Thread: best way to remove front sway bar?

You can pop the tie rod without needing an alignment, just don't spin the inner tie rod or anything.

i had success getting the front end up as high as possible. Didn't disconnect the tie rod. Getting a thicker GMPP bar in there was crazy but it worked.

Yep. just need to get it angled correctly. kinda of PITA. You'll probably need a 15 MM ratcheting wrench for the inner bushings.

popping a tie rod and dropping the sub frame 2 inches will save you a ton of time and hassle. of one the brake lines pass the d/s sway bar bushing cap rear bolt, if your lines are rusty looking you dont want to play with them by leaning on then with a socket and causing them to leak. plus its tight to get that one bolt off.

this pic the frame is dropped a lot for a rack swap, but you can see how th elines match up to the sway bar cap.

Originally Posted by tom5170

is the steering intermediate shaft a pita to reconnect if it becomes disconnected?

They can be, although they are designed to be difficult to disconnect. I've never had one get accidentally disconnected. I second dropping the rear of the subframe. Pretty sure I didn't disconnect the steering shaft when I installed mine, but had to drop the frame to reinstall the new bar, there was just no other way for me.

I've found that exiting through the passenger side is the o OY way to get the sway in/out, especially the oversized ones, without taking all that stuff apart. But it is easier if you pop control arm/ball joint to move that out of the way. You want Energy Suspension Poly's all around with that as well, get the bracket with the zerk fitting so you can grease the bushings too... : )

Good Luck!

Originally Posted by paedbo

I wouldnt recommend not disconnecting the steering when dropping the rear of the subframe. It is a pita to get back on but make sure to tie down the steering wheel. You need 11mm socket and a long extension to get the pinch bolt out. Its not that hard, you may fiddle with it for a long time before it finally just slips back together properly, I think what makes it hard to reassemble is your fighting to keep the rubber dust cover up out of the way. i've done it 3 times so far and I would rather disconnect the steering pinch bolt than try to get the two ps rack to subframe bolts out.

when you drop the frame for this you only drop it two inches, no need to un do the shaft, it will open open up fine and retract.

I didn't drop the subframe at all on my 04, just popped both outer tie rods out of the knuckle and used a little bit of wire to hold then up out of the way.

It was a bit of a pain to get the original sway out, lots of twisting this way and that, but it came out the driver's side just fine.

I put the Dorman in through the passenger side, slowly so not to catch any lines or harnesses, and it went in easier than the old one came out.

I had to use a regular open end wrench for the driver's side bushing bracket rear bolt, but the rest of them came out/went in easy with a 3/8ths ratchet.

Didn't touch the rack, steering shaft, brake lines or subframe bolts.