Susp upgrade (sway bar porn install)

[jhelgesen]

I've started the rebuild on my suspension, taking the track only path. Shocks have been pulled and sent to Bilstein (with no word from them in 2 weeks.... ) Torsions are going to 23/31, and SRP sways are going in......

Here she is, up on the table, waiting on the Dr.



26's vs the 31's going back in the rear. (no the old 26's and 21's are not for sale, they will go in the 77 targa...)



Tank pulled for installing the front bar.



Wheel well that is about to have a big hole cut in it.



Swaybars going in...



We'll see what I can get done tonight....hope to drill the holes for the front sways and get the new front torsions in.

If anyone knows how to get a return call from Bilstein, please let me know....

[Kroggers]

This is so cool, keep the pictures coming

[GaryR]

That's the exact setup installed in my SC, none better. If possible you should weld a steel plate over the body where the hole is for reinforcement, the material is thin there and has been known to crack under heavy track use.

[jhelgesen]

Gary, how thick a plate should I use, I'll cut a pair out asap. I want to do this right and once.

Paul, glad to get the Norwegian approval!

[GaryR]

As long as it's at least 18 guage I would think you would be fine, 12 guage is about 1/10" plate (if I remember correctly).. Don't think you can overkill in this situation as it isn't a weight penalty.

[Garen]

The SRP/bilstein combo is great. That's what I run in my 930, and couldn't be happier. I love the hardware. You're right, it is suspension porn... Was it much cheaper to go directly through Bilstein, as opposed to having SRP send your shocks in?

[jhelgesen]

Direct to bilstein is about $65 a piece.....just tell them what you have as far as your suspension goes. I think SRP is about $100 each.

[jaydubya]

For people who may find this thread in the future - you do not need to pull the gas tank to install a through-body front swaybar in an SC. You probably don't have to do it for pretty much any pre-89 911.

[Jeff Alton]

I run the 31mm on the front of my car and although I did not have to pull the tank completely, I did have to ummmm re-shape it a little to clear the bar!

Cheers

[jhelgesen]

Actually, I'm glad I pulled the tank, the fuel pump power line goes right by the sway bar mount, would have hated to cut that.

I don't see how you could get the backing plate for the SRP mount in there without pulling the tank.

[jaydubya]

This is for a charlie bar, but doesn't look like there is anything special about the SRP backing plate:

Once you get the holes drilled for the bolts through from the fender side you fish the inside backing plate between the tank and the tub. Stick something through one of the holes to catch the holes in the plate. Now fish the bolts through the holes on the gas tank side. There are a few different ways to do this, a couple of sections of relatively stiff wire and/or a long magnet pickup are helpful.

[mark_d_mcguire]

Guys, the tank can be loosened with three bolts and a two hose clamps.

Run the car until it is nearly out of gas, and use the drain plug or run the fuel pump inot a gas can to get the last gallon or so out.

This is much easier than dropping something behind the tank, and you can see what you are doing.

If you do the 'fishing' method, I think you can screw the bolts into the backing plate, and use the nuts on the exterior. That way you only have to fish one unit, and the nuts can be torqued without holding the bolt head, as they tighten against the plate.

[jaydubya]

Originally posted by mark_d_mcguire
If you do the 'fishing' method, I think you can screw the bolts into the backing plate, and use the nuts on the exterior. That way you only have to fish one unit, and the nuts can be torqued without holding the bolt head, as they tighten against the plate.

Sweet. That's specific to the SRP design and would make the install via "fishing" even easier.

[911pcars]

GaryR has the right idea for some reinforcement in this area. Rumor has it that the sheet metal in this area is not as thick as in earlier cars with a factory-installed bar.

For a little bit of margin to ensure this area doesn't distort/pull out (easy to do with larger bars and short arm adjustment), cut out a cardboard pattern that covers this area as well as inches beyond, then transfer to metal and weld in place. I think Steve Alarcon posted such a pattern here once upon a time.

Sherwood

[randywebb]

Do you still have to do this for the SRP bars if you have an early car that already has a thru the tub style front sway bar on it?

[911pcars]

Randy,
I would think, in any case, that depends on how much load you're going to place on the chassis. For a track-only car, I recommend reinforcing the sheet metal.

For a street-based car, sway bar size, arm length setting, tire and wheel size, tire compound, cornering speeds, condition of chassis, etc. are all factors. FWIW, I haven't seen many reports here of early chassis sheet metal failure from front sway bar stress (not that it doesn't/wouldn't occur).

Sherwood

[randywebb]

Thanks, Sherwood.

[V12man]

Jaydubya

I have the same SRP setup on my car (thanks Steve W) - I had to pull the tank to complete the install because the fuel overflow pipe interfered with the swaybar movement - I removed the hard pipe that was in the way, and used a BFH to flatten it a bit to get it out the way of the sway bar - then I installed a soft pipe with a bit of a bend to avoid the bar and stuck the hard pipe in my spares box.

I have done 2 of these installs (brother in law) and it is definately easier with the tank out - removing those nuts on the inside of the tub was interesting - once again the BFH and a cold chisel was used - worked well in removing the nuts and the brother in law's fingernail....

I think the reinforcing platw will be a good idea - When I take the car off jackstands, and watch the mount point I can see the tub steel plate flex - next time the suspension is off I will add some reinforcement plate - an ounce of prevention is easier than a pound of fixing...

[jhelgesen]

I'll cut a pair of these out today and see how they look.

[jhelgesen]

What do you think, inside or outside the car to mount the plate? Outside would be much easier. Is there enough play in the length of the bar to allow for spacing out another .10"?