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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 4,140
Hard-core CEG\'er
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OP
Hard-core CEG\'er
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 4,140 |
Originally posted by EternalOne:
Well I have my custom 1" hollow, heat-treated bar in my car now -- and I love it. The weight difference between the solid BAT bar and mine is amazing, and even a few pounds on a suspension component does matter.
The swaybar is the one suspension component where weight is minimal in effect. The only unsprung weight on the thing is the ends, and then only 1/2 the weight counts since it's hinged.
Quote:
My bars will be available for purchase next month, once I get back from Cougarfest and come with poly bushings and stronger endlinks (I've seen too many Cougars break the endlinks, so I designed new ones).
E1
What's wrong with Stazis endlinks?
Please PM me! I'll cancel this to make yours happen if it's a better product. You omitted one major detail: wall thickness. How thick is the tubing you used? You bar could be either stiffer than the Aussie (bad thing!), or less stiff than the BAT (possibly bad). Fill me in on the details!
Remember people, stiffer is not always better! We have independant suspensions for a reason: why make them less independant? There is more than enough bar on a stock Contour to keep body roll in check, so the bars should be used for tuning of handling at the limits. However, spring rates, ride height, wheel size, tire choice: those all matter here too! There is no "right bar", but I feel the 21mm (13/16, really) BAT bar in the rear with the 19mm front SVT bar will provide the roll stiffness and handling balance that a high-end suspension needs. A 20mm front will work well with the Addco, BAT, or Aussie.
So please: stiffer is not better! Look at that picture above. If I used all four tires to corner, I could make it around the corner faster. I'm hoping to correct that with spring rates, but we'll see. Suspension tuning is just that: tuning. Extremes are NEVER good. Big wheels are bad, but really small wheels are slow too. Lots of camber helps you corner, but kills you in the straights... it's always something in the middle that will be the fastest.
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