Go48

As far as I know, the anti-sway bars are the same for all models, unless perhaps a Shinka or some other special model. And since RB does not make the distinction for different models, I would assume that is the case. You can get a definitive answer from RB by emailing Jim Langer (jlanger@racingbeat.com) of by calling them (714) 779-8677 M-F (8-5 PST).

rotaryPilot

Thanks I will send an e-mail to RB. In the meantime Is is anyone with RX-8 AT and normal suspension with fitted Rear RB sway bar?

If yes , did he/she need to buy clamps ?

SebtownRx8

So wtf took a turn at like 60 not un normal on the road i usually cruse on, and i hear a loud *** pop... i knew something with the PT rear sways i just put on must be up, look and the left side is not connected and the bolt is missing, then i go to find out its like the bolt on the endlink (which i might add is hollow!!!! ******* dumb idea that was.) so after 1 hour of trying to get a new bolt on i realize that there is no 5mm allen wrench spot then it occurs that it broke. so can i drive with just 1 side connected untill i get the part (friday) and i'd drive really slow on truns and stuff. Thanks for your helpful imput in advance.

shaunv74

Yes you can drive with one side connected. Just take it easy as you said. Not sure what you're talking about with the endlink being hollow. Are those OEM? Be aware that if you popped your endlink bolt you may have your rear sway bar installed upside down. Make sure to check and see if it's installed correctly.

SebtownRx8

Pics in like 1 min plz help

shaunv74

There are pictures of upside down and right side up in post #2 of this thread.

SebtownRx8

see what i mean there is no place to use an allen key, its like it popped off or something

shaunv74

The allen key goes in the end of the bolt. It is on the top left side of your picture. You put the bolt through the hole in the sway bar, then put the nut on finger tight, then put the 5mm allen key in the end of the bolt that you put the nut on. You then use a wrench to tighten down the nut. Don't turn the allen key. Just use it to keep the bolt from turning.

I think that's the piece you referred to as hollow. That's the allen key hole.

SebtownRx8

ya i know that, i'm saying if you put the allen key in there and somehow broke the bolt so you can no longer put the allen key in. thats what i'm stuck with, the bolt ends where the bottom of the allen key opening is. so in the pic thats really the bottom of the allen key slot.

shaunv74

Ah Ha!

Well you may not need it. In my experience I was able to torque on the nut without having to use the allen key to hold the bolt from turning. I only needed it to take off the nut.

that being said you are setting yourself up for a painful time the next time you want to take it apart if you don't get it fixed so I would just replace the endlink. They're $30.

Added: So who put on your swaybar and effed it up? They should replace it for you.

SebtownRx8

ya the endlink is here on friday, i tried to just torc the bolt on but it doesn't stick out enough once through the sway bar, and my luck it spins just by using my finger, but yeah thanks for the help dude. think i'm going to torque down the right side some more. DAMN MY LUCK!!!! should i just take off the broken one then? i'm probably not going to drive cause somehow i think its bad. will post pics of the broken link when its off.

SebtownRx8

.. i guess my self to blame on the install i thought it was tight and everything but i guess not... now i cant get the damn endlink off this is just pissing me off now

shaunv74

It's okay to drive it. Just take it easy. Yes you definitely want to replace the endlink. Again the OEMs are only ~$30. You can get them from the dealer or order them online. You want to use a torque wrench on them to make sure they are on but not too tight.

Front Suspension:

Upper Control Arm Bolts (2X per side) 62.0 - 72.2 ft-lbs
Lower Shock Mounting Bolt (1 X per side) 57.68 - 76.26 ft-lbs
Piston Rod Nut (Compress spring before removing)(1 X per side) - 23.2 - 34.0 ft-lb
Sway Bar End Link Nuts (2X per side) 31.8 - 44.8 ft-lbs
Brake Hose Bracket Bolt (1X per side) 13.7 18.8 ft-lbs
Tower Bar Nuts (2X per side) 13.0-19.5 ft-lbs
Tower Bar Plate Nuts (3X per side) 34.1 -46.3 ft-lbs

Rear Suspension:

Upper Shock Bracket Nuts (inside trunk 2X per side) 27.5 - 38.2 ft-lbs
Shock Bracket to Shock assembly Bolts (2 X per side) 27.5- 38.2 ft-lbs
Upper shock Mounting Nuts (Inside truck on floor below mounting bracket 2X per side) 34.1 - 46.3 ft-lbs
Shock Mounting Bolt (Up from underneath car into trunk floor 1X per side) 17.4 -23.3 ft-lbs
Rear Control Link End Bolts (1X per side) 55.69-75.23 ft-lbs
Lower Shock Mounting Bolt (1X per side) 64.91-87.86 ft-lbs
Sway Bar End Link Nuts (2X per Side) 31.8-44.8 ft-lbs
Piston Rod Nut (compress spring before removing)(1 X per side) 23.2-34.0 ft-lbs

SebtownRx8

thanks for that info dude, but i did have the torque wrench but the whole bolt spinning making it useless but i did manage to get a 5mm socket wrench for a torque wrench. will post pics tomorrow of the broken endlink.

shaunv74

I had to get it finger tight first before torquing it so it wouldn't spin. It's a PITA due to the ball joint being held in by a teflon piece so it's not very torque friendly. I wouldn't use the allen key to torque the bolt if you can help it. If it's your only option though...

ferrocene

On impulse, I bought the rear RB sway bar only. Is that a bad idea? Do I need to pair it up with the RB front? I didn't even think of ordering the front at the time.

shaunv74

Yeah it will make your rear end disproportionally stiffer than the front causing it to want to step out quicker. So it will unbalance the car. I would buy the front one and install it at the same time to maintain the balanced handling.

