Drag Racing Tech - How many of you DD without front sway bar?

Well i just did the front bumper delete mod and now i am thinking about taking the front sway bar out also. I did both these things to my 99 Z28 and i never had a problem. But now i have the SS and i want to take a little more care for it then i did the Z. I was just wondering how many of yall daily drive your f-body without the front sway bar? Does it have a long term effect on any other suspension parts?

I only drove mine for about a month on the street after I took mine off but during that time I didn't see any problems out of it. Didn't even know it was gone besides the fact that it transfered weight better.
It will help on your weight transfer on your launch because the sway bar is holding the front down.

I don't DD but it does see the street alot and I have had the Front Swaybar off for 3 years, and have been fine. My car is setup for Drag Racing so I don't hit the corners hard at all.

Dan

God...another one of these threads? Take it off and forget about it. Also ignore the sandy vaginas that are sure to enter this thread and tell you how deadly this can be, lol.

I drove my car for almost 3 years without the front sway bar.
With street wheels/tires, and shocks adjusted accordingly, it's not bad. :)

It is however back on the car now.

i DD mine w/ it off, been off for about 2 yrs now

-brandon

Mine was a DD for 3 years without the front sway bar...

You notice it at first but after a few days your just learn the differences and then never ever realize it's not there...

Man I should just take mine off and leave it off. It was such a pain trying to get the alternators in and out with that thing in that way...I had to do 2 alternator installs on my car a few weeks ago.

It sucks, if you like driving a boat then its nice

It sucks, if you like driving a boat then its nice

Hmmm I guess mine didn't feel that much different to me.

have had my sway bar off for about 2.5 years and really dont miss it much at all

Even if you have all stock suspension components, is it still safe to take off?

Even if you have all stock suspension components, is it still safe to take off?
Mine was all stock suspension up untill 2 weeks ago when I started getting the car ready for this racing season, and like I said above I daily drove the car for 3 years that way...

Alrite cool, might have to do that tomorrow, i know this sounds like a stupid question but how long should it take to come off?

would it really be worth it for me to pull mine off for the track?

Mine and all the hardware is off all the time. Don't miss it at all.

Many cars came from the factory with NO SWAY BARS and no one magically died because of this one thing.

I took mine off when i did my engine swap 2 weeks ago, it pisses me off when I come out of a curve with some speed and when i quickly switch lanes. The body rolls a bit, I am probably going to put it back on. It is definitely not as stable as it is with it on.

Toom mine off and DD it for a while, car is no longer a DD.

I noticed a difference, if you like the twisties leave it on. I don't miss it.

i took it off long ago. i did notice when i added the BMR rear drag sway bar,it made the front feel stiff as well. i almost feel like i have a front sway again.

It's not horrible without the swaybar.
But I've grown attached to my 35mm swaybar on curvy stress releif runs after work.

It comes off (along with the STB and street rims) for the track.

I drive my 55 Chevy without a sway bar every day! It has been driven without one since 1955 ;)

Damn, I think the poll speaks for itself. lol The 2 votes for not, were probably drunk too. :D

swaybar? you guys actually run those things :confused:

if u like curves, keep it on.
if you like straight, 1320 ft at a time then keep it off.
if u like both then u will need to learn how to compromise and do what is that u want at time on the track. simple huh! mine stays off, much easier......


fuerzaws6 :drive:

My car has more time without it than with.

Well it was off on my 99 Z with no problems so i guess its coming off of this car too.

i dd'd my V6 like that for nearly a year, on bigs and littles too

needless to say going back to a normal wheel/tire combo and the swaybar made a difference in offramp fun factor. a huge difference, not to me but you definitely notice it when it's gone...

if u like curves, keep it on.
if you like straight, 1320 ft at a time then keep it off.
if u like both then u will need to learn how to compromise and do what is that u want at time on the track. simple huh! mine stays off, much easier......


fuerzaws6 :drive:


I used to swap it on/off for my '94, but got tired/lazy so it has stayed off for about the last 4 years. All of my other cars have them, as I like having good handling/cornering. As long as you adapt your driving style, it's fine. I have the benefit of QA1 10-ways on that car, so I just dial the fronts a little tighter for street use and it seems fine.

I've daily driven mine without it for about a year and I got tired of the body roll so I put it back on. I just take it off for the 1/4 track now because I like the twisties. It's actually a little scary when a 4"x4"x84" piece of wood falls off a trailer in front of you and you have to swerve into the next lane or get impailed by some f*cking redneck that can't tie down a load. I nearly lost the rear end when I corrected because it rolled so bad. Other than stuff like that though, it's not bad driving without it.

In the drag racing section I think the answers will be a bit lopsided.

What is the advantage of doing this? How exactly does it improve weight transfer?

I also saw that one person said that they took off their strut tower bar at the track. Would this further the effect of taking the front sway bar off?

What is the advantage of doing this? How exactly does it improve weight transfer?

I also saw that one person said that they took off their strut tower bar at the track. Would this further the effect of taking the front sway bar off?
It helps weight transfer greatly, I will throw a pic below of my mostly stock lt1 when it was running mid 13.6's and getting 1.9 60' just to show how much weight transfer there was without the front swaybar...

