Rear sway bar upgrades summary

did your 23mm bar have multiple settings for stiffness, or was it non-adjustable? currently have the 20mm va bar, but considering an adjustable 22mm. do you think it would be worth the upgrade?

 

i'd probably keep it on the softest setting whilst on 420 treadwear no-seasons, with the ability to bump it up upon upgrading to stickier rubber. just curious where the bridge too far would be on a street car.

 

The 23mm bar was non adjustable and very stiff...it was just a dead copy of a 19mm STi bar made of heavier stock......If I was building a track car I would love it, but too harsh for my taste on a street daily driver ...... Just my $.02 worth.

Check the chart for relative stiffness

BTW....the chart is from Whiteline's tech dep't.

Edited May 25, 2019 by Scooby Fan

Cool!

 

So they help in straight line stability too?

 

 

Nope, that came with Cusco, Eibach, Koni, Group N & RS-R. $$$$$

So I was able to take my car up some mountain roads over the weekend.

 

It was raining some of the time and the AWD turbo drivetrain really shined. Made quick work of slow moving groups of cars.

 

I did some hard charging up and down the mountains and understeer wasnt so bad. Yes there was some, but it was easy to get the nose pointed where you wanted to go with full confidence. Pretty much point and shoot.

 

I am now thinking if I should mess with the sways at all lol!

 

I think I'll measure what I have first. Maybe these Bilstein-equiped models have different swaybar specs too.

I have the Whiteline 24mm rear sway bar with Moog end links on the stock shocks and springs with BF Goodrich G-Force Comp 2 tires. I have the sway bar set on the middle setting. The car corners flat and goes right where I point it and I noticed the Rally Armor mud flaps don't scrape on the ground as much. It stiffened the ride very slightly but I don't mind it.

I installed a 25.5mm adjustable RCE rear sway bar,some beefy kartboy end links, and some whiteline braces a while ago. Obviously the size of the bar made a difference but the change of the sway bar is definitely the best bang for you buck. I gotta good deal from a guy on offer up for the RCE bar and braces. Easy to install everything, took about an hour or so. Probably a little overkill for a NA 2.5i 6mt, but the “tight” feeling the car has now is worth it.

 

 

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I've never heard of a 25.5mm rear sway bar from RCE for our application. Do you have a part number or any links?

Never mind, found it on Google. Looks like it comes as a set with a 25.5 mm front sway bar, both for GR/GV fitment, so yeah the rear bar should fit us. Did you come by the rear bar second hand? Looks to be the largest available rear sway bar option found that would fit us, but I don't see it available individually of a quick search.

 

https://www.rallysportdirect.com/part/sway-bars/rco-swh-08-gr-racecomp-engineering-sway-bar-kit-front-adjustable-25-5mm-rear-adjustable-25-5mm

Here is a good analysis of hollow vs solid sway bars done a number of years ago by the tech guys at Whiteline.....very technical but well worth the read.

http://www.whiteline.com.au/docs/bulletins/Hollow%20vs%20Solid%20Swaybar.pdf

I got the rear sway bar second hand. Guy had taken off of his wrx after 5k. It was a good deal for $150. Got the braces second hand for $40. Paid full price for endlinks, didn’t skimp on those second hand.

The bar was almost brand new. I have it on the lowest setting. But it made a world of difference. Like I said, I know it’s over kill for a 2.5 6mt, but with just the 25.5mm RCE SB, kartboy endlinks, and the whiteline sway bar support braces, it completely changed the car. I still have all other stock struts, springs, and shocks. Tightened up the car. Awesome simple inexpensive mod

 

 

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Thanks all y'all for your input.

 

Based on the overwhelmingly positive experiences everyone has, I was enabled to go for it!

 

Pulled the trigger on a Cusco 20mm and hope to get it on soon!

dependng upon your car's mileage/age combo, I would get new end links, the hassle of reusing the old ones is not worth it IMHO

Good suggestion, will seriously consider that.

 

I'm only at 40k miles but I'd hate to get clunking if these links give up the ghost under the stiffer bar.

Thanks all y'all for your input.

 

Based on the overwhelmingly positive experiences everyone has, I was enabled to go for it!

 

Pulled the trigger on a Cusco 20mm and hope to get it on soon!

 

Hey, I've been inactive for quite a while but I think I saw your car in Makati twice this week! Nice and shiny LGT! It prompted me to go to this forum today lol. What are your thoughts on your new RSB? How about your KWs have you installed them yet?

