propaintball96

Hey guys,

I am about to start buying parts to rebuild the suspension of my car and I had a couple questions...

Are aftermarket front and rear Sway bars, for instance UMI, any better than the stock sway bars? Or are you just paying for a nice powder coated piece of steel with a sticker on it?

I am getting a ton of stuff powder coated and powder coating the originals would be much cheaper than the 500 dollar aftermarkets...

Another question along the same lines are the steering linkages. Is this the same case? I would think buying new ones would get rid of a lot of slack...

Any input is appreciated!

Thanks!

Scorpner

iTrader: (4)

Some of the after-market bars are better and some will resell original sway bars after repainting etc. If you don't already have them, the original 34mm (and less common 36mm) front bars offer a good performance upgrade, especially for the price. They are also hollow and lightweight. Alternatively, some of the after-market bars are solid and larger in diameter. Assuming that the metal is the same, the diameter of a solid bar dictates it's strength. You need to find out what you have and where you want to be and go from there.

I would be careful on the temperature that hollow sway bars are powder coated at, as the heat can change the properties of the metal. I know it's an issue with aluminium rims.

I usually go with Moog or TRW linkages, but the last I heard they sometimes farm out to different manufacturers so always take a good look at what you are buying. I bought a random brand center link from a local parts store where the metal was not as thick as the original GM part it was replacing. Do some searching on here for reviews.

propaintball96

Awesome. That's all I needed to know. Thank you

86iroct5

ive found that the stock iroc/ws6 front sways are more than adequate, the rears are worth an upgrade.