Sway bar setting

[Ron12]

I've just placed an order online for the Whiteline sway bar kit. To have the highest level of handling and maneuvering of the car, what setting would you recommend for front and rear? Thx in advance

 

[Volfy]

Starting out... Softer on both ends.

 

[NS_Stinger]

100% agree, I'd go soft front and rear. With the eibach bar they only recommend hard setting for track use and not for use on slick/wet roads.

 

[Snicklefritz]

This has been hashed out on here before. And nothing experimented with by others has convinced me to try the hard setting. I've left my sway bars on soft. If you track, that's another thing.

 

[Ron12]

I don't track but on my old car, I had my rear sway bar on the stiffest setting and it was fine. Has any of you had it on the stiffest setting and then downgraded to soft? Or simply loved it? My old away bar was a "progressive" sway bar on hard and i love it

 

[GT Elite]

I have Eibach sway bars and both front and rear are on the stiff setting. I’ve had no issues and love the way the car rides and handles.

One note. If you go soft on front and stiff on rear, the result will introduce some potential oversteer in the rear. YMMV

 

[Ozstung]

Many,many pages here on this subject over the years. Soft/soft for everyday use. Firm/Firm for track use. Had mine on soft for the live of my Stinger was perfect.

 

[Ron12]

Many,many pages here on this subject over the years. Soft/soft for everyday use. Firm/Firm for track use. Had mine on soft for the live of my Stinger was perfect.

Never thought of switching to hard/hard? And see what the difference is?

 

[Ron12]

I have Eibach sway bars and both front and rear are on the stiff setting. I’ve had no issues and love the way the car rides and handles.

One note. If you go soft on front and stiff on rear, the result will introduce some potential oversteer in the rear. YMMV

Truthfully, with the cost of these bars, I intend on going hard on front and hard on rear. I don't want to have to go back to the mechanic and have them reset it to something else. I want the full effect right away

 

[Volfy]

Actually, firmer setting on either (or both) end doesn't automatically yield better performance or is better suited for high-performance driving. How the anti-roll bars settings are supposed to be adjusted depends on the cornering attitude of the car AS IS right now.... when you push hard into a turn. Without knowing that, changing from the base reference setting is rather pointless. And potentially counter-productive.

To do that effectively, you need a proper venue so you can run the same course repeatedly to gauge suspension response. Unless you're already a member at your local racetrack, the most cost effective way to start is to attend a local autoX event, so you can give the car a proper workout. Find out how much your car tends to understeer on corner tip in (fast transients, like slaloms) and on a long wide sweeper (steady state "settled" suspension on sustained lateral G).

Unless two Stingers are identically set up, a 3.3T AWD with OEM shocks and staggered wheels/tires is going to behave differently than a 2.5T RWD with coilovers and square rolling stock. Going by what other Stinger drivers say it's their "best" set up is a fool's errand.

Here is a good primer on suspension tuning: Chassis And Suspension Tuning: How To Maximize Grip And Reduce Lap Times

Notice how far down anti-roll bars are on that list? A lot of guys run straight to the aftermarket catalog as soon as the new ride rolls into their garage. There are a lot of other tuning parameters you can - and should - tweak first on a relatively stock vehicle. Get those set correctly to establish a "real" baseline before throwing stuff at the car. For example, if you are NOT currently starring at recently-done alignment sheet(s) for your car, you're NOT doing it right.

Suspension tuning isn't like buying HP... throw $$$ at the engine, and watch the HP/TQ curve rise - hallelujah. It is about maximizing the grip your car already has - at varying scenarios and cornering attitudes. It is an ART as much as it is base on science. That is because, like art...the more well-versed the practitioner (you), the better you're able to appreciate it.

 

[Snowwhite]

Actually, firmer setting on either (or both) end doesn't automatically yield better performance or is better suited for high-performance driving. How the anti-roll bars settings are supposed to be adjusted depends on the cornering attitude of the car AS IS right now.... when you push hard into a turn. Without knowing that, changing from the base reference setting is rather pointless. And potentially counter-productive.

To do that effectively, you need a proper venue so you can run the same course repeatedly to gauge suspension response. Unless you're already a member at your local racetrack, the most cost effective way to start is to attend a local autoX event, so you can give the car a proper workout. Find out how much your car tends to understeer on corner tip in (fast transients, like slaloms) and on a long wide sweeper (steady state "settled" suspension on sustained lateral G).

Unless two Stingers are identically set up, a 3.3T AWD with OEM shocks and staggered wheels/tires is going to behave differently than a 2.5T RWD with coilovers and square rolling stock. Going by what other Stinger drivers say it's their "best" set up is a fool's errand.

Here is a good primer on suspension tuning: Chassis And Suspension Tuning: How To Maximize Grip And Reduce Lap Times

Notice how far down anti-roll bars are on that list? A lot of guys run straight to the aftermarket catalog as soon as the new ride rolls into their garage. There are a lot of other tuning parameters you can - and should - tweak first on a relatively stock vehicle. Get those set correctly to establish a "real" baseline before throwing stuff at the car. For example, if you are NOT currently starring at recently-done alignment sheet(s) for your car, you're NOT doing it right.

Suspension tuning isn't like buying HP... throw $$$ at the engine, and watch the HP/TQ curve rise - hallelujah. It is about maximizing the grip your car already has - at varying scenarios and cornering attitudes. It is an ART as much as it is base on science. That is because, like art...the more well-versed the practitioner (you), the better you're able to appreciate it.

I will agree with this, but the stinger stock sway bars are woefully undersized. This is the first car out of my last 5 i've felt the need to replace them after I did springs. and what a difference it was. especially that weird back end jump over bumps while turning. the sway bar eliminated it.

