sway (anti-roll) bars

Brocker

Member
I would like to have a centralized thread regarding sway bars. The current posts are all over the place. One mentions "smooth ride" sway bars (no idea) - One mentions a Miata sway bar - most state the standard SS is too large. Could you please put what you're using and how well it works for various applications on one thread? I plan to track - others autocross - whatever. Let's centralize!!!
 

Chubbs

Well-Known Member
I'm pretty sure those are the exact pieces I used.

As far as I know, the "comfort" swaybar is the same as the sway bar on the base model cobalt. Hopefully I'm not wrong on that. You will need the SS end links to hook it to the strut bodies, as the stock base end links are too long for the goblin.

The SS swaybar is huge. I'm sure it could be made to work for the goblin, but it's sized for a 3000lb that's driven hard, and we now have a 1500 lb that's driven hard. It's way too large. I'm not sure if anyone has actually tried or not, but I wouldn't bother when the "correct" sway bar is so cheap to buy new.
 

Gtstorey

Goblin Guru
I still have the aftermarket 29mm swaybar that was on my donor if someone wants to try it. I looked at shipping it to someone and it was about $80 to ship.
 
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Sluggonaut

Goblin Guru
The SS swaybar is huge. I'm sure it could be made to work for the goblin, but it's sized for a 3000lb that's driven hard, and we now have a 1500 lb that's driven hard. It's way too large. I'm not sure if anyone has actually tried or not, but I wouldn't bother when the "correct" sway bar is so cheap to buy new.
@Fozda has my SS sway bar that he was going to try at autox at some point. He might be able to chime in on its effectiveness.
 

Waterdriver

Goblin Guru
Sorry it's long.
What springs you run front and rear will make a difference what diameter bar works best, if at all.

In saying that, objective of running the car in autox's, with the suspension setup I'm running, testing both the SS and base model bars, the base model Cobalt bar (18mm) works better for me with just one person in the car than the SS (24mm) bar.
(I thought there's a 19mm bar on certain rear Cobalts. I could be wrong about that, but I'd like to try it if I find one.)

Two people in the car with the base model bar and it's too soft. Chassis roll increases quite a bit, unweighting the inside rear tire.

Two people in the car with the SS bar (24mm) and it felt just a tad too stiff. But it is very drivable, helping the car rotate and can easily be balanced with the throttle all through a corner. Less chassis roll.
One person in the car the bar is too stiff. Although it did make my non-LSD transaxle act like it had an LSD.

There's a lot of variables at play and stuff I'm leaving out. Driving styles/preference, suspension setup and usage is something else to consider.

The swaybars are cheap. Test them both out to see what is comfortable for you and do it safe manner.

Autox is great way to do that safely and it's fun. It can also closely simulate what you might ask of the car to avoid an accident on the street. You dont want to be surprised by unexpected handling characteristics getting you into an accident while trying to avoid one.
Typical autox courses are wide open areas that if loss of control happens, the only thing to hit is cones and flat spot tires.

You won't be able to change out the bar between autox runs but you can disconnect one endlink to easily try with and without the bar.
 

Desert Sasqwatch

Goblin Guru
Sorry it's long.
What springs you run front and rear will make a difference what diameter bar works best, if at all.

In saying that, objective of running the car in autox's, with the suspension setup I'm running, testing both the SS and base model bars, the base model Cobalt bar (18mm) works better for me with just one person in the car than the SS (24mm) bar.
(I thought there's a 19mm bar on certain rear Cobalts. I could be wrong about that, but I'd like to try it if I find one.)

Two people in the car with the base model bar and it's too soft. Chassis roll increases quite a bit, unweighting the inside rear tire.

Two people in the car with the SS bar (24mm) and it felt just a tad too stiff. But it is very drivable, helping the car rotate and can easily be balanced with the throttle all through a corner. Less chassis roll.
One person in the car the bar is too stiff. Although it did make my non-LSD transaxle act like it had an LSD.

There's a lot of variables at play and stuff I'm leaving out. Driving styles/preference, suspension setup and usage is something else to consider.

The swaybars are cheap. Test them both out to see what is comfortable for you and do it safe manner.

Autox is great way to do that safely and it's fun. It can also closely simulate what you might ask of the car to avoid an accident on the street. You dont want to be surprised by unexpected handling characteristics getting you into an accident while trying to avoid one.
Typical autox courses are wide open areas that if loss of control happens, the only thing to hit is cones and flat spot tires.

You won't be able to change out the bar between autox runs but you can disconnect one endlink to easily try with and without the bar.
Great information. :D
 
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