F Body Sway Bar Ripping Bolts Out!!!

[GNVYUS 1]

What a huge waste of time and $$. The bar only saves you 7lbs and the damned thing has already torn out a bolt on each side of the bracket. The passenger is already nutted and yesterday the driver one ripped out and it doesn't look like I can nut that one.

Anyone else have this issue or am I lucky?

I think since the bars 4mm rounded I should've put a washer in between the bracket and the frame to give it back some room. The bracket looks smashed to hell trying to get around this swaybar.

I'm contemplating ditching the bar all together since it's lowered 2" with a full PST front end kit, it's tight as hell already.

 

[jdpolzin]

Two things here. First sounds like you mounted the bar tight to the frame? This is a problem many people have while changing out their front bars. The bar should not be tight to the frame. You actually want it have a very slight amount of play so the bar can rotate during cornering. Second, how tight are the end links? These also should not be tight, you can adjust according to your preference but should not be tight. You want the links to be able to move! Ive seen about 15 bars pop the bolts out of the frame because of this. My car actually have to be nutted due to the previous owner overtightening the bar mounts and the endlinks ! Hope this helps! ------Jeremy

 

[turbofish38]

It's not uncommon for those threads to strip out. The only way to repair them and make them stronger is to use some type of NutSert there. I tack welded them on, on my GN. They make some that are aluminum and use a special tool to collapse them.

 

[mikestertwo]

I use 3/8-16 Rivnuts.

 

[GNVYUS 1]

The end links are probably one of the culprits, they were tightened with an impact set to 100psi I believe. I called PST to get the exact torque of the end links so I can start there and redo this crap.

I also remember the top of the poly bushing was flat and on top of the bar so the bar itself wasn't on the frame but those brackets were stretched like a fat man in a little coat. :wink:

BTW the stock bar is 1.26" and the F Body is 1.42" and 7lbs lighter, ya.

I'm not that great with repairing threaded screw ups so this will be interesting for me. My last GN thread fix was retapping the DP bolts that broke off in the turbo, 2 hours of fun there.

Thanks for the tips, two new repair ideas I never knew were out there.

 

[Chuck Leeper]

I use the Unibit when doing Nutserts. It cuts a clean hole, unlike a twist drill, and will chamfer the outer edge of the hole, removing any sharp edges.
Available at HD, Lowes, etc. Not cheap, but if not abused, will last for a long time. It's also a great drill for thin sheetmetal.

 

[GNVYUS 1]

Spent $22 for these items to get it back in today.

25/64 Drill Bit

7/16-20 Tap

7/16-20 ( 1 1/4" ) SS Bolt

I'm literally getting it welded to the frame next week by my import buddy Adam at Devo Tuning here in IL. The brackets distort like hell and the end links weren't as tight as I thought and was able to loosen them somewhat easily.

I think I read that the 32mm and 36mm brackets are the same. Hard to believe, look at the pic below with the car still on the jack stands and how the inside of the bracket isn't flush due to the bar being bigger and needing more circumference. I tightened it up a tad more when it was on the ground but I'm not looking under the car every time I take it out so it's getting welded, screw it.

 

[Chuck Leeper]

Using that bracket , with it not laying flat on the frame is contributing to the failure. Bolts are designed to be loaded to a specific load. In your case, the threads are not properly loaded, and the bolts are being side loaded, due to the brkt not being flat on the frame.
Therefore, the threads in the frame are being fretted, and then the bolts pull out.
If you were to use the tap you got, shim the brkts, so they do not put the bolts in a bending condition, the setup would last alot longer.
Furthermore, the bushings have far more load on them than is necessary...They are there to act as a support, not as a torsional device. That's what the bar does.
Welding will only delay the inevitable.....

 

[jdpolzin]

I tried the 32mm brackets and couldnt make them work. Ended up using the F Body brackets and they are fine now!

 

[turbofish38]

I used the old worn out bushings in the stock G-Body clamp. There aint much meat on the stock 36mm bushing.