FWIW, I run soft front stiff rear on my ARK solid sway bars, but I only drive on the street, and I know better than to give it more than 10% throttle while i'm in a turn and it's dry. it is very neutral this way, no understeer unless i'm asking for something really stupid (again, this is 2 tons we're asking to change direction quickly.) were I to sell the car or hand it down, I will set the rear to soft.

 

[Volfy]

I will agree with this, but the stinger stock sway bars are woefully undersized. This is the first car out of my last 5 i've felt the need to replace them after I did springs. and what a difference it was. especially that weird back end jump over bumps while turning. the sway bar eliminated it.

FWIW, I run soft front stiff rear on my ARK solid sway bars, but I only drive on the street, and I know better than to give it more than 10% throttle while i'm in a turn and it's dry. it is very neutral this way, no understeer unless i'm asking for something really stupid (again, this is 2 tons we're asking to change direction quickly.) were I to sell the car or hand it down, I will set the rear to soft.

For sure anti-roll bars are a worthy upgrade. I don't mean to suggest otherwise. Most - if not all - aftermarket anti-roll bar kits are designed to increase the F&R roll stiffness equally on baseline setting, so the "upgrade" is least likely to change the cornering attitude of the car. I'm simply saying that in order to "tune" the setting beyond the baseline soft/soft, you would need to know how the car behaves AS IS.

Besides, a bone stock Stinger handles far more capably than most drivers give it credit. I dare say it is faster than 95% of all Stinger owners can manage. When we first got our 2.0T Stinger, I took it up to DFW, along with my son and his G70, to attend an AutoX rookie driving school. The instructor - having no previous experience with any Stinger/G70 - proceeded to toss that (at the time) bone stock 2.0T Stinger around the course WAYYYY faster than I could muster, even after all day practicing. And I wasn't exactly new to SCCA Solo. I might even have trouble matching his pace with my current 2.5T with all the suspension tuning I've done.

Suspension tuning is FUN and can be very rewarding, and I don't want to discourage anyone from trying. I just think folks needs to better understand the process.

 

[Snowwhite]

For sure anti-roll bars are a worthy upgrade. I don't mean to suggest otherwise. Most - if not all - aftermarket anti-roll bar kits are designed to increase the F&R roll stiffness equally on baseline setting, so the "upgrade" is least likely to change the cornering attitude of the car. I'm simply saying that in order to "tune" the setting beyond the baseline soft/soft, you would need to know how the car behaves AS IS.

Besides, a bone stock Stinger handles far more capably than most drivers give it credit. I dare say it is faster than 95% of all Stinger owners can manage. When we first got our 2.0T Stinger, I took it up to DFW, along with my son and his G70, to attend an AutoX rookie driving school. The instructor - having no previous experience with any Stinger/G70 - proceeded to toss that (at the time) bone stock 2.0T Stinger around the course WAYYYY faster than I could muster, even after all day practicing. And I wasn't exactly new to SCCA Solo. I might even have trouble matching his pace with my current 2.5T with all the suspension tuning I've done.

Suspension tuning is FUN and can be very rewarding, and I don't want to discourage anyone from trying. I just think folks needs to better understand the process.

haven't driven the 2.0T but I suspect it is better balanced than the 3.3 due to less weight up front. But yes, the best improvement in any car is to improve the nut behind the wheel.

On the other hand, steering the car with my right foot is fun.

 

[JSolo]

For sure anti-roll bars are a worthy upgrade. I don't mean to suggest otherwise. Most - if not all - aftermarket anti-roll bar kits are designed to increase the F&R roll stiffness equally on baseline setting, so the "upgrade" is least likely to change the cornering attitude of the car. I'm simply saying that in order to "tune" the setting beyond the baseline soft/soft, you would need to know how the car behaves AS IS.

Besides, a bone stock Stinger handles far more capably than most drivers give it credit. I dare say it is faster than 95% of all Stinger owners can manage. When we first got our 2.0T Stinger, I took it up to DFW, along with my son and his G70, to attend an AutoX rookie driving school. The instructor - having no previous experience with any Stinger/G70 - proceeded to toss that (at the time) bone stock 2.0T Stinger around the course WAYYYY faster than I could muster, even after all day practicing. And I wasn't exactly new to SCCA Solo. I might even have trouble matching his pace with my current 2.5T with all the suspension tuning I've done.

Suspension tuning is FUN and can be very rewarding, and I don't want to discourage anyone from trying. I just think folks needs to better understand the process.

....Faster bike doesn't make a faster rider [in the corners]..

 

[Ron12]

For sure anti-roll bars are a worthy upgrade. I don't mean to suggest otherwise. Most - if not all - aftermarket anti-roll bar kits are designed to increase the F&R roll stiffness equally on baseline setting, so the "upgrade" is least likely to change the cornering attitude of the car. I'm simply saying that in order to "tune" the setting beyond the baseline soft/soft, you would need to know how the car behaves AS IS.

Besides, a bone stock Stinger handles far more capably than most drivers give it credit. I dare say it is faster than 95% of all Stinger owners can manage. When we first got our 2.0T Stinger, I took it up to DFW, along with my son and his G70, to attend an AutoX rookie driving school. The instructor - having no previous experience with any Stinger/G70 - proceeded to toss that (at the time) bone stock 2.0T Stinger around the course WAYYYY faster than I could muster, even after all day practicing. And I wasn't exactly new to SCCA Solo. I might even have trouble matching his pace with my current 2.5T with all the suspension tuning I've done.

Suspension tuning is FUN and can be very rewarding, and I don't want to discourage anyone from trying. I just think folks needs to better understand the process.

Thank you so much for your detailed explanation. My goal with the sway bars is to enhance, even slightly, the overall pleasure and satisfaction of driving the 2.0. I understand there are other factors at play, but knowing the optimal stiffness levels for the bars would be an excellent starting poi