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What's the minimal mod for body roll?


jk

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If my question reflects ignorance, that's accurate. I am a novice at this stuff. I got a wrx several years ago and enjoyed it. Now I'm pleased with my LGT wagon but feel uncomfortable with the body roll. I'm not looking for major changes in handling, just less body roll. I've been reading the various threads in this forum but have been unable to learn enough to answer my question. I thought I had deduced that a bigger rear swaybar was the minimal intervention, but then saw warnings that this could lead to unspecified but bad consequences. Anyway, I'd appreciate advice.
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[quote name='Deer Killer']Don't turn as hard? :P[/quote] Doctor, it hurts when I do this.... From my limited knowledge, I would say swaybars, strut tower braces, and springs would be the minimal changes you could do to reduce roll. Of course there are trade-offs with every mod you will perform. IIRC, a stiffer rear sway bar will make the rear end more likely to step out on you in a serious turn (oversteer). From what I have read, the default settings for most cars is to promote understeer. This is supposed to be safer for most drivers.
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Strut Tower Bars (STBs) really just stiffen up the chassis. Their effect on body roll is minimal from my observations. My last car had them and they made a significant difference in chassis feel, but they didn't reduce body roll. Sway bar, will reduce some, but possibly at the cost of snap-oversteer. The tendency to suddenly break while making a corner at decent speed. Sway bars are good, but just don't get too extravagant with them and their settings. Springs for the most part is what will help reduce sway. The body after all ride upon these and a stiffer spring will rotate less with weight transfer. It will also help reduce nose lift and dive under acceleration and deceleration respectively.
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thanks, all, for the (slightly contradictory but interesting) replies. I especially appreciate yours, helfrick and sube555, since they include some explanation to help me understand the issues. Cobb is working on tubular swaybars for the 05 Legacy. What they carry for earlier years is an adjustable rear bar with 19-20-21 settings. If they produce something similar, do you think just a rear swaybar set at its lowest setting, 19 (stock is 16) would be both safe and effective? Would springs alone be both safer and more effective? Or do you need both? Also, I recall in another thread gtguy was talking about the neutrality of the Leg making any swaybar change a touchy issue (in distinction to the more understeered wrx). Any comment on that?
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Springs alone would likely make the largest difference, the sways probably wouldn't really be needed if you set your tire pressure bias up right. Kevin is right that it could make for a very snap-oversteer setup, but it can also be done right. I'd say jump on the springs first if you want to reduce sway overall, but you will lose some ride quality. As of right now, nobody has springs out for the USDM models that I know of and older model gear will not work.
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Why not an adjustable rear bar, and a larger front bar to balance it out. You will get reduced roll, will have the rear bar adjustability to dial out any oversteer, and the impact on ride quality will be less than with stiffer springs.
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[quote name='jedimaster']What exactly is snap oversteer? I prefer a bit of oversteer.[/quote] Snap oversteer is just sudden oversteer. Depending on your tires and suspension setup a car can have the tendency to oversteer sharply without warning. This is something that is sometimes characterized with mid-rear and rear-engine vehicles if not tuned properly. Basically, if you make the rear too stiff it can kick out without warning taking a bank (i.e....offramp). I had this happen to me after a good rain...If you know what to do you can correct for it in plenty of time.
OBAMA......One Big Ass Mistake America!
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[quote name='jk']thanks, all, for the (slightly contradictory but interesting) replies. I especially appreciate yours, helfrick and sube555, since they include some explanation to help me understand the issues. Cobb is working on tubular swaybars for the 05 Legacy. What they carry for earlier years is an adjustable rear bar with 19-20-21 settings. If they produce something similar, do you think just a rear swaybar set at its lowest setting, 19 (stock is 16) would be both safe and effective? Would springs alone be both safer and more effective? Or do you need both? Also, I recall in another thread gtguy was talking about the neutrality of the Leg making any swaybar change a touchy issue (in distinction to the more understeered wrx). Any comment on that?[/quote] The thing you have to keep in mind when altering suspenision is it's based on ratio. Making the rear stiff and keeping the front softer will produce oversteer. Vice versa, if you stiffen the front and keep the rear softer you will plow. However, if you keep the ratio the same or slightly alter it you shouldn't have any probs. Most err on the side of slight oversteer because it sucks to have to fight a car in the corners with the front end plowing. The only time I ever had a problem with snap oversteer is when I put drag racing springs on my FD. Springs with a 20-30% increase in spring rate shouldn't put you in any danger. Also, only swapping out the rear sway that is beefier will actually produce more oversteer by keeping the front sway stock. If you change the rear I would also change the front to keep the same ratio.
OBAMA......One Big Ass Mistake America!
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  • 3 years later...

From all that I've read, the JDM rear sway will make a good difference without all the oversteer. However, if you want to do it right, do both front and rear sways with a matched set. Get a used set on the forums, they don't really age. Cusco seems to be the most popular for the LGT. If you want to have some stupid fun, oversteer is what the doctor ordered (just rear sway). Just don't whip the wheel the other way too hard if your tail kicks out, or you might find yourself doing a part out.

 

I just bolted on a front strut tower bar. Made a slight bit of difference that I really could care less about. Put that towards sway bars, which are actually worth the money.

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From all that I've read, the JDM rear sway will make a good difference without all the oversteer. However, if you want to do it right, do both front and rear sways with a matched set. Get a used set on the forums, they don't really age. Cusco seems to be the most popular for the LGT. If you want to have some stupid fun, oversteer is what the doctor ordered (just rear sway). Just don't whip the wheel the other way too hard if your tail kicks out, or you might find yourself doing a part out.

 

I just bolted on a front strut tower bar. Made a slight bit of difference that I really could care less about. Put that towards sway bars, which are actually worth the money.

 

^ read this...

http://www.legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5941

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