Front sway bar end links

[97SpyyderGST]

I have a 1997 Spyder GS-T, my front driver side sway bar end link came unbolted about 2 weeks ago. I have to it to a local suspension technician and he said that it needed to be replaced. I thought that since I would be replacing the end link I might as well upgrade it. I have searched several DSM tuner sites and have yet found anything involving the end links. I have called RM DSM and they do not include the end link assembly in the sway bar kits. If anyone konws how I can upgrade (If an upgrade is possible/needed) this part please point me in the right direction. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am sorry if this is a repost I browsed through the forums and couldnt find a topic already started on this.

 

[jasonlee]

This is a very interesting topic to me,

I am also interested to know if an upgraded end link is available. what good is having the stiffest bar out there, if your end link isnt translating the movement, or if you are constantly wearing out the little ball joints.?

plus they are a pain to change

j

 

[jtmcinder]

We don't drive Subarus with plastic endlinks. The only reason to upgrade is if you need adjustables. Just get new OE endlinks.

- Jtoby

 

[97SpyyderGST]

Thanks for your responses guys...OK, this car is an autocross car so handling is very important to me. Only problem I have with the stock end links right now is that i have only autocrosses 2 times on them and there is only 55k miles on the car. So I am thinking either the part was faulty when I bought the car or they just are not designed to handle the extremes of autocross. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated, Thank You!

 

[ShortysTRM]

It seems to me that if the nut just kinda came off, the faulty part would be the nut itself. I still think it likely has something to do with someone not bolting things up as well as they should've, but then again, we don't have the end link to look at, so it may have been totally destroyed by someting completely different. I forgot to mention last night what jtmcinder mentioned...my Legacy has plastic end links that are somewhat similar to your's in that they are not the traditional end links like on my Grand Am. I believe that WRX's also have plastic end-links, which I have never heard of anyone breaking (though it may happen often, I dunno). It seems to me that the only non-human force that could've caused this would be an impact, whether a pothole or something more serious. When you first told me about it, I thought it was just a bushing that was messed up (like you had been guessing all along )...the more I think about it, the weirder the "unbolting" situation seems to me. Anyone else know what to do?

It seems like every autocross we go to we have something crazy go wrong like 5 days beforehand

 

[jtmcinder]

So I am thinking either the part was faulty when I bought the car or they just are not designed to handle the extremes of autocross.

I've done somewhere around 500 autocross runs, plus 30 rallycross runs, all on my stock endlinks. That probably isn't the issue.

- Jtoby

 

[ACM]

If you want to "upgrade" your front end-link, do this:

Cut the centre inch out of the end-link.
Thread one end with a right-hand thread, the other end with the equivalent left-hand thread.
Take a 3" length of 0.5" hex stock, drill and tap one end with the RH thread from above, the other end with the LH thread from above.
Buy one RH and one LH jam nut with the above threads, spin these onto the respective end-link parts, then screw those into the hex stock.

Now you can adjust you corner weights/heights and remove any resultant a/r bar preload those changes introduce. At the front at least...

For the rear end-links (AWD at least), buy 1 male and 1 female 3/8" rod ends. shorten the thraded ends of both by about a centimetre, thread a jam nut onto the male, then thread the male into the female, You'll need cone spacers for the rear, and either dust covers or SS/Teflon rod ends if you want them to survive. The rear links are too short to modify like the fronts.

Charles

 

[ShortysTRM]

Well that was impressive . Any idea where to go to get EVERYTHING we need? Besides a hacksaw or may be a Dremel, we don't even have anything to cut with. Could we get the hex stock and threading tools at Home Depot?

 

[jtmcinder]

If it was not immediately clear what to do, then here's my advice: Buy a new front end-link and take it and a copy of ACM's post to almost any machine shop.

- Jtoby

 

[ACM]

For the rear end-link, find any local oval track race shop, they will have the rear parts (though probably poor quality, no SS rod ends).

The front is best tackled by a local machine shop, buying LH taps and dies means MSC or McMaster etc, and you'll probably never use them again.

BTW, the measurements are not exact - you may only need 2.5" of Hex stock and .75" removed from the end-link shaft. The basic idea is to be able to adjust at least .5" either side of the stock front end-link length - if you explain that, the machine shop will work out the rest.

Charles

 

[jtmcinder]

Dear Mr. (or Ms.) Machine-shop Operator,

Enclosed please find one automotive sway-bar end-link. Note it's current length. Please remove approximately 0.75" from the center of the body of this link, thread 1.25" of each of the two exposed ends using opposite threads, and make a 2.5" hex connector, also with opposite threads. My goal is that the finished piece be an adjustable version of the original, capable of at least +/- 0.5" in length without removing either end from the car. Clearly, I will need one right-hand and one left-hand jam nut, as well.