 

[GNVYUS 1]

I thought someone on here said the F body brackets were the same?
I thought that sounded odd but that would've been the ticket and saved me a ton of headaches.

I hear ya on them not being flush but the things won't go any flatter and the washers are literally puking around the collar.

And does 30psi sound like the end link torque spec? I read it somewhere online and it seemed kind of low.

 

[UNGN]

Spent $22 for these items to get it back in today.

25/64 Drill Bit

7/16-20 Tap

7/16-20 ( 1 1/4" ) SS Bolt

I'm literally getting it welded to the frame next week by my import buddy Adam at Devo Tuning here in IL. The brackets distort like hell and the end links weren't as tight as I thought and was able to loosen them somewhat easily.

I think I read that the 32mm and 36mm brackets are the same. Hard to believe, look at the pic below with the car still on the jack stands and how the inside of the bracket isn't flush due to the bar being bigger and needing more circumference. I tightened it up a tad more when it was on the ground but I'm not looking under the car every time I take it out so it's getting welded, screw it.

Put 1/8" to 1/4" shims between the bracket and the frame.

you don't want the bracket pinching the bushing.

 

[GNVYUS 1]

I had thought initially a washer to take up the space but the shim is a better idea with the length of it. 4mm is .16 and they have .125 or .250 shims so I'll try that and see if it holds first, as that should help if the GN bracket is smaller.

But the Camaro/Trans Am 36mm bracket part # is killing me as I can't find any info on it.

UNGN, did you get your stock bracket flush with the frame?

 

[UNGN]

UNGN, did you get your stock bracket flush with the frame?

No. We shimmed it so it fit flush with the shims in place. You don't want to squeeze the bushing.

 

[ttypewhite]

Whats the torque spec on the bracket and end links? I just put on a 36mm bar and don't want any problems either.

 

[turbofish38]

The part number for the Camaro clamp is 14041898. It is discontined. And you'll need to drill new holes as the bolt pattern is different. There looks to be some confusion here. I'll try and explain it as clear as I can. Ditch the generic/Energy Suspension bushing and bracket. Okay the G-Body uses one size of clamp regaurdless of bushing and sway bar diameter. The Camaro uses one size of clamp regaurdless of bushing and sway bar diameter. The 32mm bar which is the stock size for the FE3 Regal and the 32mm bar used on some models of Camaro use the exact same bushing. Therefore logic says use the stock 36mm Camaro bushing with the stock G-Body clamp. The big problem and the reason the bolts rip out when you use the Camaro sway bars is that they are bent in the wrong places compared to the G-Body bars. Even when you have it centered as close as you can the bends place a load on the clamp and bushing. The bar can't pivot and it binds in that area which is why the bolts pull out. I have better success using the slightly smaller 34mm hollow bar than the 36mm bar because of this issue. It's still tighter than a 13 year old but it does move more freely than the bigger bar.

 

[GNVYUS 1]

Thanks guys for the replies, too bad I didn't do this before the install.

FWIW, PST said the brackets are the same for the GN and F Body kits so that kills my bracket issue.

The bar is definitely different, you gain more clearance to the FMIC up piping but I can see what you mean TurboFish on the bar being bent different and placing a load on the brackets.

I'm trying the shim route and praying.

 

[WhiteTtype989]

shim route seems like a good idea can anyone help me out im looking for front swaybar torque specs for the endlinks and brackets

thanks

 

[GNVYUS 1]

I found 30psi online but don't have a Chiltons for the GN so I can't confirm.

JD, where did you get the brackets from? I wonder if your stock ones were just screwed since Turbofish said they are the samething.

34mm bar is probably lighter also but I never see that as the F Body Bar to get so I went with the fatty and now wish I'd just left it alone.

And since the bars are bent slightly different, wouldn't this mean the F Body isn't really a great bar for our cars? I'd assume that aftermarket bars have the same geometry as our stock bar right and are just bigger?

Damn, all of this and no power gain!!

 

[WhiteTtype989]

30 psi is the torque did u mean 30 ft lbs ? yea may have to get a chiltons