"and the SVT has a 4mm (i think) smaller front sway bar, once again, putting it on top in the handling department. "
Actually the smaller sway bar will let the two sides of the suspension (left and right) to act more indepently of each other than with the thicker sawy bar. The thinking by the SVT engineers was probably to allow the suspension to do the work in a corner, not the Sway bar, and to reduce the tendency of a front drive car to understeer, as reducing the diameter of the front sway bar (on a front drive car) will reduce understeer, to a point. The real help in the handling of an SVT is the lower profile tires (the 16" wheel/tire package is on 50 series rubber, while the 15" wheel/tire package is 60 series) which reduce the roll effect of the sidewall.