The STB removal is more then likely just for weight reduction, but weight reduction is the other reason for pulling the front sway bar...

http://cpt.pszweb.com/images/john_launch.jpg

Works for me. I'll have to give it a shot when I hit the track.

The interstate feels is alot better with the sway bar out. Parking lot speed bumps don't bother you as much either.

In the drag racing section I think the answers will be a bit lopsided.

I totally agree. Take this thread to the suspension forum, or road race and it will get a compeletly diffrent answer.

I used to run drag radials with skinnys up front with no swaybar everyday for 2 years.

How much faster would you be with no sway bar? possible 1/10 off?? And is it easy to take off for the track, and easy to put on for the street?

In the drag racing section I think the answers will be a bit lopsided.
.....as they should be. It aids in weight transfer which results in a lower 60ft time. Since this was posted in the drag section, I'm sure the thread starter wants a better 60ft time....not a lap time ;)

How much faster would you be with no sway bar? possible 1/10 off?? And is it easy to take off for the track, and easy to put on for the street?
I saw an average reduction of .2 in my 60" and the end result was almost .33 off my ET when I had the swaybar hooked up. But remember this is with a slow car, get one with more power and they can see even more...

I daily drive without mine either. I even long haul on Power Tour (4,000 miles in 7 days) without it. Just don't take any off/on ramps over 100 and you'll be okay. :cool:

I'll take the other side on this one. It really depends on how you drive your car when your on the street. I had mine off on my 95 Z28. I like a spirited drive on the street, as well as the occasional contest of speed should another car come along.

A corvette wanted to go on the highway and I changed lanes at 90+ with no sway bar, lost it, spun a few times and ended up on the side of the road with a chunk broken out of my dash from the chassis flex. I could change lanes at 90+ all day long with the bar on with no problems.

So if you ever like to drive a little fast or you frequently get into impromtu races on the street, I would leave it.

I'll take the other side on this one. It really depends on how you drive your car when your on the street. I had mine off on my 95 Z28. I like a spirited drive on the street, as well as the occasional contest of speed should another car come along.

A corvette wanted to go on the highway and I changed lanes at 90+ with no sway bar, lost it, spun a few times and ended up on the side of the road with a chunk broken out of my dash from the chassis flex. I could change lanes at 90+ all day long with the bar on with no problems.

So if you ever like to drive a little fast or you frequently get into impromtu races on the street, I would leave it.

Damn, I was thinking about taking mine out until reading that.

I'll take the other side on this one. It really depends on how you drive your car when your on the street. I had mine off on my 95 Z28. I like a spirited drive on the street, as well as the occasional contest of speed should another car come along.

A corvette wanted to go on the highway and I changed lanes at 90+ with no sway bar, lost it, spun a few times and ended up on the side of the road with a chunk broken out of my dash from the chassis flex. I could change lanes at 90+ all day long with the bar on with no problems.

So if you ever like to drive a little fast or you frequently get into impromtu races on the street, I would leave it.
LOL

That was have been one SERIOUS lane change!!! :jest:

LOL

That was have been one SERIOUS lane change!!! :jest:

ya it was a pretty wild ride. I was stupid, I'll be the first to say it. I jumped behind the vette while passing one car, then jumped back into the right lane to continue racing, but in the heat of the moment I missed the other car that was in the right lane, right in front of me doing the speed limit, so I went to take the shoulder which was the only option at that point, I wouldnt have been able to brake fast enough. When I straightened out, the body rolled so bad I lost traction to my back left tire and just went into a flat spin, spun 4 times before stopping, luckily didnt roll over or hit anything. I dont race in anything but a straight line anymore, no traffic weaving for me.

taking mine out tmorrow ill let you guys know the out come...

I've done it both, you can drive it but I dont like the feel, I never saw a diff at the track.

wow this poll had a total different outcome in the suspension section.
There must be alot more road racers in that section.
http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=682351&page=1

yeah funny how hte outcome of the poll changes drastically depending on the forum.

Originally Posted by Go Topless
I'll take the other side on this one. It really depends on how you drive your car when your on the street. I had mine off on my 95 Z28. I like a spirited drive on the street, as well as the occasional contest of speed should another car come along.

A corvette wanted to go on the highway and I changed lanes at 90+ with no sway bar, lost it, spun a few times and ended up on the side of the road with a chunk broken out of my dash from the chassis flex. I could change lanes at 90+ all day long with the bar on with no problems.

So if you ever like to drive a little fast or you frequently get into impromtu races on the street, I would leave it.

I bet that was a wicked ride!

Mine has been off for a few months, I dont miss it. Then again, I take my time on the on/off ramps. Higher speeds (120+) the car gets a little sketchy, but thats not very often. I just dont do highspeed runs when its super windy :devil:

seemed to ride smoother up front.

seemed to ride smoother up front.

Smoother = looser

i just took mine off. its no big deal. you barely notice when you take turns.

