Do sway bar bushings require grease?

[Swine]

I recently removed my OEM front sway bar to install a BMR. I noticed when removing the OEM bushings that the bushings were glued to the sway bar. In the past, on previous cars, i have always greased the bushings.

As i understood it, the sway bar needed to be able to rotate inside the bushing for proper performance. What gives? Wouldnt glued bushings add static spring rate and reduce "speed bump" performance? Perhaps the OEM bushing is supposed to rotate in the mount, as apposed to the bar rotating in the bushing?

 

[Roadracer350]

That's weird... When i put my Whiteline unit on the stock bushings almost fell out when I took the bolts off. Yes I would grease it at install

 

[86GT351]

Can never hurt to apply some silicone based grease to the inside of the bushing first!

 

[Sky Render]

Yes. Clean the bar, wrap it in Teflon tape, then put the grease over the tape and in the bushing. The tape adds another layer of lubricity and squeak deterrent.

 

[86GT351]

Yes. Clean the bar, wrap it in Teflon tape, then put the grease over the tape and in the bushing. The tape adds another layer of lubricity and squeak deterrent.

Good idea!

 

[Roadracer350]

Didn't think about the tape!

 

[BMR Tech]

Sky is on the money.

OP, let me know if you have any questions.

 

[ExSRT8Guy]

With poly bushings, does it have to be silicone-based grease?

 

[jayh007]

i agree silicone grease.

 

[Whiskey11]

That's weird... When i put my Whiteline unit on the stock bushings almost fell out when I took the bolts off. Yes I would grease it at install

The 05-09 cars all had separate bushings from the swaybar. IE: They aren't bonded. I'm unsure about the 2010 cars but it wouldn't surprise me if they were like the 05-09 cars. My bushings on my front and rear bars are able to be slid around and taken off without damaging them. The stock front bars for our cars don't require lubrication but the poly ones sure as heck do.

 

[Swine]

Yeah i def went ahead and greased my bushings.

It was just really interesting, Ford definitely glued the shit out of the bushings. I had to use a pry bar to peel the bushing off the bar.

Now to decide if i want more rear bar or not. The OEM rear bar and lowest setting BMR front bar actually has surprisingly nice balance.

 

[zquez]

I only really want new end links for the rear that are adjustable. For that reason, I am contemplating this one:

http://shop.watsonracing.com/Mustang-Road-Race-Rear-Sway-Bar-p/wr-rrrearswaybar.htm

Still a lot of money though...

 

[Roadracer350]

I only really want new end links for the rear that are adjustable. For that reason, I am contemplating this one:

http://shop.watsonracing.com/Mustang-Road-Race-Rear-Sway-Bar-p/wr-rrrearswaybar.htm

Still a lot of money though...

Whitelines rear bar comes with adj end links

 

[Swine]

Whats the advantage of attaching the rear bar to the axle? I know it adds unsprung weight, which is a bad thing. So there must be something really good about relocating the mount to the axle, i just dont know what it is.

 

[Whiskey11]

Whats the advantage of attaching the rear bar to the axle? I know it adds unsprung weight, which is a bad thing. So there must be something really good about relocating the mount to the axle, i just dont know what it is.

More inboard tire room is about the only advantage.

 

[Sky Render]

More inboard tire room is about the only advantage.

That's not the only advantage. It also allows the use of adjustable end links and makes it easier to get to the adjustment locations. The stock bar doesn't even have end links.

 

[csamsh]

Whats the advantage of attaching the rear bar to the axle? I know it adds unsprung weight, which is a bad thing. So there must be something really good about relocating the mount to the axle, i just dont know what it is.

Also, FWIW, the stock routing also attaches the rear bar to the axle, just further outboard.

 

[Swine]

Also, FWIW, the stock routing also attaches the rear bar to the axle, just further outboard.

Well what i meant was the OEM setup has the weight of the bar carried by the chassis, as apposed to the weight of the bar being carried on the axle. Sprung vs unsprung weight.

Not that its a game changer or anything, just noting.

 

[Whiskey11]

That's not the only advantage. It also allows the use of adjustable end links and makes it easier to get to the adjustment locations. The stock bar doesn't even have end links.

Because so many people adjust their swaybars correctly to have preload taken out of the suspension right?

I had my car corner balanced with the swaybars attached for obvious reasons and they were not an issue for my tech guy to work around. The adjustable endlinks don't represent much in the way of a time advantage compared to the stock routing so unless you are drag racing and looking to preload the driver's side to prevent the engine torque over from causing uneven contact patches, that use is minimal, at best.

The unsprung weight argument is valid. I know there are people here who think it's not a big deal on a live axle car because the axle weighs so much, but our cars weigh so much and we fret over the difference between 16 lbs of wheel weight quite readily... we fret over 16lbs of battery, etc. Why would anyone want to add unsprung weight is beyond me when other options exist that provide the same benefit in a reduced unsprung weight scenario.

 

[Sky Render]

Because so many people adjust their swaybars correctly to have preload taken out of the suspension right?

I had my car corner balanced with the swaybars attached for obvious reasons and they were not an issue for my tech guy to work around. The adjustable endlinks don't represent much in the way of a time advantage compared to the stock routing so unless you are drag racing and looking to preload the driver's side to prevent the engine torque over from causing uneven contact patches, that use is minimal, at best.

The unsprung weight argument is valid. I know there are people here who think it's not a big deal on a live axle car because the axle weighs so much, but our cars weigh so much and we fret over the difference between 16 lbs of wheel weight quite readily... we fret over 16lbs of battery, etc. Why would anyone want to add unsprung weight is beyond me when other options exist that provide the same benefit in a reduced unsprung weight scenario.

Yeah, kind of like acting that adding/removing ~10 pounds of unsprung weight from a log axle that weighs about 20 times that is going to have a meaningful effect. The wheel weight argument is invalid, because you're also talking about rotational inertia there, something that doesn't come into play adding a few pounds to an already heavy stick axle.

It's also nice to have an adjustable rear bar; until recently not many rear bars were adjustable at all. The rear bar in question is also the easiest to adjust. I've tuned it between runs without even putting the rear up in the air.

However, I will concede that the primary advantage is wheel choice. Wider wheels can be ran for track use, and smaller diameter wheels can be ran for drag strip use without having to worry about sway bar interference. That's a pretty nice feature if you've got a car that is used on the street, drag strip, and autocross like mine is.

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