Bigger sway bars.. is it worth it?

[MRGTX]

My 318 Dart Sport has a pretty sissy looking sway bar up front. Did the high performance versions have beefier ones?

Does it make a worthwhile difference in how the car would handle?

Thanks!!

 

[RedFish]

Any sway bar is better than none. Having said that, my plan is to keep the sissy looking stock front bar and add a aftermarket rear sway bar.
I think it boils down to how and where you drive. Enough mods might make an old mopar handle winding roads like a Porshe but that kills the personality of a classic for me. May as well be a porshe if it drives like one. Just my opinion

 

[redfastback]

i think it makes a big difference. like redfish said, its how you want it to handle. i am one who wants the most performance handling i can get with stock style suspension. i run 1 1/4" swaybar up front and a 7/8" out back with .890 torsion bars.

 

[2 Darts]

The front bar keeps the car from "rolling over" in turns. The bar you have may look sissy and have a smaller diameter than some earlier bars, but don't be fooled. The K-frame and disk brakes changed with the '73 models, so the bars do not interchnage. The shorter length of the later bar makes it stiffer overall. The drawbacks to a front sway bar are a slight increase in unsprung weight (rougher ride) and understeer. I agree with the recommendation to keep the stock bar and add a rear bar. If you can find one that mounts on the body (a'la A39 Dart), you'll be better off than one that mounts the bar on the axle.
I installed a K-frame & bar combination like you have in the Demon. I use .830 diameter torsion bars and the stiffest affordable gas shocks I could find. All the rubber in the suspension has been replaced by polygraphite. Combined with the cop car steering box, the car drove nice.
When I added the rear bar, it balanced the car better and made it corner flatter, too. The rear bar is mounted on the body. I had to fabricate mounts to connect the ends of the bar to the axle. The rear is soft sprung/stiff damped like the front end. It's no Porsche, but it is fun in the twisties.

 

[dgc333]

Having said that, my plan is to keep the sissy looking stock front bar and add a aftermarket rear sway bar.

You want to upgrade the front before you think about adding a rear bar. A rear bar will make the car more prone to oversteer, that is the *** end wanting to come around.

 

[MoParMetal]

You want to upgrade the front before you think about adding a rear bar. A rear bar will make the car more prone to oversteer, that is the *** end wanting to come around.

oooOOOOoooo sounds like fun!!!:burnout::cool: