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GQ Factory Swaybar disconnects

Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2006 8:25 pm
by beretta
I'll soon be putting a bit more lift into Old Faithful, when I do the rear sway bar will be knackered (front has been removed, would like to keep the back), it's already too short with 3" in it. Has anyone modded it so it still can be used, I was thinking I could maybe sleeve it some how to stretch it out 5 inches? Your suggestions or experience would be appreciated.

Cheers,

Beretts

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 7:44 am
by grassyknoll
Yeah Beretta, I ws going to ask exactly the same thing. I also have a 3" lift and factory sway bar disconnect and want to keep it.

How do you find body roll with the front sway bar removed?

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 12:30 pm
by Beastmavster
You can buy extended swaybar links at most suspension shops. Of course, if you want to hunt around you can buy them cheaper elsewhere, once you know what the bits are like.

Best solutions are eyebolts or some high tensile threaded rod.


They'd do 2" and 3" ones but I dunno if they do 5" extended swaybar links.

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 12:52 pm
by JOHNZ
The only way to retain the original quick release is to cut & sleeve it .

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 12:58 pm
by grassyknoll
Come and do it for me John ;).

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 8:09 pm
by Vulcanised
the easiest way for the rear is to cut and sleeve the passenger side, and use a bit of flat bar to extend the disconnect side. I have done it with mine.

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 8:14 pm
by chops
Patrolden wrote:the easiest way for the rear is to cut and sleeve the passenger side, and use a bit of flat bar to extend the disconnect side. I have done it with mine.
got pics of this done? :D

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 11:39 pm
by sudso
Patrolden wrote:the easiest way for the rear is to cut and sleeve the passenger side, and use a bit of flat bar to extend the disconnect side. I have done it with mine.
Mine was done too before I owned it but they didn't do it right. It has a 6" spring lift but the link extension only looks about 3" and they didn't even extend the disconnect side!

So now the drivers side link is always sticking down about 3" already and stressing the whole assembly.

What is the standard length of the passenger side link, can someone please tell me?
Then I can extend both links 6" from standard.

I'll find the pic's of mine as they are now and put em up.

cheers

Disconnect side, swaybar "connected" link not extended
Image

Showing the link extension on the passenger side
Image

As a result the swaybar is up higher on the disconnect side

I think the sway bar is supposed to be horizontal with the ground when "connected".

cheers

Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2006 1:08 am
by macorti
G Day,

I just founded this article about how to build up a simple disconnect system for sway bars. The only issue is that the article is in French, but you can translate it in Google language tool maybe. Please let me know your thoughts on this...

Here is the link:

http://www.patrol-gr.net/trucs72.php

Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2006 7:12 am
by beretta
Cool, thanks for the replies! I thought sleeving it would be the go, but wasn't sure about how much force they have put on them and how strong it need to be. I'll be cutting and sleeving very soon! :)

Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2006 4:32 pm
by ausoops
http://members.optusnet.com.au/paulandc ... onnect.JPG
sorry sudso i used your photo

that is the bit i broke on mine, the nut has a sphere on the end that goes into a socket, the socket pulled open and the sphere also pulled out of shape. how would i go replacing these, without getting a new unit. as far as i can tell the disconnect isnt threaded could i maybe thread it and use a socket and knuckle from something else?

ps to the guys that pm'd me with the disconnect, im going to hold off to see what happens with my mates car and if i can steal it off his.

Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2006 9:41 pm
by mikmav
being a bit of a newb when it comes to mechanicals, I was never 100% sure
what the sway bar was on my pootrol, after looking at the pics above, I've worked out why, its gone! :) I dont have a swaybar at all, I guess the previous owner took the brutal approach to a disconnect.. not terribly surprising considering it used to be an ontrack 4x4 club members car..

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 7:34 am
by Vulcanised
with any lift, you will need to be able to disconnect the passenger side as well. The factory disconnect only gives you about 50mm of movement, and with a lift, it soon bottoms out. I have to move my sway mount now, with 6" coils, even with it lengthened, the swaybar anchor points backwards. So i'm going to cut and move the passenger side one to straighten it out. I had pics of it somewhere..... i'll have to try to find it. It's not connected at the moment because of the weird angle.

Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2006 8:26 pm
by sudso
Patrolden wrote:with any lift, you will need to be able to disconnect the passenger side as well. The factory disconnect only gives you about 50mm of movement, and with a lift, it soon bottoms out. I have to move my sway mount now, with 6" coils, even with it lengthened, the swaybar anchor points backwards. So i'm going to cut and move the passenger side one to straighten it out. I had pics of it somewhere..... i'll have to try to find it. It's not connected at the moment because of the weird angle.
Probably better off with a standard type set up with extended links that disconnect.

With such a big lift the factory disconnect wouldn't allow for the extra wheel travel and start to work like it's still connected after a certain amount of wheel travel.

Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2006 9:11 pm
by beretta
Yeah thanks for that sudso. I have decided to do away with the rear factory disconnect for that very reason, after looking at it today. Am gonna probably get some disconnects from Superior, they're $195, which seems pretty reasonable.

Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2006 11:26 pm
by sudso
ausoops wrote:http://members.optusnet.com.au/paulandc ... onnect.JPG
sorry sudso i used your photo

that is the bit i broke on mine, the nut has a sphere on the end that goes into a socket, the socket pulled open and the sphere also pulled out of shape. how would i go replacing these, without getting a new unit. as far as i can tell the disconnect isnt threaded could i maybe thread it and use a socket and knuckle from something else?

ps to the guys that pm'd me with the disconnect, im going to hold off to see what happens with my mates car and if i can steal it off his.
Thats cool, my pic's arent copyrighted lol.
Yeah the fulcrum on mine has stretched a bit too.
Like Patrolden I'd still like to keep the set up, (nice to have in car adjustment of these things :D ) but theres gotta be a way of setting it up so it works like standard when it really starts flexing.
I guess it if I flexed the rear right up and with the sway bar disconnected from the links and the factory disconnect in the disconnect position I could work out how long the links should be and the best spot for them.
Only I dont know what it would be like once it's levelled out again.

Posted: Mon Nov 20, 2006 12:12 am
by Beastmavster
sudso wrote:Like Patrolden I'd still like to keep the set up, (nice to have in car adjustment of these things :D ) but theres gotta be a way of setting it up so it works like standard when it really starts flexing.
I guess it if I flexed the rear right up and with the sway bar disconnected from the links and the factory disconnect in the disconnect position I could work out how long the links should be and the best spot for them.
Only I dont know what it would be like once it's levelled out again.
That sounds like a good idea... lengthen the links so that it's just long enough in the disconnected position for max flex.

You'd still want the things to be even and level when not disconnected obviously so you need to extend both sides.

I personally really like the idea of swaybar disconnects. No matter how macho you want to be, ride is better and legally and insurance wise you're much better off having them, so long as they can be set up in a way they're unobtrusive for offroad.

Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 12:36 am
by sudso
The fulcrum sphere came off the other day its so worn out so I drilled through the whole lot and put an 8mm bolt through to keep the bar connected.
On Sunday I went for a drive in Ngarkat (lots of sand tracks) so I disconnected the bar by removing the bolt (the fulcrum sphere just falls off :roll: ) I left the pss. side connected it doesnt really matter cos the other side is disconnected.
Anyway I lost the sphere pin bolt and the bolt and nut I used so its disconnected still

I turned the shocks up to full hard to reduce body roll and its better than the bar connected with the shocks set to half :?