problems with my login at Steeda so i forgot to enter the coupon code. ??

I might remove the frunk again in order to make sliding the front bar into the car easier. We’ll try it without a frunkectomy first. ??

Removing the Frunk will not help out. It is below all of that stuff anyway. Only removing the undercover will help but as I said with my install (same with Mike) was able to do it just fine without removing it.

 

[RMoore]

Looking forward to hearing about this West Coast Bay Area (or nearby) sway bar install party! I want to live vicariously through you mechanically minded guys. I don’t have occasions to push the limits where I am so likely will stick with the stock bars. But agree that beefier and better damped shocks would be nice and I’d go for those.

 

[markboris]

Looking forward to hearing about this West Coast Bay Area (or nearby) sway bar install party! I want to live vicariously through you mechanically minded guys. I don’t have occasions to push the limits where I am so likely will stick with the stock bars. But agree that beefier and better damped shocks would be nice and I’d go for those.

I lived in the Bay Area for 60 year then moved to Sonora (an hour away from Yosemite). All of my friends moved out of the Bay Area mostly to other states and only my parents live there now and it wouldn't be a good place to have this party otherwise I would. I don't mind coming down to help anyone wanting a hand to install the bars it just has to work with my schedule which is busy at times. I certainly don't mind anyone coming here but again, it is a 2 1/2 hour drive from the Bay Area.

About the shocks, I keep messaging Bilstein about coming up with some B6's for the Mach-E. They finally got the Mach-E listed in their drop down menu for Ford's listed but when selected still shows nothing available. I am hopeful they will come out with them just wish it was soon. I've installed B6's in my cars that did not have active shocks and they are my favorite. I would even go with Koni's if they were available.

 

[kennethjk]

I lived in the Bay Area for 60 year then moved to Sonora (an hour away from Yosemite). All of my friends moved out of the Bay Area mostly to other states and only my parents live there now and it wouldn't be a good place to have this party otherwise I would. I don't mind coming down to help anyone wanting a hand to install the bars it just has to work with my schedule which is busy at times. I certainly don't mind anyone coming here but again, it is a 2 1/2 hour drive from the Bay Area.

About the shocks, I keep messaging Bilstein about coming up with some B6's for the Mach-E. They finally got the Mach-E listed in their drop down menu for Ford's listed but when selected still shows nothing available. I am hopeful they will come out with them just wish it was soon. I've installed B6's in my cars that did not have active shocks and they are my favorite. I would even go with Koni's if they were available.

Hi

do you think that the Billsteins if they come out are a good choice compared to the Coilovers ?

 

[markboris]

Hi

do you think that the Billsteins if they come out are a good choice compared to the Coilovers ?

The KW coilovers are way more adjustable and you can set the level and ride the way you want to. Much better than just replacing shocks but replacing the OEM shocks with the Bilsteins have got to be an improvement.

 

[kennethjk]

Well, the KW coilers are way more adjustable and can set the level and ride the way you want to. Much better than just replacing shocks but replacing the OEM shocks with the Bilsteins have got to be an improvement.

i recognize it wouldn’t be as good, just looking at more reasonable cost options. Will be moving the car to Florida for the winter and the roads much better down there so will see how things shake out by next spring when car is moved back up to NY.

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