I drive mine with no front sway bar. The only time I have ever noticed it was on skinnies and an interstate on ramp going to damn fast.

dumber question....how do you remove it? going to pull some weight off the car 2morrow and this is 1st on the list. i figured it was straight forward, but wanted to make sure, and find out what to remove/unbolt, and if anything needs to be left alone, or put back on after removal of SB

dumber question....how do you remove it? going to pull some weight off the car 2morrow and this is 1st on the list. i figured it was straight forward, but wanted to make sure, and find out what to remove/unbolt, and if anything needs to be left alone, or put back on after removal of SB

Its pretty straitfoward. also remove the stands for the sway bar thats extra weight

i just took mine off. its no big deal. you barely notice when you take turns.



Just dont take corners hard. Im sure you arent if you felt no difference.

dont brake really hard at high speeds, even in an emergency

dont speed because its unstable

saftey first. but a track cars a diff story..

Just dont take corners hard. Im sure you arent if you felt no difference.

dont brake really hard at high speeds, even in an emergency

dont speed because its unstable
lol :judge:

Taking mine out tomorrow. I don't speed when driving around, and definitely don't street race. The track is for racing, and the street is for getting from A to B. But my stand point is a little different than the consensus of other F-body owners. And in case you think I'm some 50 year old here, I'm actually 18. I just have a different way of thinking.

I just took my CTS in for service and they gave me a DTS as a rental. There is no way for that car to possibley out handle a fbody with the swaybar off. The DTS handles way worse than my silverado. In fact it makes the Silverado feel like it is a good handling vehicle and my camaro with the bar off handles better than the Siverado. That car was all over the place on the interstate at 70mph it was just floating up and down and every shift the car rocked up and down and everytime I went by a big truck it blew me off the road.

I think this question really boils down to whether you are daily driving your drag car or if you are drag racing your daily driver. IMO, there IS a difference. Seriously, are you DDing a high HP drag car or are you DRing a grocery getter? If you only have one car that HAS to function for you, leave it intact. If you have something else available should the need arise, by all means, get all the weight you can off your drag car and don't bother putting it back on.

Taking mine out tomorrow. I don't speed when driving around, and definitely don't street race. The track is for racing, and the street is for getting from A to B. But my stand point is a little different than the consensus of other F-body owners. And in case you think I'm some 50 year old here, I'm actually 18. I just have a different way of thinking.

Just unblot one side when you go drag racing. Leave it on. It has more advantages, than disadvantages.

I took my front sway off the second day I had my car back in 2002. It only had 70 miles on it when I took the sway bar off and it's never going back on . By the way my car hit 30,000 miles yesterday . :)

I only have my sway bar on from April to September [I do not race in the summer, its hot, ikky, and nasty] But I do drive it from October to May without the front swaybar on skinnies all the time.

I took mine out, but don't really DD my car. I don't notice that much difference...

i have contemplated this. but seein as i drive twisty lake roads i want to keep it on. but your sayin you can unbolt just one side at the track and it will make a difference

gone

:cool:

Drive ours to the track and back. WOULDNT BE TAKEING ANY 20 MPH CURVES AT A 100 MPH!

I do DD and have for years without

Cant even notice its gone. Not a DD but it is street drivin. And I live in the country, not just city drivin.

I took mine off a few weeks ago. I honestly don't feel very much of a difference in normal driving. I rarely drive my car though.

took mine off last friday and drove around all weekend without it. Didn't notice that big of a difference. The car still corners fairly well at normal speeds, just not as good as it used to. I plan on leaving mine off.

I DD mine like that for almost 2 years, and never had a problem.

I haven't had the front sway bar on my car since Jan. 1998 when I first got it.

Just removed mine, the car never handled real good when it was on, so I never went fast in the corners. Lost about 10 lbs and has better weight distribution which is good for traction.

With the TRZ bolt in ARB in the rear of the shops 95 Firebird it drives awesome without the front sway bar. It used to only have the factory rear sway bar on it and it would sway and roll over under cornering. Now it stays nice and flat :)

I think this question really boils down to whether you are daily driving your drag car or if you are drag racing your daily driver. IMO, there IS a difference. Seriously, are you DDing a high HP drag car or are you DRing a grocery getter? If you only have one car that HAS to function for you, leave it intact. If you have something else available should the need arise, by all means, get all the weight you can off your drag car and don't bother putting it back on.

x2 :judge:

Took it off yesterday for the track (Had it off in under 5 minutes) and it will be staying off, Theres quite a signifigant improvement in weight transfer...

As far as daily driving It's hard to tell that its gone, people made it sound alot worse than it really is

It will stay off for as long as I own the car

damn i guess i'm gonna take my'n off before i go to the track next time..i need all the help i can get cuz i'm only running a 255 drag radial..

I was a big believer in never daily driving without it. I've since changed my mind because I installed a rear 22mm solid chromemoly bar. Now, the car handles and a lot better than before when I had the front bar off with the stock rear bar. I never thought the rear bar would make the car so 'sloppy' with the front bar off. I'll be leaving the front off from now on.

I never had one on my old Z28 and it is coming off my CETA in the next couple of days

DD without it and really cant tell a diff. Maybe a little roll from time to time...nothing worth putting it back on for imo.

I never really was into cornering anyway though, staight line baby!! :D