Sway Bars or No Sway Bars...

[Charlene]

Curious to see how many of you guys are running rear and/or front sway bars? If so, what links? And what are the disadvantages of not running sway bars other than more body roll? Just trying to figure out what I want to do. I'm running factory sway bar and links with 8.5 wraps and everytime I flex it looks like those links are about to snap so I know they are limiting flex. I just what to hear opinions from both sides

 

[dtc81]

I disconnected the rears and haven't looked back. 95% of what I do is pavement driving, but they definitely limit some travel. I have 2nd gen links sitting in my garage but I haven't felt the need to install them. I left my fronts connected because of the amount of driving I do on-road. There is a little extra body roll noticeable, but not enough for me to feel unsafe handing my keys over to a friend to drive....Fronts disconnected may be a different story.

 

[Moroney167]

I disconnected the rears and haven't looked back. 95% of what I do is pavement driving, but they definitely limit some travel. I have 2nd gen links sitting in my garage but I haven't felt the need to install them. I left my fronts connected because of the amount of driving I do on-road. There is a little extra body roll noticeable, but not enough for me to feel unsafe handing my keys over to a friend to drive....Fronts disconnected may be a different story.

Um. Can I borrow your keys then? I swear I'll be gentle.....

He's an idiot... But agree I ran no rear a month and didn't notice. Then ran no fronts for few weeks when wheeling. Deff felt better soft and smooth on road. Body roll was controllable at speed limit but I use mine as a DD. I kept fronts connected. Ended up with 2nd gens in rear. Helps with rear for sure on road, and if I had to tow. I'm sure offroad as I (we) do would work fine but summer wheel time I'll probably leave rear off all season. Fronts I disco just for wheelin. Get all the flex I can I figure.

On TRD tundra coils and tundra 5100's with 890 rears an taco/runner rear 5100 265 duratrac C loads

 

[dirtbike250x]

So will say do not disconnect any device that is related to safety, and some with say drop them and forget them. Other than the obvious increase in body roll, it does put an extra strain on your shocks, and tires going around corners.

For me I dropped the front one and disconnected the rear for trail use. I have since removed the rear and never put it back on. I wouldn't let anyone else drive it due to safety concerns, but I feel safe enough for the street use I do.

 

[Supermoney]

I had the fronts off for 2-3 months with a 3" lift and 33s.

Body roll is quite significant, but if you are going off road a lot I'd say its worth it. Main thing you will notice is the need to take turns pretty slow.

However, on the highway with a lift, bigger tires, throw some wind in there and it gets kind of sketchy.

 

[Charlene]

Cool thanks guys. I think I might try taking off the rear for a while and if I don't like it then I'll get the 2nd gems or some beefy aftermarket ones. I guess my next question would be is there any risk in wearing anything else out such as control arms?

 

[snivilous]

He's an idiot...

Don't be a douche :lightsaber:

I removed my front to make it fully independent originally and it worked well. I also had rear quick disconnects which worked nicely, and I've done lots of driving with just the rear on and with both off (due to continuously breaking rear links/mounts). Personally I like the sway bar in the rear at least, after running no sway bars for a long time it feels like I can corner way faster with it connected.

Cool thanks guys. I think I might try taking off the rear for a while and if I don't like it then I'll get the 2nd gems or some beefy aftermarket ones. I guess my next question would be is there any risk in wearing anything else out such as control arms?

I don't see why anything would get worn out anymore than usual, maybe body mounts from the increased roll but I don't think that'd ever make any noticeable difference.

 

[slapdappy]

bent 2 rear's. off road with both disconnected so not sure how that happens but...
with no rear but front connected it handles just fine on the pavement. So now I just disconnect the front, couple of zip ties, good to go wheeling. Smoother ride, more articulation.

 

[C-RAIG]

I robbed my front links to use on the rear and threw the front bar out. It works well for me.

 

[derpiful]

I ran with no sway bars (front or rear) for a few weeks, and honestly, I really prefer them on. It just feels so much more solid and makes on-road driving much more comfortable.

I can't tell you if only front or only rear would work, as I either had all or none.

 

[Herculean T4R]

Buy quick disconnects for front and install 2nd gen links in the rear. Safety is paramount for me.

Question: In case of a rollover, can insurance company deny claim if they find out that the owner removed the OEM sway bars?

 

[yoyoyotrevo]

I snapped a rusted link taking it off and the bushings were shot on my front so I took mine off and haven't looked back since. With stock size p-metric tires and wheels i did have one scary instance in an emergency situation on the highway, but I now have E load duratracs on wheels with more backspacing and it is MUCH more stable.

I prefer the ride on road now, as offset bumps dont jar the whole vehicle around. I DD it and am still able to take corners faster than I should. Off road Id guesstimate theres a gain of about 2" of wheel travel which definitely comes in handy. Before disconnecting it looked like the front didnt do anything, while the back was maxed out. I kept the rear because it still stuffed the tires with it on.

