Thoughts on Rear Sway bar

[vping]

What are your thoughts on a rear sway bar on a B for street use? What should you do to your suspension (front & rear) before installing this?

 

[Steve_S]

Don't install a rear bar on an early B. You will introduce problems that you may never overcome. Poly bushings, slightly larger front bar and good tires. If you want to get really crazy put in stiffer shock valves or buy adjustable levers.

 

[vping]

All I needed to know and this is for the '74

Larger sway bar - Check
Good Tires - Check
Poly bushings - Check

Stiffer Shock valves or adjustable levers will be next if I am not happy with it when I get to drive it.

 

[PAUL161]

My 72 has the heavy duty, (late model), sway bar set up installed. Front and rear. The car will lay flat in the corners with hardly any lean. I installed these bars when the car was completely stripped for body work. Contrary to what some think, the overall ride is the same as it was when stock. To do it over again, I would install the heavier front bar as it's a no brainer and the benefit would warrant it. Even though my 72 handles like a dream, I would not do the rear bar on a non race car that didn't come with it again, as the benefit does not warrant the work involved. JMHO. PJ

 

[vping]

I'm upping the front bar by 1/16" and then going with the urethane bushings. This coupled with the wider tires will hopefully allow me to go flatter in the turns.

 

[CraigFL]

Technically, adding a rear sway bar where this isn't one will cause more understeer. Most people don't like understeer because it doesn't always feel safe unless you have the power to induce oversteer to balance it. But... understeer is considered much more safe than oversteer. The actual affect on your car would depend how it handles now.

 

[tony barnhill]

...& unless anybody missed what Paul said - he installed his rear sway bar while his car was "competely stripped"....there's a whole lot of welding neeced to put one under there...right now I have the mounting points for a rear sway bar laying in my shop...I cut them out of a rusty old body I was crushing just because they were there...to put them on another car means lots of precise locating & welding work.

 

[PAUL161]

Your right Tony! I wouldn't do it again!

 

[GregW]

At least for the Healey, there are rear swaybar kits that don’t require welding, but drilling holes through the frame. Personally, I’d rather weld one in. Hate the thought of drilling into a frame.

 

[terriphill]

OK..here's the thread that I saw recently discussing the rear sway bars....but all of these are older models. My 1980MGB has a sway bar mounted to the axle. I want to drop it out and replace the rear end with an older model rear end so I can mount wire wheels. If I do this, I lose the sway bar....will this be a problem do you think?

 

[piman]

Hello all,

"Technically, adding a rear sway bar where this isn't one will cause more understeer"

No, actually it will reduce understeer, i.e it will increase oversteer.

For me the easiest way of modifying the handling of a road car is to adjust the tyre pressures, much simpler.

Alec

 

[tony barnhill]

You don't have to lose the sway bar - & you don't want to...just weld brackets onto the other rear end!

 

[PAUL161]

OK..here's the thread that I saw recently discussing the rear sway bars....but all of these are older models. My 1980MGB has a sway bar mounted to the axle. I want to drop it out and replace the rear end with an older model rear end so I can mount wire wheels. If I do this, I lose the sway bar....will this be a problem do you think?

My personal opinion is, Don't loose the sway bar! Weld the link attachment bolts to the axle where the later model bolts were and there should be no problem. I think Moss sells new ones. BUT, make sure you use the older shock links on the shock absorber arms as they are shorter. That is if your lowering the car to CB specs. If you don't, the rear shock arms could possibly hit the body when going over a hard bump or reach their limit and damage the shock. Also, rear sway bars do not make the car ride harder, as they move up and down freely! They control sway or lean. As I have said before, my 72 has the late model rear sway bar. I installed it when the car was completely stripped. Not an easy job, if you want to do it right. But, my car lays flat in the corners with literately no sway and rides no differently on the straights than it did before the conversion. Your in luck, as your car already has the sway bar installed. Go to it! It'll all work out well. PJ