Stock 23mm FSB vs Eibach 22mm solid bar

My 04 wagon has a factory 23mm front bar, I can pick up an Eibach 22mm non adjustable bar for peanuts, I know its 1mm smaller but is it a better bar than stock?

Thanks.

Bueller, anyone???

It all depends on what is meant by 'better'. If better means more roll resistance because of a higher spring rate from one bar vs the other, then the thicker bar is 'better'. On the other hand, there are those who think that less roll resistance is better able to keep more rubber on the road due to more suspension movement during cornering.

So you should be able to answer this question yourself by doing some critical testing and thinking about what is going on at your limits of adhesion during cornering.

Oh, and there is an interesting hint in looking at racing photos. You know, the ones where the front inside corner of the car is in the air during a fast turn? Well, it might look cool, but it isn't the fast way around the course. It is indicative of too much roll resistance for that set up, be it from spring rates that are too high or roll bars that are too heavy, or both. When you roll up on the outside tire only, your tire patch shrinks to a small part of what the car needs, and you will experience horrid understeer. That isn't likely to happen with street equipment, but it shows what happens when things are taken to the extreme.

Hope that helps,

PH

I had got my hands on some Neuspeed 25mm bars. I changed the front and felt a less body roll on tight cornering. Then I put the rear one in and the car really changed. The rear of the car is so tight that when I turn into my uphill driveway one of the back wheels is a foot off the ground. I think the understeer created is manageable for our purposes of towing our trailer. Most of the time we are going straight at 100kph.

I have KW2/3 fully adjustable coilovers with rears running KW3 rebound and bounce control all to tighten up the effects of the trailer on the car.

When we drive the Beetle without the trailer, it is rough ride. That's why we have the GTI

If we were to race the car, I would redo the entire setup to make it more compliant for cornering. Probably drop the rear swaybar too.

Thanks, I just don't like the way the front end really rolls into corners. I have a rear bar and not it makes the front seem softer,

I put in the Seat Cupra Leon poly bushings in the rear - or should I say, I had a mechanic do that - and it so firmed up the rear end so much that I ditched the 25mm roll bar I had back there.

I have stock springs with Koni Reds and don't get a lot of front end roll.

I wonder if the larger rear bar makes the front end roll? In other words, since the force is resisted at the back, it affects the front of the car?

Judson said:

I put in the Seat Cupra Leon poly bushings in the rear - or should I say, I had a mechanic do that - and it so firmed up the rear end so much that I ditched the 25mm roll bar I had back there.

I have stock springs with Koni Reds and don't get a lot of front end roll.

I wonder if the larger rear bar makes the front end roll? In other words, since the force is resisted at the back, it affects the front of the car?

Click to expand...

I have those bushings to put in, will be done when I put the GLI rear beam in.

That's probably what is happening, forcing the front to roll in more. Hmmmmm.