Bigger sway bars
 

Just curious so don’t flame me for screwing up the already good 1LE suspension.

My 1LE is street driven only, although aggressively in corners. Has anyone installed stiffer bars on the 1LE? Results? Any thoughts by experienced suspension guys?

Thanks.

i have the afe power ones on my 1ss without magride but most guys are just upgrading to the 1le or zl1 ones so for you guys dont think its worth it

Unless you are pushing the car at a track and are trying to tune the suspension for more or less over/under steer there really wouldn't be a point for street driving.

Im a sway bar guy by my own admission with previous cars I much prefer oversteer than understeer and I would always opt for some larger bar on the rear. I've not had that feeling at all on the 1LE, in fact, I've felt no need to even delve in to this suspension in any way, it's that good. (for me).

I changed the anti-roll bars when I moved to Supercar 3R track tires. Hotchkis adjustable front and BMR adjustable rear bars, both on middle, gave 30% more roll stiffness and matched the dynamic wheel rates to the tire grip very well. That said, grip on the street went down; I was no longer able to take my reference on-ramp at the same peak speed [by about 1-2 MPH] as the street summer tires were now becoming overworked. Grip with winter tires was noticeably down, of course.

So my recommendation is to keep the FE4 bars unless your intent is lap times with sticky tires, street/wet grip be damned.

Thanks for the good responses guys.

For AutoX, BTW, it’s now almost mandatory to swap the front bar for the Hotchkis.

Why's that?

Because it makes turn-in sharper.



In a 'street' class, you are allowed to swap one bar. Every 1LE that runs BS in my region has swapped the front bar. I'm sure you will see a similar result at Nats.


FYI - it's the Hotchkis FSB and BMR RSB. Apparently, the Hotchkis RSB and BMR FSB are 'no bueno'.

Wonder if there is any downside to the Hotchkis bar when it comes to track duty? I'm assuming it would just give you easier turn-in, but would there be any downsides?

why not both why just one? on my old car which was fwd we did a big rear swaybar and stock front swaybar and it helped rotated the car but not sure what people do with rwd cars?

Has anyone published/posted test results? I've looked around, but haven't found any. Perhaps on your local region's forums?

The BMR and Hotchkiss bars are stated as this:

BMR
Adjustable: F 33%/60%/96%, R 73%/97%/125%
Non-Adjustable: F 62%, R 52%

Hotchkiss
Adjustable: F 40%/65%/90%, R 25%/35%/50%

The FE4/SS 1LE/ZL1 sway bars are about 21% and 36% (F/R) stiffer than FE3/SS.
https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showt...0#post10036310
[BMR states the FE4 bars at around 26.6% front and 27.0% rear vs. FE3/SS ]

The aftermarket companies typically produce off of the SS variant. It is said that the Hotchkiss bars are actually designed off the FE4/SS 1LE bars, even known their description specifically states the rates are in comparison to the SS. BMR's is off the FE3/SS.
https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showt...3#post10341523

For those asking why not replace both: Keep in mind that most aftermarket companies will sell a spring package, in which they will sway their bars bar designs to match their springs. Each company also has a different design goal/mindset on suspension balance.

Missed this other tid bit:
https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showp...&postcount=118

With that in mind, this is what I can say from the rates:

(over SS 1LE)

BMR
Adjustable: F 6%/34%/69%, R 46%/70%/98%
Non-Adjustable: F 41%, R 16%

Hotchkiss
Adjustable: F 40%/65%/90%, R 25%/35%/50%

Ryephile has used the Hotchkiss/BMR (F/R) setup, commenting that is seemed to provide the ability to keep the factory balance, yet up the roll stiffness some.

For track guys, going to a Hotchkiss/BMR (F/R) adjustable setup gives a 3-adjustment windows, allowing an about equal increase front and rear all-together or to provide slight balance adjustments between front and rear [from the factory balance].

For autox, street ("stock") classing, if you're going to change one bar, the front is the choice (to quicken the steering and help direct weight onto the rear tires). To me, it seems the Hotchkiss or the BMR adjustable is a fine choice. Some may determine the stock isn't fast enough, and want a decent jump up; so they might as well swap to a bar that starts you off with a significant improvement - the Hotchkiss. On the other hand, choosing the BMR adjustable allows you to retain the possibility of the stock stiffness (approximately) in your adjustability range and giving two additional adjustment levels. The non-adjustable is fine if you just feel like you need a decent bump up front and don't want to mess with it. I would choose the BMR adjustable for autox street ("stock") class unless there is some proven evidence that an increase of 40% is the place to be. Still, 90% seems stupid excessive over the stock SS 1LE front bar (by itself). The stock SS 1LE bar is pretty good - I find 90% pointless. So the BMR sounds like a better option, still: +6%, +34% and +69%.

The Hotchkiss rear bar is a good choice if you feel you, for whatever reason, need some increased stiffness in the rear and want some adjustability. The BMR non-adjustable rear gives you a minor bump in the rear, while the adjustable is a bit too strong of a bar in general (by itself).