Mike wrote:
>Date: Mon, 26 May 1997 13:22:11 -0400 (EDT)
>From: MLishego@aol.com
>Subject: Sway bar advice
>
>Hello to all,
>I need to tap into the wisdom of the members of the list again. I must say
>that I haven't recieved any bad advice on my MGB yet. Now, I have a
>question: Does anyone run a chrome-bumpered MGB with a rear anti-sway bar,
>and what characteristics does the car have? I have read in VB that the rear
>bar is beneficial, but Moss says that it will cause severe oversteer. What's
>the good word of the list?
>~Mike
For one thing there is a lot less weight for the bars to act on in a chrome
bumpered car. In a perfect world, the springs are less stiff, too. And the
weight DISTRIBUTION is somewhat different as well. The rear bar in a
rubbercar is helpful to counteract the weight of the rear bumper and the
extra height of the CG and roll center. Without all those qualities the rear
bar can just be a little too much. What I have generally heard and, having
tried, found to work very effectively is (all equipment being in good
shape); uprated front shocks, V8 bushings on the lower control arm inner
mounts and a 3/4" front swaybar. I did it to the maroon and it virtually
eliminated roll without sacrificing the ride qaulity or nuetral steering.
Other little things you can do is make sure your door locks are nice and
tight and keep track of the rollpan rust. There is a fair amount of body
flex in a B that is actually part of the way the car handles and those
rollpans ARE the connection between the front and rear. And if you are
having bodywork done it doesn't hurt to have the panels fully edge welded
instead of spot welded. You CAN go overboard and weld the doors shut =:^)
but then you'd have to leave the windows down in the winter and there goes
the upholstry.
Some of the info above is from personal experience and some from a book
called "How to Make Your Car Handle" by Fred Puhn. It's in print and will
tell you more than you will EVER need to know about suspension systems.
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No one in Tuna knows what I do for a living.
Why should they care what I say?
Glenn Schnittke Recovering Musician
Nashville TN 615-385-2800
schnittke@mindspring.com
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