Agree, front sway bar will help you a lot - PO of Jane put an extra-beefy one on her and the handling is pretty great with little body roll (also have subframe connectors, export brace, Monte Carlo bar, R&P, and KYB shocks, so I have a similar setup to yours minus the MII suspension).
So here's a question: front sway bars are great, but what is the purpose/benefit of a rear sway bar? I notice that not many people on this thread have mentioned it. Why is that?
__________________ Calamity Jane aka "The Maybe-Not-So-Evil B$*&#"
1966 Fastback
289 v8, Powerjection III EFI, mild cam
4-speed, 3.25 9" rear
Power disc brakes, Unisteer power R&P
Pertronix ignition, RetroSound Model One radio, Classic Auto Air A/C, etc...
Three years of work for three days of perfection. This pony WILL get back out on the road and it WILL reliably take me where I want to go... and it will always, always keep me safe.
So here's a question: front sway bars are great, but what is the purpose/benefit of a rear sway bar? I notice that not many people on this thread have mentioned it. Why is that?
I thought that I read somwhere that rear anti sway bars on a leaf spring car can have some negative handling charastics--I'd be interested in hearing more also.
A rear sway bar will reduce understeer (the car under-responding to steering commands), and may even induce oversteer (the back end sliding out). Most American cars tend to understeer- which might explain why some people who install them on their Mustang feel they reduce handling performance (because they are accustomed to understeer).
__________________ '65 coupe, 200ci, T5spd, Silver Smoke Gray, Std Red Interior '03 convertible, V6, auto, Silver Metallic, Black Top '14 coupe (on order- ETA 05/30/13), Sterling Gray, 5.0, 6spd, Track Pack, Glass Roof, Brick Red interior
Agree, front sway bar will help you a lot - PO of Jane put an extra-beefy one on her and the handling is pretty great with little body roll (also have subframe connectors, export brace, Monte Carlo bar, R&P, and KYB shocks, so I have a similar setup to yours minus the MII suspension).
So here's a question: front sway bars are great, but what is the purpose/benefit of a rear sway bar? I notice that not many people on this thread have mentioned it. Why is that?
Rear sway bars will cause oversteer and are a waste of money on these cars.
In your opinion, should I be looking for a 1"' bar from someone else for say, a '78 Mustang? IMHO, I would be looking for the largest I could get- 1 1/8" up to 1 3/8" diameter.
If the end-link holes are spaced the same on your suspension as the stock 68, get a 1" 68 Mustang bar. Don't get the bigger bar you suggest, it'll be too harsh for the street. "Bigger is better" is NOT true in this case.
__________________
Amateur restorer. (Well, once in a while I have been paid for it)
Rear sway bars will cause oversteer and are a waste of money on these cars.
When I upgraded my suspension, I used a 1" front and 3/4" rear. Later, I broke a bracket on the rear, and removed it to avoid problems while I repaired it. I liked the handling better, and never put it back on.
__________________
Amateur restorer. (Well, once in a while I have been paid for it)
Interesting! PO put a 3/4" sway bar on the rear. How is the handling different without it?
__________________ Calamity Jane aka "The Maybe-Not-So-Evil B$*&#"
1966 Fastback
289 v8, Powerjection III EFI, mild cam
4-speed, 3.25 9" rear
Power disc brakes, Unisteer power R&P
Pertronix ignition, RetroSound Model One radio, Classic Auto Air A/C, etc...
Three years of work for three days of perfection. This pony WILL get back out on the road and it WILL reliably take me where I want to go... and it will always, always keep me safe.
Seems to be more responsive to steering wheel and/or throttle without it. This is only in hard driving, the kind that might annoy the spouse or law enforcement. My Mountaineer is upgraded with massive front and rear bars. IIRC, the rear one is 1 1/8". The original was maybe half that.
__________________
Amateur restorer. (Well, once in a while I have been paid for it)
If the end-link holes are spaced the same on your suspension as the stock 68, get a 1" 68 Mustang bar. Don't get the bigger bar you suggest, it'll be too harsh for the street. "Bigger is better" is NOT true in this case.
I have no idea where people get this from...not from actual experience that is for sure.....demonstarted many times and many real articles written back in the days when journalist were real (not ad marketeers), Guldstrand & a competitor demonstrated this was a non-issue...if the suspension system was oem or close to it, an oversize bar would have no effect on the ride quality- a sway bar does not limit suspension travel, affect rebound or anything else, it limits body roll/weight transfer....nothing more, nothing less.
Rear sway bars will cause oversteer and are a waste of money on these cars.
It all depends on the type, style & design (adjustible or not)....the early designs limited the body flex so much that it would in effect cause wheel bump and on track conditions, induce wheel lift when engaging an uneven surface.....but, depending on the specific suspension spec and sway bar specs (including the front), it may very well be appropriate & very effective IF the installer is AWARE & UNDERSTANDS these dynamics.
My '66 coupe was rebuilt with stock suspension parts. No rollers, 1" drops, fancy shocks etc. In driving this car, it felt "soft" and slightly wandering. Mechanic friend helped to install a rear sway bar, the one VM sells. Man, what a difference!. This car drives as if on rails, straight and true. Yes, it corners great. That is my experience, you may not like them, I do!
I have no idea where people get this from...not from actual experience that is for sure.....demonstarted many times and many real articles written back in the days when journalist were real (not ad marketeers), Guldstrand & a competitor demonstrated this was a non-issue...if the suspension system was oem or close to it, an oversize bar would have no effect on the ride quality- a sway bar does not limit suspension travel, affect rebound or anything else, it limits body roll/weight transfer....nothing more, nothing less.
You must live in the far-off "Land of Smooth Pavement". Here in real-world Pennsylvania, when you hit a pothole with a front wheel on a Mustang with a 1 1/4" front sway bar, the resistance of that bar to popping in and out of that pothole will shake you out from under your hair. Don't tell me, I've done it.
I used to live in Florida, which hasn't seen frost heave since wooly mammoths roamed the earth, and a 1 1/4" bar would be no problem, as you say.
__________________
Amateur restorer. (Well, once in a while I have been paid for it)
My '66 coupe was rebuilt with stock suspension parts. No rollers, 1" drops, fancy shocks etc. In driving this car, it felt "soft" and slightly wandering. Mechanic friend helped to install a rear sway bar, the one VM sells. Man, what a difference!. This car drives as if on rails, straight and true. Yes, it corners great. That is my experience, you may not like them, I do!
Interesting. I'm going to install a front bar for sure and drive it. Depending on the $$ of that VM(btw, is that Virginia Mustangs??) one you have, I may install it after and see if we like it--worst case I take it off and sell it at 50% of new.
If it is possible to get one from Heidt's that's where I would go 1st- if they do not then I would get the recommendation where they have theirs made, and push for the hollw tube type- again, a little more $ but a beautifull a car as what you have, its really pennies for what the return will be
Thanks, I know they make one for the kit but it is only 7/8" and solid.I'll speak with their tech department.
The MII suspension has pluses and minuses. The wrong camber curve (gain) as the suspension is compressed is one of the minuses. Not much that could be done to that car at this point to fundamentally help. Sorry.
You could experiment with different anti-sway bars and shocks.
Certainly get it aligned to "handling specs" if possible (I don't know how much adjustment your car will allow) - but if possible try for -1/2 degree camber (top of the wheel leans in), 4+ degrees positive caster (top of the spindle leaning back), and 1/8 of an inch toe in.
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