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

[Scooby24]

Those pictures look like the end links arent the right length to angle the hump in the sway bar to the right spot clearance wise.

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[tannerk89]

OK I guess I didn’t perform any full-lock cornering. I now have evidence of contact below centerline of the ends of the arms. I am going to do two things: Grind the tips of the arms to increase clearance, and shorten the end links to position the arms farther away from the tie rods. oh, and a third thing will be to find some paint that somewhat matches the bar’s paint (unless Steeda wants to sport me a little paint). ??

I just shifted the bar all the way forward in the bushing bracket slots and it gave it enough clearance but grinding some off would probably be better. Let me know if you find a good paint match, I’d like to fix mine also.

 

[mkhuffman]

OK I guess I didn’t perform any full-lock cornering. I now have evidence of contact below centerline of the ends of the arms. I am going to do two things: Grind the tips of the arms to increase clearance, and shorten the end links to position the arms farther away from the tie rods. oh, and a third thing will be to find some paint that somewhat matches the bar’s paint (unless Steeda wants to sport me a little paint). ??

How will shortening the end links impact performance? I was really careful to adjust the end links to the exact measurement specified by Steeda. So if you shorten them, what does that do?

I am a suspension novice.

 

[Scooby24]

How will shortening the end links impact performance? I was really careful to adjust the end links to the exact measurement specified by Steeda. So if you shorten them, what does that do?

I am a suspension novice.

I can't imagine it would do much of anything other than changing proper clearances for suspension travel.

 

[HuntingPudel]

I can't imagine it would do much of anything other than changing proper clearances for suspension travel.

You, won’t change a thing as far as performance goes. There are three holes for the end links on each arm. Grinding the tip a little off the arm does not change the functional geometry of the bar since it doesn’t affect the mounting holes for the end links. ??

 

[Mach-Lee]

How will shortening the end links impact performance? I was really careful to adjust the end links to the exact measurement specified by Steeda. So if you shorten them, what does that do?

I am a suspension novice.

It changes the lever arm to pivot point and therefore the force curve slightly as the bar tilts. Generally you want the sway bar level when the car is in a neutral ride height for maximum effect, but making minor adjustments so the bar clears other suspension components isn’t a big deal.

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

It changes the lever arm to pivot point and therefore the force curve slightly as the bar tilts. Generally you want the sway bar level when the car is in a neutral ride height for maximum effect, but making minor adjustments so the bar clears other suspension components isn’t a big deal.

I demand another physics lesson with this answer. I feel so cheated.

 

[Mach-Lee]

I demand another physics lesson with this answer. I feel so cheated.

Does that help? The left side is like the sway bar pivoting. Imagine if the links were super short and the bar was vertical, it would have almost no twist or leverage and not much force transferred to the other side (zero slope). Horizontal bar is where you have the greatest slope on the sine curve and the most leverage. Leverage could be thought of as the derivative of the sine curve, which would be the cosine function.

Typically you want your sway bar ±20º of level for max effectiveness. 90º angles on the joints is ideal.

 

[markboris]

It changes the lever arm to pivot point and therefore the force curve slightly as the bar tilts. Generally you want the sway bar level when the car is in a neutral ride height for maximum effect, but making minor adjustments so the bar clears other suspension components isn’t a big deal.

Also, I like the bar not to have any tension on it when the car is on the ground at normal suspension. You should have someone sitting in the drivers seat (preferably the same weight as you) when finalizing the length of the adjustable end link but I never do since I am usually always working alone. I start with both adjustable end links the same length as the OEM ones or in this case, 12.75" that Steeda recommended. I install the bar and tighten all connections except for one side where the end link attaches to the sway bar. I put the car back on the ground and then adjust the last connection (lower adjustable end link to sway bar) to easily slip into the sway bar.

While I'm not sure this is totally necessary, it is what I have always done.

 

[Mach-Lee]

Also, I like the bar not to have any tension on it when the car is on the ground at normal suspension. You should have someone sitting in the drivers seat (preferably the same weight as you) when finalizing the length of the adjustable end link but I never do since I am usually always working alone. I start with both adjustable end links the same length as the OEM ones or in this case, 12.75" that Steeda recommended. I install the bar and tighten all connections except for one side where the end link attaches to the sway bar. I put the car back on the ground and then adjust the last connection (lower adjustable end link to sway bar) to easily slip into the sway bar.

While I'm not sure this is totally necessary, it is what I have always done.

Yeah that would compensate if the bar wasn't made perfectly straight or something.

 

[mkhuffman]

Mine has evidence of hitting also.

The pictures are from the driver side.

This one was taken with the steering wheel turned all the way to the right:

This one was taken with the steering wheel turned all the way to the left, but not locked because I had to get out of the car to take the picture and the wheel moved back to its full left resting position.

There looks like there is plenty of room but obviously there isn't. I think I shifted the bar mounting brackets all the way toward the rear of the car so maybe moving them forward will help? I really don't want to grind them down, but I guess that may be the ultimate answer.

 

[HuntingPudel]

Just a note on why the end links are adjustable. They are adjustable so that you can fine-tune wedge in or out of the car. The base setting is best done with the car on a surface plate and the tires resting on wheel scales. You want the cross weight (sum of diametrically opposing corners) to be the same on the left front + right rear as the right front+left rear. ??

Basically, you are trying to get the car to behave the same way in left and right turns. Most cars are not perfectly balanced. Lengthening one end link will reduce the weight on that tire, increasing the weight on the tire on the opposite side. Adding weight to the right front will make the car want to understeer to the left and oversteer to the right more than it would under baseline conditions. ??

EDIT: The end links are in tension when the suspension compresses, which is the opposite of what I am used to. Corrected to note that lengthening the end link reduces the weight on the accompanying tire.

 

[21st Century Pony]

Imountedthe Steeda rear sway bar last weekend and noticed a significant improvement. I mounted the Steeda front sway bar yesterday and adjusted it a bit today... well, HECK YEAH! As another poster already noted, "why didn't Ford build this setup to begin with"?

 

[mkhuffman]

Just a note on why the end links are adjustable. They are adjustable so that you can fine-tune wedge in or out of the car. The base setting is best done with the car on a surface plate and the tires resting on wheel scales. You want the cross weight (sum of diametrically opposing corners) to be the same on the left front + right rear as the right front+left rear. ??

Basically, you are trying to get the car to behave the same way in left and right turns. Most cars are not perfectly balanced. Lengthening one end link will increase the weight on that tire, reducing the weight on the tire on the opposite side. Adding weight to the right front will make the car want to understeer to the left and oversteer to the right more than it would under baseline conditions. ??

Sounds great but I won't ever do that. ?

So what do the experts here recommend? Grinding the end of the bar down a half inch?

 

[mkhuffman]

I want to add that the bars improve the car so much I am not upset about these issues. It is worth a few growing pains. I know Steeda is watching this and our findings will help future buyers.

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