Just started autocross, need sway bar recommendations!

[Kurisu]

The title says it all, I want to limit the limited body roll my 2008 GTI has for slightly better cornering. My tires have their limits, and sway bars would help expand those limits. Thanks in advance guys!


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[Goingnowherefast]

Well you definitely want sway bars especially if you want to stay in GS class. A lot of it depends on your driving style but usually for AutoX id say run a big rear bar and stock front. I'd recommend Hotchkiss which is APR but honestly any well known company (H&R, Whiteline) will do. Take my answers with a grain of salt, I'm still slow af on the track.

 

[SuperSkyline89]

I spent a couple hours comparing the stiffness of bars a few weeks ago. The absolute stiffest ones as far as I know are the Neuspeed race bars. I decided not to buy bars this summer but I like the APR ones the best. They have three adjustment points, the widest range of stiffness, and grease fittings. If the Hotchkis ones are the exact same I'd buy them.

 

[Kurisu]

Thanks for the replies! And thanks for the recommendation of keeping the front stock, Goingnowherefast, I don't want to spend unnecessary money. I'll look into the APR ones pronto.


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[snobrdrdan]

If the Hotchkis ones are the exact same I'd buy them.

I'll look into the APR ones pronto.

Save your money and get the Hotchkis bar. They're the same

Hotchkis makes the bar for APR, with the only difference being that APR's is painted red for them.
Hotchkis' bar is black

$225 SHIPPED:
http://www.amazon.com/Hotchkis-22833R-Sport-Rear-Sway/dp/B004I279DC

 

[Kurisu]

Thanks for the advice and the link, much appreciated!


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[Brigand253]

Is there a reason that a hollow sway bar is being recommended here versus a solid?

 

[snobrdrdan]

The 27mm hollow ones are the bigger/biggest ones available on the market right now

H&R offered a 28mm solid "Time Attack" rear bar a few years back, but that was a limited run and don't pop up for sale often

 

[Brigand253]

The 27mm hollow ones are the bigger/biggest ones available on the market right now



H&R offered a 28mm solid "Time Attack" rear bar a few years back, but that was a limited run and don't pop up for sale often

Ah well that makes sense. I'm looking at a 24mm H&R RSB. The price seems a bit higher than other comparably sized rear bars. I see that H&Rs are made with 50crV4 steel. Is that what justifies the cost increase? Are all sway bars made of this?

 

[Brigand253]

The 27mm hollow ones are the bigger/biggest ones available on the market right now



H&R offered a 28mm solid "Time Attack" rear bar a few years back, but that was a limited run and don't pop up for sale often

Ah well that makes sense. I'm looking at a 24mm H&R RSB. The price seems a bit higher than other comparably sized rear bars. I see that H&Rs are made with 50crV4 steel. Is that what justifies the cost increase? Are all sway bars made of this grade steel?

 

[snobrdrdan]

Ah well that makes sense. I'm looking at a 24mm H&R RSB. The price seems a bit higher than other comparably sized rear bars. I see that H&Rs are made with 50crV4 steel. Is that what justifies the cost increase? Are all sway bars made of this?

I've always ran the H&R 24mm rear bar on all my cars

Not sure about the steel content, lol, but it's a SOLID rear bar

The best selling point of the H&R bars are that they have the (no maintenance) teflon lined bushings which will never squeak.

Unlike bars with poly bushings that will require lube/grease as maintenance to prevent them from squeaking

 

[Das Gespenst]

I love my SPM bars, I have both front and rear, ran with just the rear for about a year. I agree with only running a rear bar for auto X, but it does unsettle the car at high speeds. It gets very tail happy and swings around when at highway speeds or up. It's not dangerous but it is something to be aware of. Once I did the front bar the car became waaay more stable, but I don't auto X, I do closed circuit road courses.

For the money you can't beat the SPM's, it's a solid bar (I will not run hollow, seen way to many just snap) and the 2 way adjustability is more than enough unless you are getting into some serious chassis tuning.

 

[Kurisu]

I ordered the hotchkis like snobrdrdan suggested. Easy install and has worked like a dream for the past day I have had them on. OEM are in the garage in case something goes wrong, but the hotchkis felt more ....substantial (?) when I had them side by side. Middle setting for the win.


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[FiXXXerX]

I would recommend a solid rear bar. The weight savings of a Tubular bar vs. a Solid Bar are so unnoticeable for your application that its not even worth discussing. The stiffer the rear bar, the more oversteer and rotation you're going to get. This isn't great for all applications but for AutoX its going to be perfect.

I have plenty of friends with 24mm Solid H&R Bars and they love them, dials out the understeer without inducing snap oversteer.

I would recommend the H&R whole heatedly especially for starting out. Once you understand how it affects the handling dynamics you can decide whether it's worth it to get a larger more aggressive rear bar.

Also, as all things go with handling, it may be better to go through a few AutoX sessions stock before moving over to the larger bar just to understand the car better. Either way, my vote goes for the H&R 24mm and any larger SOLID bar.

GL!

 

[FiXXXerX]

Ack! Just noticed that you had already bought them... Dis-regard my message lol