broken sway bar

[dizzle1]

Looks like I just joined the club, the stock cheap shit hollow ass front sway bar just snapped. Here are a few shots of it only the right side has cracked the driver’s side should still be intact. The Handling is craptacular the car tends to shift to the side when making near spirited turns this is not safe for high speed driving fast lane change maneuvers and it makes me think my car needs an alignment when it probably doesn’t.

Besides that my control arms look rusty they were brand new in 2006 painted too, but the way they look now I hope the sway bar link bracket doesn’t snap one day. I’m thinking about sanding them and hitting it with some primer around that part at least, the ball joints are good and other components.

I’m looking for a new sway bar something better with links, bushings, brackets and not some hollow cheap shit either.

[sparcx]

Originally Posted by dizzle1

The Handling is craptacular the car tends to shift to the side when making near spirited turns this is not safe for high speed driving fast lane change maneuvers and it makes me think my car needs an alignment when it probably doesn’t.

yep... i was starting to feel that i needed an alignment after i saw that mine was broken. All that cleared up after it was replaced.

This past weekend i drove about 500 miles with the new bar installed. It has really made a difference. (that's even after i already had front struts/mounts, wheel bearing hubs, and outer tie rod ends done in the last few years)

Originally Posted by dizzle1

I’m looking for a new sway bar something better with links, bushings, brackets and not some hollow cheap shit either.

check out the dorman one i posted about earlier. It includes clamps and bolts as well, which wasn't included in some of the other kits. The mechanic I used seemed to like it. A bunch of pictures were posted as well.

[dizzle1]

Originally Posted by sparcx

check out the dorman one i posted about earlier. It includes clamps and bolts as well, which wasn't included in some of the other kits. The mechanic I used seemed to like it. A bunch of pictures were posted as well.

This has been the reason why I never decided to buy any sway bars yet, look at the link below you'll see why. I just heard about the Dorman sway bar so thats news to me, but are there any other popular sway bars that W-body owners buy.

$140 W/O Shipping costs Progress Front Sway Bar http://www.zzperformance.com/grand_prix/products1.php?id=1049&catid=138

$95 With Shipping costs Dorman Front Sway Bar Part#927100
http://www.rockauto.com

$76 With Shipping costs GMPP Heavy Duty Front Sway Bar Part#12498643
http://www.gmpartsdirect.com/results...ber=pk12456148

From what I’ve read the progress may be the best, Dorman should be solid and GMPP is hollow is something wrong here?

[sparcx]

Originally Posted by dizzle1

From what I’ve read the progress may be the best, Dorman should be solid and GMPP is hollow is something wrong here?

GMPP is solid steel based on what littlehoov has posted previously. I believe he installed both the front and rear sway bar upgrade.

i got my Dorman one at Advance Auto off their website and did in-store pickup. They've been doing a ton of coupon promos on their website so you can get that cost down to $70 to $80 depending on the coupon you use. Plus the fact that it's all local with no shipping charges made it pretty convenient if you have any issues with it.

[LittleHoov]

The Dorman one will be much cheaper for you if you buy it locally. Which is its main advantage, that parts stores can get it for you. So you dont have to pay shipping costs, its a large and somewhat awkward item to ship.

Dorman makes quality products usually, I see no reason to pay what will probably be 170 dollars or so for the ZZP bar. I dont know if you could really tell a difference between a solid bar and hollow bar without really pushing the car, and if youre pushing it that hard, I would say some other handling flaw of the Intrigue is going to manifest itself first.

I also don't honestly know if the GMPP bar is solid or not, I just know its bigger and heavier than the stock one, which is sort of "duh"

[dizzle1]

Originally Posted by LittleHoov

The Dorman one will be much cheaper for you if you buy it locally. Which is its main advantage, that parts stores can get it for you. So you dont have to pay shipping costs, its a large and somewhat awkward item to ship.

Yea local would be best for me and compete for lower prices too lol.

Originally Posted by sparcx

GMPP is solid steel based on what littlehoov has posted previously. I believe he installed both the front and rear sway bar upgrade.

From what i've read on ZZP's website they claim that the GMPP Swaybar is hollow take a look.
http://www.zzperformance.com/grand_prix/products1.php?id=1049&catid=138

What bar would have better control Dorman or GMPP because the last thing I got to know if GMPP bar is solid or not if not then ill get Dorman, im going check out advanced auto parts prices online in store hope they are discounts.

[sparcx]

Originally Posted by dizzle1

What bar would have better control Dorman or GMPP because the last thing I got to know if GMPP bar is solid or not if not then ill get Dorman, im going check out advanced auto parts prices online in store hope they are discounts.

If the GMPP is confirmed as hollow then i'd go with the Dorman. I didn't think it was, but don't have any experience with it to be sure.

this is what Dorman claims about theirs http://www.dormanguide.com/sway_bar_kits.html

From what i read the dorman is a 33.58mm bar and the GMPP is slightly smaller than the 34mm that is posted on a few sites.

