Sway bar and ride quality

Jcraig

TJ Enthusiast
Supporting Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2019
Messages
105
Location
florida
After reducing sway bar mounting to frame bolt torque from 70 ft lbs to 45 and greasing the sway bar link bushings both the metal sleeves and rubber inside and out my ride quality seems to have less sharp jarring over bumps. Also cooler temperatures here may play a part. Placebo or real improvement?
 
Thanks for your reply. Guess I'm getting used to the idea that it's not realistic to expect it to ride like a Lexus. At any rate it seems to be pretty much trouble free, knock on wood, so now just drive and enjoy all of the qualities it offers that are different and the reason I bought it to begin with.
 
Are the factory rubber sway bar bushings bonded to the sleeve and housing? If so, then loosening them to allow movement is absolutely going to contribute to a decreased lifespan.
 
There are no bonded parts in the factory sway bar bushings. Separate bushing and outer metal sleeve.

Either way, loosening an already loose connection should not "improve" anything. A while back, I replaced all the worn bushings in the rear sway bar and the rear shocks. Getting those connections tight, snug and controlled again actually improved the ride, comfort and the overall experience.

If loosening bolts was a good idea in the pursuit of comfort, we would loosen all the control arms and the track bars.
 
Are the factory rubber sway bar bushings bonded to the sleeve and housing? If so, then loosening them to allow movement is absolutely going to contribute to a decreased lifespan.
Just re-torqued did not look to see if they were bonded. The sleeves in the end links were not bonded.
 
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Either way, loosening an already loose connection should not "improve" anything. A while back, I replaced all the worn bushings in the rear sway bar and the rear shocks. Getting those connections tight, snug and controlled again actually improved the ride, comfort and the overall experience.

If loosening bolts was a good idea in the pursuit of comfort, we would loosen all the control arms and the track bars.
Thanks for the response. The sway bar bushings were far too tight (75 ft lbs)loosened to proper torque only.
 
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The amount of rotation in the swaybar is very slight. You may have allowed it to move a bit easier, but enough to actually feel it is unlikely.
Still, any maintenance is worth doing. And the next overtorqued bolt you correct could be a life saver.
 
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