Hi Ivan, yes, I'm a Makati boy nowadays lol!

 

RSB is a nice upgrade! I have had it on for 2 weeks now and I brought the car up to Tagaytay once. Flatter cornering and rear pivots a bit easier, without being twitchy on straightaways, even in the rain. Recommended upgrade!

 

Just got the KW's on and was refraining from commenting till they are broken in. Right now...they are firmer than the OE Bilsteins, but they take our rough roads better than the Bilsteins. The KWs are bouncing me a bit more but they are not harsh like the Bilsteins on minor potholes. I'm happy so far!

Hi Ivan, yes, I'm a Makati boy nowadays lol!

 

RSB is a nice upgrade! I have had it on for 2 weeks now and I brought the car up to Tagaytay once. Flatter cornering and rear pivots a bit easier, without being twitchy on straightaways, even in the rain. Recommended upgrade!

 

Just got the KW's on and was refraining from commenting till they are broken in. Right now...they are firmer than the OE Bilsteins, but they take our rough roads better than the Bilsteins. The KWs are bouncing me a bit more but they are not harsh like the Bilsteins on minor potholes. I'm happy so far!

 

Haha, both times I intended to take a picture of your car but at those exact times I was also crossing the street! Gotta be mindful of those motorcycle riders who doesn't respect the pedestrian lane while crossing Jupiter street lol.

 

Did you install the RSB first or the KW first? I'm curious about the additional ride stiffness and the NVH the RSB will add to our local 5th gen. My rear endlinks and RSB bushings are shot, I figured I might as well upgrade the RSB if it doesn't add that much NVH.

 

About the KW, that sounds about right from my experience with KW. Firmer ride but more consistent- doesn't get crashy on bumps and potholes. Gonna wait for your follow up review once they have settled in but looks like I found my next suspension upgrade! lol

Haha, both times I intended to take a picture of your car but at those exact times I was also crossing the street! Gotta be mindful of those motorcycle riders who doesn't respect the pedestrian lane while crossing Jupiter street lol.

 

Did you install the RSB first or the KW first? I'm curious about the additional ride stiffness and the NVH the RSB will add to our local 5th gen. My rear endlinks and RSB bushings are shot, I figured I might as well upgrade the RSB if it doesn't add that much NVH.

 

About the KW, that sounds about right from my experience with KW. Firmer ride but more consistent- doesn't get crashy on bumps and potholes. Gonna wait for your follow up review once they have settled in but looks like I found my next suspension upgrade! lol

 

Haha! Maybe 3rd time lucky!

 

I had RSB on first. No discernable NVH increase, no additional stiffness in ride. Yeah, sounds like a good time to do the sways for you! Do check the sways you get come with bushings.

 

KWs are exactly as you describe. It's a bit less bouncy now after a few days. Still not harsh. Have not been able to drive it in the twisties yet but I have taken a few stoplight turns at speed and it was definitely flatter and with less push. KWs and the 20mm RSB pair really well.

Yes ^^

 

I put the 20mm on within 3 weeks of owning the car. I got new basic MOOG endlinks from the local auto parts store because the stock ones were too rusted to get off the stock bar. During that process I drove to the store without any RSB... yikes.

 

I wouldn't call the 20mm a huge transformation, but its certainly a big improvement. I can see why people get the adjustable 22mm one, but I'd buy the 20mm again just because of the price difference.

 

Lift off oversteer is definitely present, but I wouldn't call it twitchy. You either know when its coming or you have to force it to happen if that's your goal.

 

Since I put it on, I've been thinking "The rear is pretty flat, but now the front needs some help..." Update on that coming in about 2 weeks.

 

did you upgrade the front anti roll bar?

im thinking rear 22m whiteline set to soft for daily use

did you upgrade the front anti roll bar?

im thinking rear 22m whiteline set to soft for daily use

Unless you have the 3.6R, the front swaybar is a bit of a chore to do. It's easy when the engine is out of the car, but without at least lifting the engine a bit, it doesn't want to wiggle in/out. It's a great upgrade, though (I went with the 26mm swaybar from the 13-14 Legacy as an inexpensive option - bought it in 13, tried to install it but it couldn't even get the old one out, so I abandoned) then it sort of sat until last year for the reasons above...)

my 2010 jdm br9 rear sway bar is 18mm from the factory

I thought I had brought a 20mm sti bar. turns out to be 19mm.

 

looks like im going to need a 22mm whiteline bar