So I already had the trd strut tower brace, along with the TRD shocks, struts, AND springs, thus i was thinking, there is no way that the trd sway bar will make THAT much of a difference, given my current setup.

WRONG.

Holy CRAP. I felt the difference just backing out of my garage! I thought my car didnt have much body roll before... now i realize just how much it had!!! this bar literally eliminates all body roll. Holy crap, what a difference.

For those who want to eliminate body roll, and make the car feel like its literally on rails, don't hesitate. The handling during cornering is much more predictable now, its awesome. The TRD sway bar is well worth it, and very very easy to install. I think it took me an hour or so, but only because i was really taking my time.

I have mine on the 'Race' setting (innermost holes). I will say that the ride has harshened up a little. You lose a little of the nice bouncy progressiveness of the TRD shocks/struts/springs, but not too much.

I only drove it around the block, so i'll see just how much harsher the ride is tomorrow, however it really doesnt seem THAT bad. Certainly worth it for the elimination of all body roll, i think.

It almost feels like the car is 'squatting' now... if you know what i mean. At any rate, holy smoke, what a difference!

Thanks to everybody on the board who provided so much helpful info!!

If anybody ever has any questions about the install, ride, etc., let me know!

 

^That's what I needed to hear in order to buy that actually. Thanks man.

 

i thought it was hard to install those

 

^ maybe ur getting it confused with the front sway bar...the front is a pain in the a$$ b/c yu have to drop the frame of the motor and a bunch of other stuff...i was considering front a rear sways but i'm waiting for my trd rear to come in..but i drove my friends tC as smakusdod said "Holy CRAP" its awesome

 

i have no experience working on cars... the first time i've ever jacked up my car other than changing a tire was last week, when i did my own oil change. I bought about $300 in tools over the last week, becuase i didnt even have a socket wrench, lol.

Tonight, i put in the sway, and i think it was easier than the oil change!

The part that takes the most time is figuring out how to get the stock sway bar out, which is actually quite easy, you just have to take your time with it. At first, you'll think there is no way to get it out, but there totally is, and its easy (i wound up hooking mine around and out over the driver's side rear axel).

Just take your time, its a walk in the park. And make sure you have a torque wrench, of course.

 

Just imagine what its like with both front and rear set on race. Its extreme. LOL.

 

this is good to know, i wanted to make sure it was worth the buy.

 

TRD iis a good swaybar. I have the Hotchkis front and rears. WOW. Hotchkis+Falken fk452=350z can't shake me in canyons.

 

I got the TRD sways sitting on my coffee table... I can't wait to install them. Glad to hear you're happy with your's!

 

yea the rear sway is quite nice. especially for the price. the sway and the short shifter are my favorite mods so far.

 

Hmmm, i just might order this, you said that the ride isnt that bad...how bad are we talkin here?

 

In driving the car around today, its really not bad at all, just a little less plush (more stiff), but still a great ride. But i have to admit, the streets are pretty nice in my town, so im not sure how it would be on pothole-ridden streets.

I've heard from others who have driven on rough roads that the car basically feels bouncier, and you feel the imperfections in the road more. Given the boost in handling you'll get, i think its worth it. Plus, if it ever gets too rough for your taste, i hear the 'street' setting will alleviate any ride roughness, although you'll probably get a *little* body roll... Changing it to the street setting would take all of 5 minutes it think, so you can always experiment.

Anybody out there using the 'street' setting that can comment on this?

 

i drove around on the street setting for a few days then switched over to the race and it is quite a bit stiffer in the race setting. i have some rough roads around me and i don't complain about how it rides.

 

off topic i have the progress rear sway and i have it on the race setting aswell and i don't feel any extra stiffness at all, feels the same as before when i didn't have the bar on but with extra handling. the ride is still smooth

 

alright... so say you're like me and you don't have any performance modifications, would it be worth it to go straight for the TRD rear sway bar or should i go as planned and get the TRD lowering springs first? i have a very limited budget since i dont have a job and i go to school.

thanks.

 

Ryz0n,
I think a good friend of mine would have to disagree with you. You live in the valley, we should take it up to the canyons sometime and see whats up...

 

I'd say go for the bar first; I have just the rear sway (in the street setting) and the TRD short throw shifter, and it's great. With the stock bar, the body lean felt like I was driving a 70's era land yacht, but now it stays level and carves through turns. The downside is that the increased stiffness will make the rear wheels less independent, so if you hit a bump on the left side, you'll feel a bit more "shudder" since the rear right wheel is being pushed in the same vertical direction as the rear left. It's noticeable, but it's not too bad, and definitely worth being able to turn and corner with less body lean.

 

the sway bar should not affect ride quality(unless you are constantly hitting bumps or dips on only one side of the car) pretty much the only time when you will feel the difference of the sway bar(AKA anti-sway bar, anti-roll bar, coupling bars) is in cornering.

i had the trd rear sway bar set to "race" as well. the car definitely still have body roll. the overall feel is much more neutral. with stock sways(front and rear), understeer is a little hard to avoid. with the trd sway(stock front, trd rear) adjusted to race, the handling will be much more neutral and can provoke oversteer with a little persuasion

 

i think the swaybar would help more than the springs.

 

do you guys know what size of torque wrench i should get?

all i found is 3/8 and 1/2 in my local area.