RRE rear swaybar setting?

[cerebus]

Hi folks:
Works will be installing an RRE rear swaybar for me next week. Does anyone know how much difference there is in stiffness between the settings compared to the stock rear bar? For example, is the softest setting equal to the stock rear bar, the middle one 20% stiffer than stock, etc?

All my driving is on the street so I doubt I'll need the stiffest setting, but which one do people recommend for daily driving?

(Yeah, I know, I'll probably experiment but wanted to find out what others have done.)

[garrick70]

I would give RRE a call, and see what they would recommend!

[GokuSSJ4]

email [email protected]
be aware if you set it on the stiffest side not to lift in the middle of a turn (specially if you are driving hard) the ass will come loose.

[RT]

Start in the center and go from there, most daily drivers stay there. You should notice a new found “tightness” in the feel of the car.

[cerebus]

Thanks guys. I'll start with the middle as suggested. I tried emailing them once before but didn't get a response. I understand they're busy working on cars most of the time. 8)

[GokuSSJ4]

Start in the center and go from there, most daily drivers stay there. You should notice a new found “tightness” in the feel of the car.
not all of us use that setting :wink:

[RT]

We tested solid rear sway bars (including the RRE) so the recommendation is a safe starting point from a known set-up that we used ourselves. I’d also recommend the WORKS Croxxplate be added to the front.

The combination will greatly reduce the inherent under steer that the Evo (like all street cars) seem to possess. Add to the larger rear diameter bar and front plate a slightly more aggressive alignment and you’ll have a nice handling daily driver that can be easily pushed harder on a twisty road when you like and put up with freeway commutes with very little out of pocket.

[cerebus]

Hi RT:
Thanks for the great advice. Sounds like just what I want. I've got the alignment already, and will check out the Croxx plate from Works as well.

Dare I ask what you decided upon for your swaybar setup? I'd like to hear about your testing process as well, if you want to elaborate. Were you looking for the best autoX setup?

[jstockdale]

What RT said :)

I've been running the WORKS front and rear sway bars, and the Croxx plate for some time now. After tweeking the front camber (flipping the camber bolts to give about -1.6 on both front wheels, while keeping -.8 to -1 on the rears) the inherent understeer is completely gone. In fact with the flipped camber bolts it's rediculously nimble.

-S ...

[cerebus]

I'm not finding the Croxx plate on the Works web site. Are they still making it? Is this something like the Cusco lower arm brace?

[JanSolo]

I'm not finding the Croxx plate on the Works web site. Are they still making it? Is this something like the Cusco lower arm brace?

There is a second version of the Croxx Plate due out soon. That could be why they don't have it currently listed on the WORKS site.

[RT]

We basically tried a combination of changes, including different settings, road tested and raced. We ended up with the Hotchkis hollow rear sway bar for a couple reasons. The biggest one was personal preference; I just like a softer set-up. That comes from racing open wheel dirt cars in the past.

In a nut shell, large diameter bars on the stiffer settings created too much over-steer for my liking. By changing to the “softer” bar the tail end “tightened up” became more controllable.

Weight savings was a big factor for us, the hollow bar is about 7 pounds less than the larger solid bars. But it also split’s the difference (in stiffness ratings) between the large diameter solid bars and the stock diameter bar. That was the particular range I needed to be in.

At the front I prefer a plate (to reinforce the lower control arms) versus bars or tubes because the plate acts like a giant gusset, like a gusset ties beams together at corners. Any form of single mount point bracing is going to twist and flex more than a flat plate no matter how well intentioned the bracing is.

So I quess the long and short of it is I'm really looking for a set-up that I feel best with, that I can drive best with. As I improve as a driver the set-up will also be changed and improve. Good thing I like working on the car!

[cerebus]

Hi folks:
Just wanted to post an update on the bar. I had it installed last Thur at Works. There was some minor fitting that had to be done, getting one of the clips to work, adjusting one of the brackets. By the way, its not a one piece bar, the ends are welded on. Don't know if that will cause any problems. Didn't get a chance to really try it on a twisty road until yesterday, Sat, before it started raining again.

I was surprised that I really didn't feel any difference in normal driving. When I added a larger swaybar to my Subaru, it was very noticable. Once I got to take it on a twisty road, I noticed its helped the balance of the car a lot.

Where the car used to feel like it pivoted around the front axles, now it feels like its pivoting around the center of the car. In line with my hips actually. The car is more tossable, there's less roll in the back, and it kind of feels like skiing coming down a twisty road, like its pivoting around your hips and you're going through a slalom course. Neat feel.

I think its more drivable than stock, where it feels like the front wheels are turning and the rest fo the car kind of follows it. Now the car is more one piece. I like it!

[RT]

We didn't want a welded bar, main reason we didn't go with the RRE.