Rear sway bar advice

[68 Sport Satellite]

Hey, we could shut the forum down and call vendors instead . . . or we could answer questions here and it will help people reading through for years to come.

If anyone does know what the ISO delete kit is, I'm curious. Otherwise, I'm moving on.

most of us on this forum have called vendors at one time or another for answers. They make the parts and are the experts. Would you ask your next door neighbor for advice on a roof repair?
I don't say this often, but I get the impression that you're a bit lazy...

 

[JR_Charger]

Rear Sway Bar Question - Using a 73 mount on a 72

Thanks to Nacho-RT74 for coming through with the answer.

Believe it or not, I am familiar with Nacho-RT74 and his extensive knowledge of the 3rd gen. Since he was watching the thread, I knew I'd get a thorough answer; and now it will be there to help others for years to come. Like all the old threads I've pulled answers from.

So it looks like there is no need for the Leaf Spring ISO delete kit on 72, despite what the web site says; which makes the Firm Feel bar a more viable option.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

Thanks for your words.

the iso delete setup is needed for 73 and lates. You delete what you have not what you don‘t

 

[JR_Charger]

Would you ask your next door neighbor for advice on a roof repair?
I don't say this often, but I get the impression that you're a bit lazy...

I handle most roof repair work myself; but I've got a couple neighbors who are more knowledgeable about carpentry than I am and they've helped me in the past.

I could trade personal insults with you, but just ask yourself what kind of guy starts out with the idea of fixing a few minor problems on a car and putting it back on the road; and ends up completely removing the suspension and brakes, scraping all the undercoating off the back of the car, fixing the rust and reapplying the coating, and replacing everything needed to bring it back to "like new" condition. It won't be "exactly" like new, the suspension and steering will be far better than new and the dash will have a cap on it (for a while). But you get the idea.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

What is wrong on the listing is include the 72 year for the kit… which doesn’t get any isolation assembly

 

[Kern Dog]

1973 was a year of big changes for the B body line.
They went to great lengths to reduce road noise. The front had rubber isolators between the frame rails and K member. The rear had rubber cushioned leaf spring clamps.
Many of those efforts worked at the expense of handling and road feel. The A body line got none of those changes. The E body was spared as well.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

I feel comfortable with the added isolation And I can’t see any REAL big issue with that. Why don’t mix comfort with performance?

in any case, the performance was practically gone by 73. A body was the cheap Mopar option, just the upgrade on the engine mount was included, and E bodies… I guess by 73 ChryCo was aware the times for them was on a countdown to death, so no reason to get a diff unybody design, molds etc…for some E body isolation adding. (Just thinking out loud).

 

[Kern Dog]

I've seen how your car appears. The stock setup is fine for you. Tall profile, narrow tires are not what one would choose for better cornering anyway.
I like a car that reacts faster. The rubber isolators were soft when new and only get more loose and squishy as they age.
I've considered buying a Fifth Avenue, Diplomat or Gran Fury for a easygoing cruiser. Those had the same elements in play. A cruiser does not need to be built to cut corners with ultimate precision....the appeal of those cars is their comfort.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

Yes, is true the lack of the correct replacement isolation parts is an issue.

althought my car is pretty much “stock”, has gotten several performance upgrades on each area. I don’t make hard driving anyway.

poly replacement is a good option thought and since some years now they are available.

 

[JR_Charger]

Yes, is true the lack of the correct replacement isolation parts is an issue.

althought my car is pretty much “stock”, has gotten several performance upgrades on each area. I don’t make hard driving anyway.

poly replacement is a good option thought and since some years now they are available.

It's always nice to know that you can drive it hard though, isn't it? I mean, if you wanted to . . .

I can't wait to see how all this poly I put in performs. My worry is that I may have eliminated the squeeks with polygraphite, but not the "slaps and bangs."

I wish I knew if the poly in PST's rear sway bar brackets was graphite or urethane. That would be the only rear bushing that can't be had in polygraphite, if the stuff that comes with PST's bar is urethane.

 

[Kern Dog]

I'd be interested in learning if there is any difference between Urethane and Polygraphite.
When companies started making Polyurethane, I just called it Urethane and continue to this day.

 

[Sixpactogo]

Thanks for posting that pic! I purchased a set of those sway bar end link plates from Firm Feel but I had no idea how the plates mounted, or how the sway bar mounted. Now I've looked at how PST's bar mounts -

View attachment 1461086

- and I can see I'm in for drilling holes in the subframe regardless. That must be how Chrysler did it, so I suppose it's o.k. I'm concerned about measuring the location of the holes precisely enough, but perhaps it's obvious where the brackets go when you look at it.

I have to say I like Firm Feel's sway bar end link plates better than the little PST adapter plate that is only held on by one nut. It doesn't look like PST's bar would be compatible with Firm Feel's end link plates though - or with the factory plates, I assume. That is an odd decision - presumably guys with factory sway bars would want to upgrade to a stiffer bar, but use their factory end link plates.

I think I may like PST's way of mounting the sway bar bracket on the subframe better, although I didn't at first. It looks like Firm Feel's brackets bolt on from the side, which is four more holes in the subframe. On top of that, you have all that area between the bracket and the subframe for water, salt, and gunk to get into and create rust. I could live with it, since my roads don't get salted all that often and I don't plan to drive the car in bad weather anyway - but it's not a concern at all with PST's design.

Well it looks like I am locked into Firm Feel's rear sway bar, unless I want to sell these Firm Feel end link plates that I rather like. Which means I need to come up with a larger sway bar that fits inside the QA1 k member and strut rods. Anyone know how big the Hotckis front sway bar for 72 is?

The Firm Feel bar design is the same design that the Factory used on E body cars that got a rear bar. Once the bolts are installed, there is zero loss of strength in the frame rail.

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

The Firm Feel bar design is the same design that the Factory used on E body cars that got a rear bar. Once the bolts are installed, there is zero loss of strength in the frame rail.

correct. Which is why many of us here were recommending to call the vendor (Firm Feel) if you want the most accurate information to add to opinions from us to inform your decision.

 

[JR_Charger]

I'd be interested in learning if there is any difference between Urethane and Polygraphite.
When companies started making Polyurethane, I just called it Urethane and continue to this day.

Different in what way? Are you expecting polygraphite to be stiffer/softer than polyurethane? AFAIK polygraphite is just urethane spiked with enough graphite to keep it from squeeking.

I've installed PST's polygraphite shackle bushings into the subframe. Even with lube, I could barely get them in. One of them I couldn't get in all the way by hand. I'm sure it'll pull in when I tighten the shackle up, I'm just saying that there is no softness or compliance in the shackle bushings or leaf spring eye bushings. I'm going to have to pound the leaf spring eye bushings in with a rubber mallet.

Having seen how tight these things are, I wouldn't use urethane in this area and expect lube to keep it quiet. Most of the lube is going to be pushed off the bush. There's only going to be a thin film left to keep things quiet.