ok, this goes to those that have replaced / removed thier front swaybar. check this link: under protege and tell me if it is a picture of the subframe that every one says you need to lower. does it only have those four bolts holding it on there? if it is, it looks alot easier to remove than is played out.

 

No. That's not your subframe. Your subframe is, well, your frame.

Here's a link for a third gen RX-7 subframe

Good Luck.

 

In acse you aren't sure what you are looking at, it's the piece that holds the engine into the car.

I just did a quick search on yahoo for "Mazda Subframe Pictures"

 

then, using that picture, which part is it?

 

First off, I would like you to know, this post made me run outside to my driveway and climb under my car.

The piece with four bolts connects to the subframe it looks like. I guess I have a question for everyone else. Why does the subframe need to be dropped to change the sway bar? Wouldn't it be possible to remove the front tires, raise the car up, and jimmy the bar out that way. I didn't get to into but it looks as if there are two bolts attaching the bar to the subframe.

Since I wasn't able to raise the car up, I could be wrong. I just know there is a lot of work to remove a subframe. I'm in the process of building a 69 Camaro

 

The picture shows the subframe quite well, and you can plainly see that sway bar runs between it and the body. There’s more to the subframe then just the cross member with the four bolts. In that picture I think it’s safe to say that everything painted black, and not undercoated is part of the subframe. At least for the purposes of replacing the sawy bar. Well, maybe not the oil pan.

I looked at the bar a while back when working on the front end, and remember thinking that it wouldn’t come out without droping at least the back end of the frame out. And it seemed like that was pretty much the whole thing too. Looked to me like a job best accomplished on a lift, with the wheels off, hubs slightly supported and a tranny jack to hold the engine and frame up. I’d guess about 2-1/2 hours total, including an alignment check afterward.

The first thing I’d do is spend 4 hours pulling, twisting and skinning knuckles, while trying to get it out without dropping anything. That would give me time to kill a 6 pack, be ready to give up, and plan to ride the bike to work the next day. But that’s just the way I do things, and for now I think the stock front sway bar is just fine. But then again, so is my wife, and for all the same reasons too.

 

take a look at this pic. Maybee it will help more.


This is the MP3, so the bar is easily seen. Red bar twisting up. It seems like that bar goes up between the "A" arms and over the frame.

 

OK, I've been meaning to answer this but I've been offline for a few days.

The part with 4 bolts appears to be a subframe crossbrace- that my 99 Pro doesn't have. This must be one of the improvements made to the 01+ Pro. I'd be interested to know exactly how it attaches to the subframe, and if it's possible to install this on a 99-00. Looks pretty beefy.

Anyways, as you probably already know, that is NOT the subframe. You HAVE to drop the subframe to remove the swaybar- there is a U-shaped bend in the middle of the swaybar where it goes over the shifter linkage and exhaust system. The U-bend makes it IMPOSSIBLE to shimmy the bar out the side of the car without dropping the subframe. I've tried it.

Here's a brief explanation of the procedure for removing the front swaybar:

1) Support the car and remove the front wheels.
2) Remove the crossbrace with the 4 bolts.
3) Remove the shifter linkage (2 longitudinal black metal rods in the picture, next to the exhaust system).
4) Remove the middle section of the exhaust system.
5) Remove the 2 nuts that attach the No. 2 engine mount to the engine support member (the big longitudinal brace that holds the engine up).
6) Support the engine and transaxle and drop the engine support member.
7) Seperate the tie rod ends and disconnect the fluid lines from the steering rack. Remove the steering rack.
8) Remove the front control arms.
9) Remove the 2 nuts beside the strutsthat hold the subframe up, then drop the subframe.
10) Remove the front sway bar.
11) Reinstall everything in reverse order or removal.
12) Don't forget to bleed the power steering system and get an alignment.

Not a job for the faint of heart.

 

I've done it on my '00 ES, and you do have to loosen and tilt the subframe to get the front bar out. It's doable, but not the easiest job for the home mechanic.