crap, I wish I would have tried 4 wheel parts, I just ordered the struts from rocky road... spendy as hell. quaddawg's rig is pretty cool.

thanks anyway for the advice for cheaper struts... oh well

i was gonna take it off today in auto class but the teacher told me not to cuz he was affraid it was gonna roll on the highway. any feedback?

it's going to be touchy. just drive it really cautiously at first... treat it like it's as tippy as a 10 inch lifted bronco II until you get the feel of it

once you have the feel of it you should be fine

The teacher's on crack.  He's either A: buying into the myth that swaybars are actually vitally important components of the suspension or B: stupid enough to beleive that old myth about Samurais being tippy...which has in later years come to mean ANYTHING Suzuki/Tracker/etc.

The teacher's on crack.  He's either A: buying into the myth that swaybars are actually vitally important components of the suspension or B: stupid enough to beleive that old myth about Samurais being tippy...which has in later years come to mean ANYTHING Suzuki/Tracker/etc.

OR, he is limiting his liability, just think of the lawsuit possible if he allowed the student to remove his sway bar and the kid wrecked?

One more thing.  If you do a consumer reports style collision avoidance with and without a sway bar, then you will see that indeed, a sway bar is MUCH MUCH MUCH MUCH MUCH safer in that type of situation.  A hard braking and turning manuever without a sway bar, can indeed cause a rollover, especially if you are used to the same vehicle WITH a sway bar.  That doesn't mean it's unsafe, I mean motorcyles wreck a WHOLE lot more easily, and they are safe in my opinion, you just drive them differently.  That's the whole point I guess,  take that sucker off, go and be careful, learn the new handling characteristics, and have at it.  It doesn't make it undrivable, just DIFFERENT.  Anyway that's my opinion.  Yeah, without a sway bar, I can get a car or truck to pick up a back tire in an avoidance manuever, it's actually kinda fun..  hell, even my 49 Chevy had a sway bar stock!! If they have been putting them on for that long (and longer of course) they have to be doing something good...

Bah.  Driven responsibly, most 4x4's don't need a swaybar at all.  Most 4x4's and trucks have stiff enough suspensions that they don't serve much of a difference.  I've taken them off trucks and literally felt NO difference in anything.

I think they're there just for the OEM's liability mostly now-a-days.  It's become accepted practice that they're there so they feel the need to put them there.

Bah.  Driven responsibly, most 4x4's don't need a swaybar at all.  Most 4x4's and trucks have stiff enough suspensions that they don't serve much of a difference.  I've taken them off trucks and literally felt NO difference in anything.

I think they're there just for the OEM's liability mostly now-a-days.  It's become accepted practice that they're there so they feel the need to put them there.

I disagree completely, if it gives you more travel, it gives you less stability.

Have you ever been in a PANIC ACCIDENT AVOIDANCE situation?  I mean serious brake and turn, with and without a swaybar?  I am talking 50 mph, STAND on the brake and turn the wheel. I am not talking about ANYTHING else, because this is where the safety aspect comes in.  Because if you haven't, you can't comment with any real information.  I haven't done this in my Track, but I HAVE done it on a full size, just playing around and you could roll one if you wanted to, or couldn't drive well.. or weren't expecting it. ESPECIALLY if it were lifted.

It's just simple physics.  Hagen, you want to comment on this?? I can take being disagreed with. But I know better on this one. Been driving TOO long, over 30 years...

I am not saying it's unsafe, I am just saying that sway bars DO make a vehicle handle flatter, if you don't agree, it's OK, I am used to people being WRONG.. .lol

Any other opinions?

I drive a Samurai and in fact I did run into a high speed, stand on the brakes, cut the wheel, 60 MPH stop.  Even with the sway bar I layed it on the drivers side and slid down the highway 40 feet.  It took me and two Highway Patrol to roll her back on all four.  With more flexing I might have put her on the roof instead.....  It's the nature of the beast.  So I say still go with what you know..... But I would consider making it removable if you plan on rock climbing.

I disagree completely, if it gives you more travel, it gives you less stability.

Have you ever been in a PANIC ACCIDENT AVOIDANCE situation?  I mean serious brake and turn, with and without a swaybar?  I am talking 50 mph, STAND on the brake and turn the wheel. I am not talking about ANYTHING else, because this is where the safety aspect comes in.  Because if you haven't, you can't comment with any real information.  I haven't done this in my Track, but I HAVE done it on a full size, just playing around and you could roll one if you wanted to, or couldn't drive well.. or weren't expecting it. ESPECIALLY if it were lifted.

It's just simple physics.  Hagen, you want to comment on this?? I can take being disagreed with. But I know better on this one. Been driving TOO long, over 30 years...