There are a lot of people in autox that just run the front bar and not the rear.

ferrocene

Thanks!

ferrocene

Sweet mother of God...

I just did the front with new Mazdaspeed springs, shocks, and racing beat sway bar. Good God, the whole front took me 11 hours, roughly.

The hard part was getting the strut assembly back into place while holding the hub/rotor up, and also aligning the top strut plate (triangle plate) with the bottom of the strut. Took forEVER!

Then, the sway bar - I did it by myself, and it took several hours. Putting the RB one in through the drivers side was a mistake and a lost hour (they said to reverse how you took it out - wrong!). I fed it through the passenger wheelwell and it slid in within 10 min. But then I couldn't get it over the steering linkage, so I dropped the lower strut bolt and the upper control arm (again) in order to lower the steering linkage enough for it to go over.

I stopped at 2AM. But it's daylight savings, so now it's 3AM. Crap.

Car looks amazing, I love the mazdaspeed spring/strut drop. It's perfect for me!

The bar is chewed up to hell. The 1-2+ hours it took to slide it in really mangled the bright red paint.

Test drive with just the front lowered (lol) was awesome. Car looks slammed! I took as many turns as fast as I felt comfortable with no squealing or body roll. I'm afraid to push it further. At this point it's ridiculous to take a 25MPH turn at 55+ or a 45MPH turn at 80+. I feel like I"m a lot more dangerous now. There just doesn't seem to be a point to push it further than that. I guess I'm too scared to go faster, haha!

I definitely feel more bumps now. I hope I don't get fatigued over long trips. I hate the EVO and STI for that very reason - way too stiff.

This is on an AT. Will do the rears tomorrow afternoon.

ferrocene

BTW, since I had a bone stock base model AT, the mazdaspeed springs /shocks appear to give me a a 1.5" - 2" drop. I was expecting a .9" drop like the literature specifies. Before I was able to shove my size 16 shoes on top of the wheel, not any more!

Also, I don't have TC or DSC so I'm being pretty damned careful not to slide out. No LSD either.

SebtownRx8

Ouch. But yeah it does get pretty funny when you take a 25 at like 90 and hear no tire squeal or roll, just love the Progress Tech bars.

fischer99

Thanks all for the great diy and threads to match. I was changing my rotors and pads a couple of weeks ago and heard a "pop" when i was jacking up the rear of the car. Apprently the rear sway end link snapped. I finally got it replaced tonight but what a beotch. The sway is installed correctly and link wasn't bent or anything but the bottom portion fo the link snapped away from the lower housing. So the blue teflon plug was just sitting there with the top portion hangin in the wind. Got a stock replacement from the dealer and spent 2 hours cutting out the old bolts with a dremmel and a cutoff wheel. Mines an 04 and it was loctite'd and rusted. no amount of blast, wd40 or pure steel and brawn would torque them off. Finally after cutting the bolts out the new link went on in less than 5 minutes. Again... thanks all for the posts they really helped out.

Bigbacon

iTrader: (4)

Have to say thanks again to Expo for another very good DIY.

Front sway is a PITA so for other, don't get frustrated and just keep trying and have a friend.

HUGE difference in turns with the PT sways. I mean it is an amazing difference.

Ferro - reading your MS shock/springs makes me scared. I want to get MS shocks (have the springs on already) but... that seems a bit low for my tastes.

SebtownRx8

Ya just a fyi wouldn't use self locking nuts for PT sways after breaking 2 endlinks on the front i asked the shop why this has happened 2x, they replied your driving too hard......(o and when the endlinks break you'll know, usually ends in O **** O **** OSHIT sliding sideways off the track) so i decided to watch them install the 3rd set of front endlinks to find out they were using self locking nuts. guess they need a little breathing room on the nuts, told them to take those off NOW, they had to nutbuster them off buy a 4th set of endlinks on them. no problems since. little pollyurathane grease on the bushing and noise is all good.

dondo

iTrader: (7)

ok guys i need some help too.

i got the rear progress tech bars installed with evo-r endlinks after a battle with a stripped end link nut. (fyi the Craftsman bolt out set works wonders: http://tinyurl.com/ycg2c62)

then i got the front out and the new front in. i managed to get the passenger side over the steering rack but could never get the driver side over. here's where i was trying to get the bar over and just couldn't make it:



i was trying to lift the flat bit of the bar up enough to clear that leg but it runs into the frame and some other pieces up here:



once i can get that part of the sway bar over i'll be good to go but in the meantime i have no front sway which is really interesting..

also, not sure why the forum doesn't let me post this images correctly..