ID Parts A4 Rear Swaybar Install

just installed the idparts rear sway bar in my mk4 jetta today - not too bad of an install, but drilling the holes was a pita, even with the craftsman cobalt bit i got. my arms are sore, lol. always working in a gravel driveway on jackstands doesn't make things easier. futzing around with the clamps was annoying as they kept slipping while i was trying to get it aligned just right. a couple of my holes weren't 100% perfect, but all was fine after just drilling around the hole a bit more to give a tad bit of leeway. all in all, not to bad, thanks to this writeup

Fix_Until_Broke, thanks for the pics and writeup and suggestions on how to install it - helped greatly!

and yes, the rear sway bar is freekin awesome, car really handles now as i think it should, no longer like a boat i love it! wish i had put one in years ago.

Does a rear bar increase available traction?

Thinking about suspension geometry on the MK IV, Does adding a RSB reallocate available traction or does it somehow increase available traction? The available tire patch does not change or does it? The suspension geometry does not necessarily change though tire angles at various loads do change some.

Granted some of the traction is shifted away from one end and added to the other end. The balance of the vehicle feels a whole lot better.

Any thoughts?

Joe Golf said:

Thinking about suspension geometry on the MK IV, Does adding a RSB reallocate available traction or does it somehow increase available traction? The available tire patch does not change or does it? The suspension geometry does not necessarily change though tire angles at various loads do change some.

Granted some of the traction is shifted away from one end and added to the other end. The balance of the vehicle feels a whole lot better.

Any thoughts?

Click to expand...

At the risk of screwing up the explination - see the links in Post 35 of this thread.

Perfect, thank you.

sorry for waking the dead... i'm doing the install of my BFI bar pretty soon, which is a cheap copy of the Shine bar. BFI website says to use a 1/2" bit, while the bolts are no more than 3/8" thick, just like described in the OP. so do i stick with 3/8" holes?

My opinion is that 1/2" holes make for easy installation, but will inevitably make for a bar that will move around and make noises (clunks/squeeks/etc).

Mine's been in for 35k miles and is still silent.

thanks for the reply. i will use a 3/8" bit.

Hi..

I have recently purchased the RSB bar from IDparts.. looks good and came with the hardware..

The only thing I am wondering about is that it seems that the rubber bushing that keeps the old sway bar in place is totally in the way..

I know its rubber but it seems that it would have to be really pushed in for the new RSB to fit correctly.. I have not attempted the install yet but just wondering if I should just remove that rubber or will it go in far enough for the sway bar to fit..

Thanx

On my car, the rubber bushing (in the middle, right?) was deformed a little - maybe 1/4" or so? I did not modify it at all, and the IDParts bar went in fine. The OEM bar stays in - it is not removed. This bar is additional to that.

Every car is a little different though - maybe they used a larger bushing in 2000 than in 2003. If it's in the way - where you think it will bend the new bar or be a problem, I'd just trim the bushing as necessary.

Thank You for the reply..

My car is a 2000 TDI, and yeah I think its better to leave that busing in.. but it seemes that the new RSB would have to actually bend a bit for it to fit with it in.. but I also have not tried to put any considerable pressure on the bushing yet other than with my hands...

If anyone that else had that issue I would appreciate some feedback.. just wanted to make sure I get it done right.

My guess is that the little OEM bar will do the bending

I looked at what I wrote in the first post and I did use a c-clamp to pull the bar in place. I didn't have to crank it down or anything, just tighten it up until the blocks were just inside the edge of the oem C channel

Ok.. Thank You .. It will be best if I just try to install it and will see how it goes. I will post my findings..

I've heard that some folks will trim that bushing a bit if needed, but I haven't had anyone comment on that for a while which leads me to believe it's not going to be a problem. But don't remove it: the stock bar will rattle.

I just shaved off as much rubber as I could. Wasn't fun, but worth it.

While the car was on the hoist today, I grabbed the RSB and to my surprise it moved a little bit! After a little further investigation, it's only the left side that moves. You can see the small gap at the tip of the red arrow



So I grabbed my ratchet and went to tighten the outside bolt and with minimal effort, it twisted right off!



I opted to not try the other bolt as I didn't have any replacements on hand. This has been the first issue that I've had with the swaybar in over 5 years since the install. I did check it a few months ago (maybe this fall) when I did my rear brakes and no issues then. I'm not sure why there's a gap and the bar moves a little up and down.

No rattles/clunks/etc and the other side is tight still (the other side has nuts on the top).

I'll update when I get it fixed with new bolts.
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Interesting! I would have thought that the locktite would have kept it from loosening.

Those were grade 8 bolts, correct?

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Yes, grade 8 bolts with red loctite and I don't think they loosened. They're still flush with the top of the beam where I cut them off. Maybe some corrosion got in there and spread them apart stretching the bolts or maybe the paint chipped/flaked away leaving a little gap?

Is there a gap on both sides or just the side where you tapped the Angel axle beam?

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Just a gap on the left side - the right side where it has nuts on it has no gap, nice and tight still.

I had a random clunk going over bumps, etc - Found the RSB on the left side was a bit looser - the inner bolt is still there, but it's broken as well (just can't fall out, likely due to rust...).

So, with both bolts broken off and lots of rust...I cleaned it up with a wire brush, spread the gap on the bottom as much as I could and welded it in.

It definitely improved the turn in and have not heard the clunk in 250 miles. Time will tell if it lasts or not.

hm, interesting
always thought the various strap on rear sway bars for these were a load of 'it', with how they attached to the beam at all four points not making any sense

wonder how well just plating in the opening of the C would work. Might have to try it some time

People have done that. I think it works pretty well. Sometimes too well.

I had my rear bar installed at Shine Racing in 2004. Still working fine 15 years and 320K miles later.

They make a significant change to the handling characteristics of the car - for the positive in my opinion.

I'm sure a plate across the front (open) end would stiffen it up a lot - maybe too much and cause stress concentrations in the beam where the ends of the plate are? If you can get the plate all the way to the "horns" would be the best bet in my opinion.

Otherwise, a chunk of 1.25" swaybar out of a van or something that you drill a couple holes in and a few stacks of washers might be just as easy and less risk of fatigue fractures.

To be clear - I only welded one side on the bottom - essentially filling the gap shown in post 75 above. The other side is bolted in still.

Looked at mine and sure enough, the stock pipe in there is snapped clean through
guess hitting my driveway hard enough to get a rear wheel off the ground every day for going on 5 years now was too much for it, haha
The concerns on cracking are well founded it seems, maybe it's best to ignore the center of the beam and stick with a more stock type solution that attaches well outboard.
got a bunch of sch80 3/4 gas pipe, might holesaw the stock tube out and weld a section of that in its place