Front sway bar mod

[Tri-Bar]

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.norcalevo.net/gallery/albums/album98/1_G.jpg

http://www.norcalevo.net/gallery/albums/album98/2_G.jpg

http://www.norcalevo.net/gallery/albums/album98/3_G.jpg

http://www.norcalevo.net/gallery/albums/album98/4_G.jpg

http://www.norcalevo.net/gallery/albums/album98/5_G.jpg

http://www.norcalevo.net/gallery/albums/album98/6_G.jpg

http://www.norcalevo.net/gallery/albums/album98/7_G.jpg

[evo_dadi]

nice write up! and welcome to the boards.fixed the links also so it could show the pics. :peace:

[chrisw]

SO I did this mod over the weekend on an otherwise stock EVO.

The difference was much better than expected!

A couple of note on the original install.

[list] The drill bit size is 27/64 not 27/32. We are looking to drill a 10mm hole and a couple of drill bits will work in this case. Finding a 27/64 drill bit is hard enough. I also found that a 13/32 drill bit will work as well.
don't waste your time (like I did) using standard drill bits. Go to a decent hardware store and buy some colbalt drill bits. I wasted 1 titanium drill bit plus another hardened drill bit (hardest crap Sear & rubish had in stock). If you take the time to get proper drill bits, drilling the holes will only take about 10 minutes.
I was able to get away with leaving the tie-rod end intact. After raising the car and disconnecting the swaybar, you have enough room to raise the swaybar so the drill does not interfere with the tie rod.
Try as best you can to get the holes centered. This not only creates better operation but also helps getting everything back together.[/list:u]
I used a 13/32 drill bit which works out to 10.5mm diameter hole, while the 27/64 drill bit is a 10.7mm hole. You probably could get away with a smaller hole, maybe a 9.8mm at most, but I am not sure what size drill bit that is.

either way you can't go wrong with this mod if you take the timem to mark everything properly.

Thanks Tri-Bar! :guitar:

you da man!!!! :peace:

let me know when you find the poly bushings! that would be key addition to finish this project.

also, can someone please change the picture links back? the picture host does not allow deep linking.

[JanSolo]

Fixed the pics. They are now hosted locally so everyone can see them.

[vtluu]

Thanks for the tips Chris. I may just have to try this myself... And if I f*** it up, well then it's an excuse to buy the WORKS adjustable front bar. :D

Question: did you drill pilot holes at all or did you just go straight with the 13/32" bit?

[Tri-Bar]

I have installed the poly bushings and yes it made it even better.Here is where I got them.
http://www.suspension.com/mitsubishi.htm
Sorry for the wrong drill size by the time I check the hole size it was 10.7MM. I thought about going 7/16 so I could use rodend end links.

[Tri-Bar]

vtluu,
When I did mine, I did not use a pilot hole. I just drilled it out.

[chrisw]

I did the one with the pilot hole, one with out. The pilot hole helped keep the larger drill bit from wandering.

[Tri-Bar]

I just used a center punch. It stop the drill bits from wandering.

chrisw,
How do you like the mod now that you have tried it? It worked out nice for me. Side wall rollover lessend I have a little more grip in the front. Help with the push.

[vtluu]

Got my 13/32" cobalt drill bit today and drilled the swaybar tonight. Only took the car out for a short quick drive but it felt great! Thanks again Tri-Bar! :worthy:

[Tri-Bar]

Your welcome vtiuu. Hope you enjoy the mod.

[Airgiod]

i'll be the first to admit i know a limited amount about modding cars..with that out of the way.

what does this do fo rht ride of the car? like why would i want to do this?

[vtluu]

Here's some suggested reading: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/question432.htm

Basically a swaybar reduces roll by resisting torsion (twisting). By moving the endlinks closer to the bar, you increase the amount of force needed to twist the bar, effectively making it "stiffer"--more resistive to torsion forces applied at the endlinks. This decreases the amount of roll in the front.

If when cornering you have too much roll, it can cause tire sidewall rollover--i.e. you're driving on the shoulder and sidewall part of the tire rather than the tread. Besides damaging the tire sidewall and shoulder, it also reduces the traction you get from the tire--since the sidewall/shoulder is less grippy than the tread. Less traction in the front means increased understeer or "push". Therefore stiffening the front swaybar can actually reduce understeer.

[blueskies]

i love that web site (howstuffworks.com).

okay, so if you just read that you might be still thinking okay cool, but what does drilling new holes in my suspension do besides help me lose weight. by moving the mounting points in closer the car needs to apply more force to make the sway bar perform the same action as before. so this will stiffen up your ride.

still confused? you take your half inch socket wrench out and your trying to take off the bolt that just won't come off, but it still won't come off. this would be like the the force that's being applied to the new points/holes you drilled. now put a 5' long pipe on the end of your socket wrench makes the job easier to take off those stubborn bolts. this is like the force that's being applied to the stock points/holes on your sway bar.

[Tri-Bar]

Here's a quick one for you, Changing the front bar will not make the car stiffer per say, Both tires go over a bump at the same time nothing changed over stock. This mod only changes roll. One tire goes over a bump and it may feel a little stiffer, only because the leverage/twist has change on the bar.

[Segfault]

Does someone still have the pics? I'd like to do this myself and the more info I have to begin with, the better.

[joshesh]

I told you I already have the drill bit and drill to make this mod on your car in under an hour, why are you so difficult.

Here you go: http://forums.evolutionm.net/showpost.php?p=1062495&postcount=13

[Segfault]

Just like when John offers help to me; I hate to trouble people when it's something I can learn and do myself. Dunno, just something about me. I have np helping others, I just don't like to ask for help if I can do it myself with some cuts, bruises, and fire :-)

If I look under the car and have no idea wtf to do....you'll see me in your driveway.

[joshesh]

^Yeah, I like to do it myself too - but everything ends up taking me 3X as much time as it should so I learn really well by doing the job over and over again.

[Segfault]

I pulled the car up on ramps today to check it out. It doesn't look like I need to remove the tie rod end from the spindle. Once the wheel is off, it seems there plenty of space to use my stubby wrenches to remove the swaybar bolt and then get a drill in there.

[Segfault]

Finally got this done! Thanks to Josh for showing me how and lending me a good drill. I originally used a 5A one my dad had, but it paled in comparison to Josh's 7A. Word of advice: don't waste time w/ anything less than 7A; you'll just dull out the bit faster.

It took me 3 bits to finish the whole job (got mine re-sharpened), size 25/64. Took the car out afterwords and the change in handling was immediate. The understeer, especially in u-turns, was lowered by a LOT. I definitely recommend this to anyone who hasn't done it yet.

[joshesh]

Took the car out afterwords and the change in handling was immediate. The understeer, especially in u-turns, was lowered by a LOT. I definitely recommend this to anyone who hasn't done it yet.


I told you it really made a difference, your autoxing will improve without a doubt.

[pjb00stin]

i guess i'll have to try this..so no more 3 point u-turns?lol

[joshesh]

were talking about high speed u-turns, not parking - this will not help turning radius but will make your car push less in hard continuous coners.

[Segfault]

were talking about high speed u-turns, not parking - this will not help turning radius but will make your car push less in hard continuous coners.


Translation: WOT that U-turn!!! :-p







j/k