Hi guys,

I installed a 7/8 iPd front bar on my 544. Wow, what a difference. My question is, should I try to source a rear? Is it worth it, because as I understand it, you have to reinforce the floor and add plates to mount the brackets to? Just wondering if the benefit outweighs the hassle.

Thanks!

Rob

I have a rear sway bar for sale. I bought a set from IPD and had mounted them. I am changing to a 8.8 ford rear end assy and the bar will not fit that application. Al Padur nettiomx@yahoo.com Reno, NV

How does this sway bar affect the turning radius?
Or I guess the proper question is how much...?

The heavy front bar is a great thing. On a car with a live rear axle (that is, not independent), a rear bar MAY be a slight improvement, it may be detrimental, or it may just be more weight and expense. It doesn't have potential to improve handling nearly as much as the front, even if it does turn out to do some good.

Hi All:
My recollection was that the 7/8" bar was the size for no rear bar and IPD sold a larger front bar for use with a rear bar.

Since I have a Duett with rear leaf springs and it isn't likely to handle well no matter what you do, I went with just the front 7/8 bar. Because the Duett has a chassis, the mounting points for the sway bar are different than the sedan. I couldnt use IPD's supplied saddle brackets (they fouled the steering). I used the originals with several wraps of innertube as the bushing between the bar and the bracket.

Bob

I'd keep your eyes open for a rear bar, or something suitable... I'd think at the rear, you could get away with a variety of bars.... it'll probably be hard to find a rear bar only for a 544..

That said, I've got both front and rear IPD bars for my 145, but have only installed the front one, and I like it fine that way. So I'm in no great hurry to install the rear bar. But I drive on a fair amount of rather nasty roads (Jeep trails...), so keeping both rear wheels firmly planted on very un-level surfaces is key...

And a 140 is a completely different car... I'd think you'd see more benefit on a 544...

-Matt
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-Matt '70 145s, '65 1800s, '66 122s wagon, others inc. '53 XK120 FHC

Rob;

IPD bars are fun aren't they? IMHO the benefits are worth the work every time...but install what they recommend...if you put more bar in the back than in the front you could go to a oversteering, twitchy, unstable monster...and definately reinforce the rearbar mounts (and inspect front mounts periodically if you roadster around - which you might well be tempted to to afterwards!)...with the forces they will put into the mounts, you'll rip out unreinforced ones real soon!

Cheers

I have both front and rears and i'm very happy with them. I can't tell how much the rear bars contributed, or detracted, as some quite knowledable people claim they do, because I never tried the car with just the front bars. It has been said that the flat cornering induced by the rear bars makes the rear end break loose and skip through curves earlier than is desireable. My experience tells me that my car's rear end tended to skip more before I installed the bars (both of them) than it does now. Of course, I also put on 1 inch wider wheels and different tires, and who knows how much of a difference that made? As Ron says, the bars should be matched and you definitely must do the reinforcing, but frankly, putting in the reinforcement plates was less of a chore than getting the bottom part of the rear seat back in. Maybe I have a particularly recalcitrant rear seat.
Bob S.

When I got my set of bars I first put the rear on, then took it for a spin with the front stock bar still on. 'Spin' was just about the right word! Very prone to oversteer. Entertaining for a little bit.

With both bars on the car corners very flat and very balanced - at the limit you can adjust between slight over and under steer with the throttle. Without the rear bar you will still have a car very prone to understeer. Which is of course safer and more predictable. Putting more cornering load on the rear tires will help[ you get around quicker though.

Another minor issue is that the rear sway will make that inside rear spin a little easier if you don't have an LSD (and not many people do on PV's).

Oh, and PS - I've repaired/reinforced 3 out of the 4 mounting points. But my car is a bit rusty underneath.
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I'm JohnMc, and I approved this message.

Are they adjustable, or do they come in a handful of strengths/thicknesses?
I noticed that robsvolvos and rft1 were talking about 7/8 bars and I thought I recalled reading about adjustable bars in a post a while back. Upgrading the way bars is on my list of things to do for the 444 (although I need to see what is feasible for the rear, given the changes we have made to it).

No, the ipd bars for PVs are not adjustable. Ipd usually doesn't have the PV bars in stock, and has a batch made up when there is some accumulated demand. From time to time there is a campaign on the part of someone who wants a set to get other PV owners to place orders so that ipd will have a batch made up. Then they usually have some extras made up that become available to "walk in" customers. This situation encourages the bars to sold in pairs rather than separately. I hope I got that right, you ipd guys.
Bob S.