Just an fyi, if you do take it off, make sure you hold on to it for inspections, cuz they wont pass it without it.

 

[Charlene]

Do any of you guys know of any reasonably priced quick disconnects? I know of MStud's but they are out of my price range

 

[BrianSD_42]

OP,

Why do you want to remove these safety devices?

Have you seen that video of the stock 3rd gen 4Runner with sway bars installed flipping on the freeway? The point of that video is these trucks (yours, mine) are not that stable even with the sways on and without them it is all fair game and a roll of the dice.

What do you think? Will that be you, your GF/wife, friends, or other family? Is it worth the risk?

Another thing ... Why do you need a sway bar one asks? YOU NEED IT for when you are driving at 40-60 mph and a huge tree falls in front of you (or a thousand other things that can happen) and your loved one is in the passenger seat.


My opinion is that when on pavement leave them on for safety.

Other reasons to leave them on ... By removing them your shocks will wear out much much faster since they have to do so much more work.

I removed the front for almost a year and at the end of it the truck moved around so much more it started to feel ridiculous. Nowadays I keep them all on when on pavement.


<iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WjhNnEL26Vs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


:bat:

 

[slapdappy]

I ran with no sway bars (front or rear) for a few weeks, and honestly, I really prefer them on. It just feels so much more solid and makes on-road driving much more comfortable.

I can't tell you if only front or only rear would work, as I either had all or none.

Try it without the rear. Need to jack up via axel/diff housing, use jack stands on frame, and lower the axel. This gives the needed clearance to remove. Simple. Takes maybe 1/2 hour.
Try it. You'll be surprised how normal it rides and handles.

Just occurred to me that I have AirLift 1000 airbags in the rear coils. Wonder if they reduce rear lean by limiting coil compression? Curious how un-airbagged 4R would react to removal of just rear sway bar?

 

[A.Wilson013]

Without reading any of the previous comments I will say this...

Anyone who says that running with no sway bar front or rear is just fine for a DD, cannot tell the difference, etc, etc is full of CRAP.

When I put 2.5" Icon coilovers with 700lb springs on the front of my 4runner I removed the front and it felt fine to me, but my wife felt quite differently.

When I put OME 861's in the rear the lift was too much for my factory rear sway bar mounts and it actually sheared off two of the axle side bolts. So I still had 3 points connected (Both endlinks, and pass side axle mount) and the roll was so bad that I parked it until I could figure out what the heck was going on.

tl;dr : Removing both is a bad idea for a daily driver. With my rear connected and extended links I can utilize the full range of my extended travel shock's extension/compression.... So why remove it?

 

[Charlene]

Without reading any of the previous comments I will say this...

Anyone who says that running with no sway bar front or rear is just fine for a DD, cannot tell the difference, etc, etc is full of CRAP.

When I put 2.5" Icon coilovers with 700lb springs on the front of my 4runner I removed the front and it felt fine to me, but my wife felt quite differently.

When I put OME 861's in the rear the lift was too much for my factory rear sway bar mounts and it actually sheared off two of the axle side bolts. So I still had 3 points connected (Both endlinks, and pass side axle mount) and the roll was so bad that I parked it until I could figure out what the heck was going on.

tl;dr : Removing both is a bad idea for a daily driver. With my rear connected and extended links I can utilize the full range of my extended travel shock's extension/compression.... So why remove it?

I trust everything you say as well as [MENTION=65101]BrianSD_42[/MENTION]. Are you guys just running aftermarket links or are you using the fronts for the tears or using 2nd gen links. I bought some energy suspension links but I am having a hard time trying to figure out how I'm going to mount them

 

[A.Wilson013]

I trust everything you say as well as [MENTION=65101]BrianSD_42[/MENTION]. Are you guys just running aftermarket links or are you using the fronts for the tears or using 2nd gen links. I bought some energy suspension links but I am having a hard time trying to figure out how I'm going to mount them

I am running what I imagine are the same links you have there... Check out page 32 of my build thread... I think I made it pretty clear how I did it, and if not, I posted the link to the original "how to".

 

[BrianSD_42]

If you are lifted then getting extended front links will restore the sway bar to it's proper articulation and relieve the stress.

As for the rear there is no reason to remove it. you may want to buy beefier links to withstand the extra stress of hard wheeling with a lift.

Does having the rear sway bar attached reduce travel?

I say, for all practical purposes for most trail goers the answer is no.

You can look at the many pictures I've posted here and see the full rear articulation of my suspension. In every picture the rear sway bar has been properly installed.

 

[Charlene]

Yea I have the Eibach's up front and 8.5 wraps in the rear with factory sways. The rears look like they are about to snap off at full flex and the fronts are bent. If I were to replace the links do I need to Jack up the truck or can I just do it with it sitting there. I have heard of doing it both ways