I am not saying it's unsafe, I am just saying that sway bars DO make a vehicle handle flatter, if you don't agree, it's OK, I am used to people being WRONG.. .lol

Any other opinions?

I agree. my GV handles much much flatter with the sway bar on and since it's mostly just a daily driver I keep it in. I didn't feel safe enough to go 80 or anything like I do with it in. could have but I think it's best I didn't. I think the best thing to do is make the sway bar removable so you have the added safety on the road and added capability off road when it's disconnected. a friend of mine has an 8 inch suspension lifted and 2 inch body lifted wrangler on 37's and keeps the sway bar in because on sidehills it gets iffy enough as it is with the sway bar in. I think on ifs vehicles that aren't as high it wouldn't be as big of a deal but his jeep is up there quite a ways and it has soft ride leafs. he apearently gets quite a bit of flex with the bar in but I haven't yet had the opportunity to see it flexed since it needs a bit of work at the moment.

I think having the sway bar disconnected is the ONLY way to wheel a first or second gen track/kick/vit because the front suspension doesn't really work without it and you gain quite a bit of flex that way.

one of these days I'll find how to make my gv sway bar disconnectable and I'll put pics and instruction on zukiworld in case anyone wants to do the same. actually going to look at it today I think just to get some ideas.

This guy claims to have some quick disconnect endlinks that could be adapted to any length desired.  Not sure if they would work on a suzuki, but it's something to look into.

http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/CheapTricks/SwayBar.shtml

look at version 2.0 near the bottom of the page

That's the crappy thing about life and chances - where something could save your life it could harm you just the same. Take seatbelts for example, yes, i know, they save lives, and for the most part they do, but you do hear of cases where not wearing one has made the difference of someone being alive, because that person was thrown from the vehicle rather than the 18 wheeler flattening the vehicle with them buckled in it.....
Driving is a scary thing no matter what you drive, or what you do to your vehicle, you could be the best of drivers, or drive the safest vehicle, there are still other people on the roads talking on their cell phone, reading, doing make-up, finishing up their 4th beer, etc.

thanks for the link of disconnects. definately gives me some ideas. I agree with uncivilized. got to watch out. life is fragile and you never know what can save you or not. agree about the seatbelt thing too and I think the seatbelt laws just give the cops something to do. if someone doesn't want to wear a seatbelt, that's thier choice in my opinion. I choose to wear one myself

Yes actually I have.  Never had a problem with it.  Hit a deer with my Ranger the other day and it's missing BOTH of it's swaybars.  No problem aside from me learning my ABS doesn't seem to work anymore.

If you're to the point where the vehicle is going to roll a swaybar isn't going to stop you.  My point is that they simply aren't effective enough.  If I was talking about a uber flex monster on 220lb rate springs than sure, you'd need it, but for our stiff sprung IFS buggies, it's decoration to help Suzuki defend itself incase BillyBob tries to make a 90 degree turn at 90mph and dies in the ensuing roll over.

I oughta go find the video of a stunt driver rolling a bone stock XJ Cherokee in a flat parking lot.  Lotsa speed, lotsa stupidity, and lotsa swerving and jerking.  The swaybar(s) didn't seem to help him much.  It's on Streetfire somewhere...

my .02 worth,

if your rig is a daily driver leave the swaybar on, and if it's mostly used for off road, then take them off. when i first lifted mine i left the swaybar off, and drove it for like six months with it off. i noticed a difference from stock, even with a new calmini 3" lift. i leaned more into turns, and it felt too soft up front when entering on/off ramps on the freeway. then i put it back on again to see if it would help, and difference was amazing it felt far more stable on road.

also when you think about it, it doesn't give you that much more flex at least not enough to leave it off when your rig is mostly a daily driver. if you really want flex up front "sas" is the only solution.

i leaned more into turns, and it felt too soft up front when entering on/off ramps on the freeway. then i put it back on again to see if it would help, and difference was amazing it felt far more stable on road.

Exactly. If it leans more, it will tip easier. Don't get me wrong.. I am not saying it is dangerous, not if you know what you are driving.  BUT, my point is.. and everyone seems to agree, and the facts are. Sway bars keep you flatter.. period.  You just can't say they don't, even on our stiff sprung vehicles. They attach directly to the control arms, and make them work in relation to each other, AND the frame where they are attached. THEY HAVE TO hold you flatter under lateral acceleration. The basic physics is such that if they DIDN'T help, then taking them off wouldn't give you ANY better flex. The truth is, it DOES, THEY DO, and your wrong.  Sorry.   I am NOT saying YOU or anyone else has  a control problem with not having a sway bar, I am saying a sway bar DOES keep you flatter, and flatter is better in a cornering or even a crisis avoidance situation. (or on a side hill for that matter, but I will withold my thinking on that... too radical...lol)