Hey guys,
I recently installed the AWR 21.5mm rear sway bar. Now the vehicle is very tail-happy and wants to slide out too much. If I upgrade my front sway bar to the 25mm or 27mm one, will that even things out and provide for a more neutral handling car? Any thoughts are welcome, thanks.

 

i would say so u need ur sways to match

 

Do you have the adjustable bar? I have the adjustable bar set at medium stiffness and it does not seem overly tail happy...
but if you think it feels to tailhappy than you can go with the bigger front bar. If you have the adjustable AWR bar, just soften it.
Only prob with the bigger front bar is that it *may* cause the front wheels to lift - increasing wheelspin while exiting corners.
But that's usually just when you are racing.

Later,

 

The bar is about 1.5 inches or so out from the slider brackets. It becomes very touchy at higher speeds, like a slight jerk/correction will make the rear bounce about a little. I suppose I'll just wait for spring to roll around. I don't plan to drive like a maniac at all in winter, and by that time I'll have the money for the front sway bar (if I decide it is needed). Thanks for the replies guys.

 

Yep----1.5" sticking out from bracket is a stiff settting. The softest setting is having the bracket at the end of the bar. Try moving the bracket back so that only .5" or 3/4" is sticking out. It will make a dramatic difference.

 

Very glad to hear it. With the bar at a softer setting, is reaching the limit more gradual, or would it still have a snap over-steer tendency?

 

You should not have the snap oversteer. Oversteer will be more gradual.
Also keep in mind the difference between snap oversteer and a driver error. I don't mean to criticize your skills, but we all make mistakes. One common mistake that I have made, and I think everyone new to racing, is when you are hauling A$$ around a sweeper and you realize you are going to fast to make the exit of the turn so you hit the brakes. This doesn't really matter what your suspension setup is, if you are driving a FWD car, the back end will come out on you.

Real handling characteristics (in my mind) are determined by how a car behaves under full throttle.
This can be broken down into transitional handling (like lane changes or offsets), and slalom handling; and how a car handles in a sweeper- at entry, mid corner, or exit.
You can also add how a car responds to lifting off the throttle, and braking.

OK I'm going to stop now (in a straight line ).

I'm not trying to be critical, but I hope this helps.

BTW, if you look up "Snap Oversteer" in a dictionary, there should be a picture of an MR2 Turbo.

 

I understand what you're saying. I'm definitely no race-ready driver. I have yet to take any driving courses. I believe then that it is my fault as the driver. The back end always becomes "hoppy" on/after a turn when I turn the wheel sharply or jerk it (granted this is only an inch or so being turned). I'll mess around with the stiffness settings and we'll see how things turn out.