1995 850 Rear Sway Bar needed???

JeffCarpenter · Post by **JeffCarpenter** » 13 Feb 2014, 08:39

Opinions needed...but the Rear Sway Bar?
I purchased one of the Service Loaners (1995 850, non-turbo, GLT) from a little independant Volvo shop. It is a bit rough and I am slowly working to get it into decent shape. While looking through the service history that they supplied me with (Only the history since they have had it) I noticed a service note from about 8 mos and 5,000 miles ago saying..."TECH NOTES: The Rear Sway Bar is Broken! Tech removed it"

So I called up the parts guy who I purchased the car from and ask him about it and let him know that I did not see anywhere in the history where they had gone back and replace it. He said that the Rear Sway Bar, running from one side to the other, has a sharp angle in it and thin areas in the mounts and near the bolts, and that they often crack/break and that they usually just remove them and "No one can tell the difference"...Thoughts?

Jeff Carpenter

Post by **erikv11** » 13 Feb 2014, 10:02

You can notice a slight difference with/without a rear sway bar in a wagon. Several of the base model wagons came from the factory without sway bars. Without it the car has more body roll in turns, especially at elevated speeds. It is likely the same for a sedan, although I have never driven one.

You can probably tell the difference, but they are right that it is not a big deal. Wouldn't be a bad idea to pick one up from a junkyard though once it gets warmer, as it is a pretty easy install.

JeffCarpenter · Post by **JeffCarpenter** » 13 Feb 2014, 10:07

Thank you. BTW, this is a sedan. Do you happen to know of a youtube showing the install?
Jeff

Post by **erikv11** » 13 Feb 2014, 10:25

To clarify I have driven sedans, just not with/without a sway bar to make the comparison. I have not seen a video install of this one, but there may well be one out there. Plenty of writeups stashed around in the forums if you do some searching, including hardware sizes if you want to buy new.

The bars are the same between the wagon and sedans, but come in different thicknesses. The thicker the better. Check out my post in this thread: https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... 2&p=288019

ChiNorm · Post by **ChiNorm** » 13 Feb 2014, 10:55

Given the difference in handling between a OEM sway bar and the IPD upgrade, I imagine that no sway bar means more understeer and body roll. Neither are desireable IMHO.

Good luck.

MMT51 · Post by **MMT51** » 13 Feb 2014, 11:17

IPD has install instructions for their rear sway bar. Should be helpful.

Post by **JRL** » 13 Feb 2014, 11:38

MMT51 wrote:IPD has install instructions for their rear sway bar. Should be helpful.

Not really
Completely different style and the mounting points on one side are totally different

Post by **erikv11** » 13 Feb 2014, 11:44

I've installed the factory rear sway three times, it is a little awkward but not very difficult. There are threads about it with good detail, do some searching.

Post by **MoVolvos** » 13 Feb 2014, 19:23

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ChiNorm wrote:
no sway bar means more understeer and body roll. Neither are desireable IMHO.

Good luck.

Definitely more than a HO but a fact and if the rear has a load it can break loose in a turn when the road is slippery. Center of gravity becomes higher, weight shifted more to the outboard tires and less contact patch on the other tires (inward). You really don't need to drive too swiftly to notice a difference. The larger (thicker) the better. The rear springs on these cars are prone to sagging which creates greater Understeer than they already do when new.

I put a larger rear bar (Addco Brand) on my 2002 CRV and I totally agree with the CRV forum member when he said that it was the best investment he had ever made for his little SUV. Thicker sway bars also has some of the effects of higher spring rate. When the road is bumpy and one tire goes up the other side pulls it back down quicker providing a smoother ride. Add one and enjoy.

Blessings,

Ben
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