ZZP is claiming at that link that the solid steel is what makes the Progress bar "better" so I think that really makes the Progress bar way overpriced compared to the Dorman. (using their own logic against them... hehe)

[dizzle1]

LoL, some guy also left a comment on it saying that the GMPP bar was twice as heavy and should be solid, well im going for the Dorman the online promo ends thursday 7/1/10 its for -$20 on a purchase over a $100 or so but it worked, $99.99 for the bar -$20 promo then tax.

[sparcx]

Another very very minor detail, but the dorman technically has a limited lifetime warranty. I guess it would cover any defects as I think it would be near impossible for this to break or get damaged under normal usage. Just thought i'd point it out since it wasn't mentioned earlier.

[dizzle1]

I just installed the Dorman Swaybar last night and did some driving it came with all the new hardware ready for quick replacement. I put some thick gear oil in the bushings to help it stay lubricated and also allow me to move it around easier when I was installing it. It came out at just over $87 and as for the benefits of having a Swaybar in the first place and then the added performance I think that’s money well spent.

Originally Posted by LittleHoov

When you have a Trac-Off/ABS style error, it turns off the Magnasteer system which your Intrigue should have. So it defaults to a firmer steering. I sort of like it myself, but not at the cost of no ABS.

Magnasteer gives you a light-feeling steering wheel at slow speeds (parking lot, driveway, etc) and should firm up nicely at higher speeds (highway, racetrack, running from the police)

When driving the car first thing I noticed was that suddenly the steering became easier but don't forget my ABS is out so magnasteer is off or it would feel even lighter and thats from having bad rear wheel sensors not bearings. Second was the little to no need for alignment the car drove striaghter and kepted a good line. Third was the turning speed I could go into corners faster and more confidently then ever before the front end was firmer had less body roll and overall felt much flatter and the back of the car could use a better Swaybar to compliment it. I did weigh the old and new Swaybars the stock bar weighed 9 pounds and the Dorman Bar weighed 19 pounds.

But if you push too hard into a corner the it will understeer and thats because this car is not a BMW M3 to begin with and it still needs biggers rims/wider tires better springs/shocks and Strutbars.

From my experience of driving quite a few 03-05 Chevy Impala 9C1’s and 04-05 Impala SS I would say this Swaybar is equal to or better in performance. The GMPP handling kit was original equipment on Impala 9C1/SS they came standard with better springs/shocks, GMPP front Strutbar 00-03/04-05 N/A, GMPP Swaybars don’t know what kind of rear trialing arms they have, but they also come with aluminum front sub frames for less weight. If the Intrigue had all this it would technically be a 9C1/SS in the handling department.

Dorman Bar copyright 2010
Bar was made in USA
Components China
My bar was blank also no markings

[sparcx]

Do you guys think i should replace these end link rubber bushings already? Barely been a year and it seems like they're already starting to tear/wear away. They were the one's from China that came with the Dorman bar.

Looks like the dorman sway bar itself is going to work out fine, but these china dorman included end links don't even last remotely close to as long as the OEM one's that were still good after 10 years.

Might complain since they were supposed to be lifetime warranty and these just look plain defective.

[gmtech1]

I would replace them with OEM, thats just my opinion.

[pfofit]

I replaced mine with a dorman about the same time you did and mine look like new and show no visible signs of deterioration.

However, from the upward angle in your photos provided, the bar "appears" to be installed differently from what I have. Let me try to explain.

I still possess the original bar that i welded initially (never throw away anything eh) . I commented several posts back about the bend in the center of the bar pointing downward on the new bar as per their instructions Instead of pointing up in the original

The original bar(and the dorman bar) resulted in the arm parts of the bar that comes out of the frame bushing to start bending/curving/arching slightly downward as it goes under the tie-rod end shaft and then ever so slightly upward near the end. This results in the flat connecting end with the hole, being perpendicular to the link.

Now in your photos, the arms appear to be curing upwards after the frame bushing and down slightly at the end which would result in the flat connecting end being curved down into the bushing on the link in a stationary position. This may be cutting into and damaging the bushing.
This angle I'm trying to describe is slight but may be something to verify. If yours is installed this way it would mean flipping the bar from end to end.
I remember when i did mine that i did a lot of thinking about this placement as the bend in the middle was different but if place as per the original it would put the ends at a downward angle with respect to the end links. I ended up doing what they said to do by placing the driver side down as written on the bar(photos upthread). This caused the pointy bend in the center of the bar to be pointing downward

I will try and take some profile photos as it comes off the frame bushing, if I get a chance when i flip on my winter skins soon, to better show what I'm trying to put into words,

Cheers

[sparcx]

looking back at the posts, your bar had clear markings about the up and down while the next years bar that i used from the USA didn't have any markings.

you think there will be a way for me to identify which way mine is positioned without having me take the car to a shop to get it checked?

[pfofit]

Originally Posted by sparcx

lyou think there will be a way for me to identify which way mine is positioned without having me take the car to a shop to get it checked?

As you say the bars are different in the markings so I'm not positive that they are the same even though they are identical dorman numbers.

The first thing you can do is look near the center of the bar from under the car and see if the bend is pointing up or down.

As i said i'll be taking some photos for ya of the bars center and a profile view so you can compare what i have compared to what you have.

The only problem is the old adage, "A man with two watches doesn't know what time it is"

Although, mine did say this side down on driver.
cheers