This is PROGRESS (rear sway bar DIY)

Wow, what a day it was! As some of you know from this thread http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-modifications/53494-rear-sway-bar.html, this morning I tried to install a rear sway bar and practically gave up. Before I go any further, I’d like to personally thank NeoPrius, LIPriusFreak, Daves09Prius, F8L and wick1ert for their suggestions and kind thoughts this afternoon. The following is a 50/50 story and DIY explanation for installing a 24mm PROGRESS Rear Sway Bar for 03-08 Corolla (62.2150), that fits the Gen II Prius.

The Story

This morning, a neighbor (who actually owns THREE Priuses) saw me working in my garage and asked what I was doing. He explained that he had a friend with a breaker bar that might help do the job. At that point, I thought nothing of this, since I’d just broken my ratchet and was determined to go to a mechanic to install this bar for $40, which I now know is a great price.

Late in the afternoon, my doorbell rung and to my surprise, there was my neighbor and his pal, Joel, (he must have been at least 70 years old) with the breaker bar. Though I tried to politely decline, they eventually goaded me to try it out and his friend even offered to help me (my prayer had been answered!). So we went out to the garage. Joel was incredibly nice and I’m so glad I didn’t decline his help because I learned he’d driven an hour to come here and visit his friend/my neighbor. He explained to me that he’d been a mechanic all his life and had all the tools in his car, so we got them out and got started. It was seriously shaping up to be my own lame version of “Gran Torino.”

The Install

Joel slid under my lifted car and used the breaker bar to loosen the top nut. It turns out I was sort of doing it wrong all along – First tip: you want to loosen the top nut, not the bottom which is actually the bolt head. Previous DIY explanations didn’t distinguish this. Anyways, Joel had that old-man power and loosened the left side with ease. He let me try the right side and yup, it was easy! Second tip: Use a breaker bar. Ratchets aren’t made for that kind of torque. That’s why mine broke. Lesson learned.

I removed the stock sway bar just as Joel had to leave for dinner at my neighbor’s. At this point, I felt OK to do the rest myself. I put the PROGRESS bar in place and used a socket wrench to tighten the nut. It helped to hold, or at least watch bolt head (bottom part), to make sure it wasn't turning with the nut. Once both sides were tight, now they just needed to be adjusted with a torque wrench.

The Corolla TRD rear sway bar instructions (posted somewhere on this forum) specifies a torque of 144 ft-lbs. Well, 144 ft-lbs is A LOT of torque and my skinny arms couldn’t tighten it that high, so I started low. 20 ft-lbs *click*, 50 ft-lbs *click* 80, etc etc…I eventually got it up to 120 ft-lbs and I couldn’t pull any harder. I just learned from NeoPrius that the factory specification for the Prius is actually 110 ft-lbs NOT 144. That means I am okay. YAY!!

As far as the rubber stopper piece that goes between the sway bar and underbody, my dad shaved it with a rotary saw to get it to fit. We wedged it back in there even though it’s not sitting completely flush. It’s pretty tight in there, but there’s a chance it can pop out while I’m driving.

I didn’t get to test the sway bar very much because I only drove my parents out to dinner afterwards. They don’t like it when I drive hard and fast, so I have yet to test the true difference it makes. For now, I can say that my head doesn’t tilt as much during turns.

The End

It practically took a village to install this thing (Joel, my neighbor, my dad, and me), but maybe it was for the best. Not only did I finish my project, but I also learned how valuable a community can be, whether online or in real life. You’re probably thinking why so dramatic? It’s just a sway bar! True, but know that I had taken today off of work to try to get things done, and I learned a whole lot more than I ever expected. This is PROGRESS.

PS – now I have a Touring sway bar if anyone wants to buy it. I’ll make it extremely cheap, just send me your offer. It goes to the most attractive person.

 

I was talking to my good friend yesterday before things started looking up... He said he knew exactly what I was talking about and going through - that if it hadn't been for his dad, who is mechanically inclined, he would've given up several times. He said that modifying suspension is tricky and that he and his dad used to do crazy MacGyver stuff to get things done, using any available tools and random crap. But ultimately he urged me to not give up even though I had.

Now I know exactly what he was talking about. It turned out just like he said. Kinda cool...

 

Yeah, this is what Joel said too.

I'm doing that in this thread http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-modifications/53494-rear-sway-bar.html. I think it's a more comprehensive and valuable resource for people who want every ounce of information about RSBs.

 

Lol I think I owe you a better explanation, Justin. I called THM the day after I placed my order because I found on another website (forget the name already) the same bar for $95. I remember THM had a price match guarantee so I wanted to see if they could price match.

The guy from customer service explained though that it probably wasn't a legit website and after looking at it more, I think he was right. He also said that $95 was ridiculously cheap and that they'd lose money if they sold it at that price. Finally he said he said he could ship it "today" since they had 6 in stock, if I kept my order with them. So I essentially said fine, forget the price match. It took 2 days before I got a shipping number from "Igor" in my inbox.

I'm not sure where the mix-up could've occured other than them being lazy and not taking a careful look at every incoming order. Though I had a good experience over the phone, it's somewhat disappointing because even McDonalds can do a better job than that. Did you ever order the exact same meal as the guy in front of or behind you, but they still got both your orders?

Anyways, you shouldn't have a problem now. And if something else happens, we got your back over here.

 

Couple more things I noticed on my morning commute;

The car feels normal now, closer to my old '89 Acura Legend, which might be underwhelming if anyone was expecting mini cooper/BMW/GTI-style handling. IOW, it doesn't feel like a performance car but it also doesn't feel like a Prius. The car also feels more steady at highway speeds. I used to grip the steering wheel really tight but noticed I was a lot more relaxed and loose today.

So in summary, very very subtle improvement that's well worth $100. It won't make your spine tingle but it feels better than the sway-boat the Prius normally is, which I can't even imagine going back to now.