Just installed new Z51 sway bars on my 99 coupe and the front bar makes contact with the A-arm on bumps and sharp turns. Had to pull the front off. Everything was torqued to specs.Did get to drive it a few days and like the feel of the new bar better. Any ideas?

 

Torque them down tighter then specs say to prevent rattle. You may want to go with a stiffer shock also. Bilstiens are great.

 

Had the same clunk, had the metal end links over tightened, problem solved.

 

Are you shure it does? Is it due to lowering? Is it the right swaybar? Is it centered left to right?
If it really contacts I would take it out. The A-arm should not be hit by anything.
Frederik

 

Thanks for your replies. The new sway bar in front has a little different bend than the old one and it hits on both sides of the bar on the A-arms.Does anyone know if a 2002 Z51 bar is different than a Z51 from 1999?

 

Mallet sent me a sway bar that clunked as well on my 01 Z and penske shocks that did not fit, sent the shocks back and threw out the sway bar, oh yah there seemed to be a different bend in there than stock.


[Modified by gstama, 7:01 AM 7/17/2002]

 

No problem with the Hotchkis setup on my lowered 99' coupe. :seeya

 

When I put the Z-51 bars on my 98, I noticed that the front was very close to hitting the control arms. It appeared that centering the bar was critical, and any offset would result in interference on one side or the other. I took extra care to center it, and it seems to be OK.

If you can't center it & eliminate the interference, it sounds like something is out of spec.

 

I put Z06 bars on my 02 Coupe last week, and they don't make any noise at all. The "bends" looked like they were in exactly the same places as my stock (base suspension) bars, although the bars were a good bit beefier.

You might try to find someone local that has a car with the Z51 suspension (or at least the sway bars) who will let you take a look at his sway bars so you can compare it with yours.

Also (if you have the means), it might be helpful to take a picture of the area where it's making contact and post it. Either way, I suspect someone on here will be able to help you figure out what's going on. :cheers:

Dan



[Modified by DanN, 8:36 AM 7/17/2002]

 

To reply to your questions,the car has not been lowered and the bar is being hit on both sides by the lower control arms, so centering it doesn't seem to be the problem. I have access to a lift so I can get a good look at where it hits and the difference between the two bars. According to GM's parts #'s and applications [have access to GM computer] this bar should work on 1997-2003. The bar is much thicker and the upward curve is just a little different. I did get the steel end links with the bar to replace plastic ones on the front. Maybe i'll send this back to GM and try the Z06 bar.

 

I have ordered 2002 Zo6 sway bars for my 98 cp with base suspention. Is there anything I should know here? They will come with metal links and new bushings. They told me on the phone that you do not lubricate the bushings, any other advise from someone who has done this ? I am not changing shocks right now. Thanks, Skip

 

Might be a silly question but, I'm wondering if somehow you got it on upside down? I looked at mine last night and there is a specific bend in the bar around the lower A-arm. On my Z51 and Hotchkis bars.
Definately something weird going on as I have installed several different sets of bars and never run in to this issue. :confused:

 

I'm using the Z06 Bars with no problems. Just TQ them correctly otherwise they make noise.

 

Skip,
The front and rear bushings I got with my Z06 bars from Fitchner were packaged slightly differently. The two rear bushings were in individual little plastic bags with some kind of weird greenish film on them (some kind of lubricant perhaps? I wasn't sure what it was!). The fronts were... actually I don't remember exactly how the fronts were packaged, but they were not "lubricated" in any way, and I didn't put anything on them when I mounted the bars. Someone recommended that I use a little anti-seize on the upper rear sway bar bolts (which I did), but I don't know if it is really necessary. The hardest part of the job to me was just dealing with those PITA endlinks bolts. It's slightly easier to get the front bars on and off if you take the wheels off, but I did the whole job just using rhino ramps (although my car is too low to drive up them in the front now, so I had to jack it up and then lower it onto the ramps). Let me know if you have any other questions and I'll be happy to try to help you out.


Dan

 

:yesnod:

 

test

 

Dan, Thanks, thats the kind of things I need to hear. When I ordered my Z06 bar kit I asked about installing and lube on the bushings. They told me to install as received, no lube. I do think anti seize compound on bolts might be a good idea to. Anyone else do this mod? I have found good directions on Kens pages... Skip :chevy

 

TTT

 

TTT