Hi All,
I read the service manual and it tells that if need to replace the sway bar bushing need to order a new sway bar assy. I checked my car and the clamp of the sway bar bushing(square bushing) is welded and not fixed by screw. It looks factory. How can I replace the bushing? I do not think there is any new sway bar assy around the world. Could anybody give any advise?
Thanks
You need to take the sway bar OFF, buy all the rubbers associated with it, remove ALL the OLD RUBBER, then put the new rubbers on. For the square link bushings, use warm water and plenty soap on the swaybar to lubricate them as you slide them on. It's best if you pop them into the link bracket first, then drive them onto each end with a rubber mallet. If you soak them in water at ~190 Fahrenheit prior to each attempt, they go on quite easily.
For the strut rods, the round bushings may or may NOT have a slot cut from the outer perimeter to the center hole. Moog bushings did. I use Mevotech bushings now, which are cast in the USA, BTW. BUT, if you're NOT replacing the strut rod bushings simultaneously, then you will need to cut neatly from the outer edge into the middle hole, and then slide it onto the strut rod. If you ARE replacing your strut rod bushings, a procedure which necessitates you driving the torsion bar and lower control arm back some inches, then you can just slide the bushing over the front end of the rod and then back, using soap as the lubricant. IDK if you're up to replacing your strut rod bushings as well as your swaybar bushings or not.
Once you have the strut rod to swaybar bushings on, regardless of how, then all you will need to do is attach the links again to the brackets on the K frame. I advise you to keep the old washers for the link to bracket bushings, as they're more generously made than the replacements usually vended with the "link bushing"kits. DON'T OVER-TIGHTEN the link nuts when you do this.
I leave the link nuts loose, allowing the swaybar to move a bit until I get the swaybar bushing brackets in place, and tighten them up first. At that point, the links just need to be nudged up a little, then the link nuts tightened down to the 20 or so INCH pounds specified.
Good luck!
