coil over sway?

[89 lx 5.0]

Im about to install front mm coil over kit with all stock suspension, thing is mm says the v8 sway bar is too stiff to use with coil overs, I got a spare 4 cylinder sway bar which I hear is not as stiff you guys think it will make a difference or does it have to be even softer than the 4 cylinder? I wont drop the car more than 2 inches so do you guys think i need the shorter sway bar end links that mm sells?

[MFE]

Depends on what you're doing with the car and what your spring rates are. I've gone from 325 fronts to 425 fronts, V8 bar (stiffest of them all) to 4-cyl bar (softest of the m all) and back to V8 bar again. What I need is the Cobra bar, which is a little less stiff than the v8 bar. The car rode nicer with the 4-cyl bar but seems to be a little faster in the corners with the V8 bar. But, it tends toward understeer. Need that happy balance.

If you're not running a torque arm and a panhard bar in the back, stick with the V8 bar, IMHO. It'll make it less snap-happy.

[moose4130]

So any opinions if you run IRS?

[89 lx 5.0]

Front coil over rate is 300 using bilsteins and steeda cc plates rear suspension has mm adjustable lcas with sportline springs w/ rear v8 swaybar.
For now its just a weekend street car.

[MFE]

Again, depends on the spring rates involved, but the IRS tends to be less prone to snap oversteer than the stock 4-link, so I may be more inclined to run the 4-cyl bar.

Best bet is to get 1 of each and do some experimenting.

I do know that when I had 325 fronts and the 4-cyl front bar, I damn near scraped the doorhandles off in corners.



425 fronts and a V8 bar and it corners a lot flatter, but no pictures yet. Flatter cornering isn't necessarily better cornering, but I was losing all my negative camber to body roll before. Now the edges of the front tires are getting punished a LOT less and I'm no slower than I was before.

Here's a video of mine with 325's and 4-cyl bar starting at 1:25
http://videos.streetfire.net/video/H...ays_644178.htm

And here's video of 425's and V8 bar on the same track
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/vi...subj=721291800

[89 lx 5.0]

Hmm the 4 cylinder bar does seem a little sloppy but Itll serve me good on the streets

[Jack Hidley]

The other big consideration is how much tire grip you have. With 275 R compound tires on all four corners, you are going to need stiffer springs and swaybars or your car will have a lot of body roll like MFE's does in the photo. If you only have 225 street tires, you won't need as much roll stifness.

[89 lx 5.0]

Hey jack mm recommends using this swaybar MMFSB-1 . Would you say the 4 cylinder sway bar matches it or close to? Or is the stiffness closer to a v8 bar?
Do you really think shorter end links are necessary?

[Jack Hidley]

The MM 1-1/8" hollow front swaybar is about 15% stiffer than a Mustang 15/16" front swaybar and about 35% softer than a Mustang 1-1/8" swaybar. It is lighter than both of them. There is no such thing as a 4cyl Mustang front swaybar. Ford used at least two different diameters depending on the year and suspension options.

Ford used a very stiff front swaybar on the V8 cars because they had such soft front springs. Once you put a reasonable front spring rate in the car, you don't need as stiff of a front swaybar. The V8 (1-5/16") front swaybar is really stiff. About 50% stiffer than the factory 1-1/8" swaybar.

Shorter endlinks aren't absolutely necessary. It mostly depends on the ride height of your car and how the end of the swaybar you have was bent. There is some variation here. Once you get the car together, look at how level the arms of the swaybar are. They should be parallel to the ground. The more unlevel they are, the greater the chance you have of breaking an endlink if you corner hard.