I am going to replace all the bushings on the rear sway bar(factory piece). I am wondering several things.

1.Paint-Should I just clean it all up and paint it with a nice black rustoleum, or would it be worthwhile to powder coat it all?

2.Replacing the bushings-The parts that attach the bar to the car, do I need to put a little silicone or white Li grease to make this easier to fit and less likely to squeek, though rubber is not likely to cause problems.

3.Also, would it be easier to unscrew the bit that goes into the lower part of the shock, and assemble the links to the bar off the car? It looks like an absolute bitch to get the ball on the end of the bar to fit into the bushing. If I take it off, i can use a vise to press the parts together. Will this totally trash the bushings if I do this?

Thanks for any help

1. I powder coated both of mine, along with most of the other suspension parts, see my blog.

2. I understand the replacement bushings are available at The Bird.

3. It came apart easily, I don't think its going to be a problem to put it back together.

Powder will hold up better (but keep it off the ball parts at the ends of the bar). Rustoleum is cheaper and easier. I'd probably do the latter.

I didn't assemble it all off the car, but that is an interesting possibility... I used a bar clamp (from the hardware store) to squeeze the bushing onto the ball stud. It was a bit of a pain, as I needed both hands to keep the clamp from slipping off at an angle, and a third hand to tighten the clamp. I figure one of those "squeeze the handle to tighten" clamps would be a better choice.

I put the floor jack under the one trailing arm end to move the bar up and down so it would line up properly on the side I was working on. Might not be necessary for you, but it was for me.

It's a cast-iron bitch to get the new bushings into the drop-links. I wound up using a vise to squeeze them in, and still had to poke at the sides with some screwdrivers to keep them from sqoodgeing out the sides.

--DD

QUOTE (Dave_Darling @ Oct 19 2005, 08:32 PM)

It's a cast-iron bitch to get the new bushings into the drop-links.  I wound up using a vise to squeeze them in, and still had to poke at the sides with some screwdrivers to keep them from sqoodgeing out the sides. --DD

sqoodgeing?, I know what you mean, but that is definitely a funny word. I happen to have some of those quick grip things, might try that, but if the stuff is all off the car for painting, why not assembly off the car, don't see a down side to that.

It just seems like the ball going in there would be a pain, will a touch of grease damage the part?

I used a 2-part aftermarket coating for the sway bars on my Corvette since the parts would not fit into my oven for powder coating. If you like a nice clean undercarriage, I'd powder coat or POR-15 or whatever before Rustoleum. The Rustoleum on that car's frame isn't holding up as well as I would have hoped, and needs to be touched up.

QUOTE (Tobra @ Oct 20 2005, 09:34 AM)

sqoodgeing?, I know what you mean, but that is definitely a funny word.

I dunno if it's a real word, but it seemed to convey what I meant....

QUOTE

It just seems like the ball going in there would be a pain, will a touch of grease damage the part?

A little bit won't hurt. A whole lot will. Grease is non-compressible, and if there is less room in the socket than the volume of the ball, no amount of squeezing will get the damn thing to seat!

--DD

thought I would revive an old one rather than start anew. Got the end link bushings in, started them in the vise, whacked them in the rest of the way wth rubber mallet. I used a gear puller to press the ball on the sway bar into the end link first, with that end of the sway bar unbolted from the car, I used a Sacagewea(sp?) dollar, as it was the right size to protect the bushing. Put hooks one dollar piece then the bushing, then the ball on the end of the bar. There is a little dimple on the sway bar for the threaded part of the gear puller, as if by design...

There are two little tabs on the part of the control arm to which the end link connects, the hooks on the gear puller on the tabs, with the bushing gently seated. Put threaded part on dollar piece, then the back of the bushing. This protected the bushing from the point on the gear puller. Should have used a punch on the dollar piece first, to keep the point of the tool from walking around as you tighten in. Took me 5 minutes, used some silicone spray as lube to get it to go. Can post a pic if desired, but it is pretty straightforward.

Gear puller at Harbor Freight for $3, rear sway bar connected in a 65 mph sweeper that is mistakenly labeled 25 mph...priceless.

I have long hair now