Anyone got a Sway-Bar installed? Care to voice opinions???

[Bassik]

Hey,

Looking at getting A Whiteline Rear Sway-Bar for my Polo GTi. Wanting to know if anyone has had this installed and noticed a significant difference? Anyone from the the Sydney area willing to demo?

Whiteline

[nicholas_egan]

Hey,

Looking at getting A Whiteline Rear Sway-Bar for my Polo GTi. Wanting to know if anyone has had this installed and noticed a significant difference? Anyone from the the Sydney area willing to demo?

Whiteline

Yeah mate, had one on for about 6 months. (I beg forgiveness at the feet of kaanage for my poor technical knowledge) Doesn't stop body roll -set on medium- but it does stop the body roll from pulling the car around further. Put more clearly, it makes the ride more stable and controllable. It's worth buying, you will notice a difference.

Unfortunately I'm in Launceston. So probably not much help for a test-drive.

[Bassik]

Thanks mate,

What was the reason for getting it removed? Are they to noisy or something?

[RoknRob]

I understand this will help the drive when driving enthusiastically. How about daily driving? I find the suspension already quite stiff. If I were to get one of these, will my behind and back suffer further during the commute?

[Bassik]

I understand this will help the drive when driving enthusiastically. How about daily driving? I find the suspension already quite stiff. If I were to get one of these, will my behind and back suffer further during the commute?

I can only compare by two totally different cars. I find the Polos handling rather bad compared to my DC2. If you think the suspension is already stiff, I'd say don't modify just deal with it and it will be fine. Although not having installed a sway bar my DC2 is really stiff. I have coil covers but even on the softest setting it's painful in traffic and bumpy roads

[gavs]

In day to day driving, a rear anti-rollbar or stiffer front anti-roll bar won’t make any discernable difference to how stiff the car is. An anti-roll bar is a spring that connects the 2 springs on the same axle together so that when the vehicle experiences the weight transfer that causes body roll, the car doesn’t lean or roll as much. The anti-roll bar works generally only when one spring is loaded and in compression and the other is extending and unloading. It works to increase the torsional stiffness between the 2 springs so that it takes much more force to twist the anti-roll bar to generate that same amount of body roll. This is how the whole rear axle of the polo works with the torsion beam axle.

So, if the outside spring was allowed to previously compress by 15mm in a corner, with the other spring on the axle allowed to comparatively extend which induced the body roll, with the anti-roll bar in place, the bar is not put under enough load to twist far enough to induce the same amount of roll, so you only get 1mm of outside spring compression, limiting your body roll. I won’t get into the handle moments of how adjustable bars work.

Can the normal daily commuter do without a rear anti-roll bar? yes, for sure. For 90% of Polo GTI owners out there, the car does exactly what they want it do do in cornering prowess. For those of us however that like things a bit flatter, then you would consider one.

[Bassik]

Can the normal daily commuter do without a rear anti-roll bar? yes, for sure. For 90% of Polo GTI owners out there, the car does exactly what they want it do do in cornering prowess. For those of us however that like things a bit flatter, then you would consider one.

This is why I am getting one. Hey gavs is there much work installing a front bar as well?

[gavs]

Ooooh yeah. You have to drop the whole front subframe to get it in there.

[Bassik]

Ooooh yeah. You have to drop the whole front subframe to get it in there.

Hmmm.. ok maybe give the rear a go first. Hopefully get it installed by the weekend.

[RoknRob]

In day to day driving, a rear anti-rollbar or stiffer front anti-roll bar won’t make any discernable difference to how stiff the car is.

Can the normal daily commuter do without a rear anti-roll bar? yes, for sure. For 90% of Polo GTI owners out there, the car does exactly what they want it do do in cornering prowess. For those of us however that like things a bit flatter, then you would consider one.

In summary, no difference in day-to-day driving. Noticeable difference when pushed.

That's what I thought. Thanks. Might give one a go at some point, then....

[Bassik]

It all depends on what your day to day driving is like? I have no issues cruising but my daily route has some nice corners in it and I tend to push it around those daily! The lack in not being able to do that equates to a dull day to day experience...lol

[pologti18t]

I understand this will help the drive when driving enthusiastically. How about daily driving? I find the suspension already quite stiff. If I were to get one of these, will my behind and back suffer further during the commute?

A rear anti roll bar will affect the ride from the rear suspension. There is always a tradeoff in this regard.

[gavs]

I'm not sure bassik, that you're anywhere near the cornering limits of this car because the speeds you need to be doing to reach the limits should not be attempted on public roads.

[Bassik]

I'm not sure bassik, that you're anywhere near the cornering limits of this car because the speeds you need to be doing to reach the limits should not be attempted on public roads.

So does that mean that getting a sway-bar I will not notice anything at all when cornering? You have mentioned before in another thread (I think) that when comparing it to my DC2 that there is a lot more differences on that car, this I understand. However driving even day to day the car stuck to the road, I never felt the need to "push it" to see the effects. Each and nearly every corner (when pushed) on GTi feels like a boat in comparison. I don't wish to eliminate body roll I just want to reduce it.

Also I want to add that the GTi handles very well and does in fact stick to the road on cornering my only compliant is that I don't want to feel that I'm falling out of my seat when doing so.

Hope that makes sense...!

[gavs]

Ah, ok then, yes that makes sense.

What I would suggest for you is to ugrade the front as well, but leave it for a few months after fitting a rear. This will be able to show you the clear differences. Another thing to do (as I said previously) is to look into polyurethane bushes and/or spherical rod-ends on the sway bar links.