Sway bars have two functions: First, they reduce body roll when turning. Sway bars function without simply raising the "two wheel" spring rate - that is, they do increase the wheel rate for a "one wheel" bump such as a pothole, but they do not change the "two wheel" rate for things like pavement joints.
Although this may not sound like a big deal, in practice, trying to restrict chassis roll with spring rates causes harsher ride characteristics than the same roll restriction with sway bars. There are a variety of reasons to restrict body roll. For one, the steering response to a turning input on the steering wheel is much crisper and clearer if the body doesn't have to roll at the start of the turn.
For another, the angles with the pavement that develop as the wheels move up and down are often not ideal. By restricting these angles, more cornering power is usually available. Upgrading to larger diameter sway bars on your Miata will increase the general stiffness of the ride - but not by much. For most drivers, the improvement in steering crispness more than compensates for the minor increase in stiffness. You can change only the front or rear bars, but depending on where the car's handling balance was at the beginning, you will probably upset that balance.
Nearly all of Mazda's cars have light to moderate understeer as delivered, largely to avoid oversteer which is the tendency for the rear to slide sooner that the front , a condition that many people are not experienced enough with to deal with safely. Racing Beat typically designs and tests all of our Miata sway bars as pairs and recommends that they be used together as a matched-set. Partly based on experience, partly based on the performance of the original vehicle, and partly based on testing.
Not only are we selecting the bar diameter, but in the case of a tubular sway bar application we are also comparing and selecting the specific wall thickness. Functionally, there is no practical difference between a tubular and a solid bar of equal torsional stiffness except that the solid bar will weigh more. The tubular bar will typically be larger in diameter, which may cause some clearance and space problems; it can't be bent as sharply as a solid bar; and the material may cost more.
You will immediately notice that the car is more responsive to steering inputs; the car will not roll as much in turns; and the ultimate cornering power and speed will increase.
You'll find that you are able to carry more speed through the corner, which improves straight line acceleration and speed upon exiting the corner. It is not required but adding a set of upgraded sway bar endlinks the component that connects the sway bar to the lower control arm along with the stiffer aftermarket bars is strongly suggested. The added loads placed on the original OE endlinks may accelerate wear on the end ball-joint, causing the link to eventually fatigue and fail. Racing Beat Heavy Duty Endlinks feature adjustable ends to avoid pre-loading the bar and durable urethane bushings that provide excellent steering feedback and comfort.
We offer sway bars for both street and track use. If you are just getting started with your sway bar upgrades we recommend you review our Miata Sway Bar Application Guide to determine the optimal bar set to meet your requirements.
Miata sway bars are relatively easy to install, particularly the rear bar. Racing Beat provides installation instructions, replacement bushings and clamps if required , Prothane bushing grease, and any other required mounting hardware.
Need more assistance? You'll notice there's a hole here to place an allen key. Step Use a breaker bar or ratchet to initially loosen the nut. But then use the allen key to hold the bolt in place, then use the open ended wrench to turn the nut off. Step I missed a snapshot here, so don't get confused why the new bar's already on.
But now, remove the nuts from the sway bar brackets. You're now all ready to remove the bar. I pulled it out through the passenger side, because there are a few metal coolant lines that look a bit delicate. It took a few minutes, but not too bad. The hard part was getting the new, larger bar in. Many people have a hard time getting it back in, usually because if you insert it from the passenger side fender area, the bar can't get over the lower radiator hose.
Every time you try and raise one side of the bar, the other side hits the ground and prevents you from raising it further. If you use the jack to raise the passenger side of the car a few inches, you can get more leverage to move the sway bar around and get it over the radiator hose. After that, I lowered the car back on the ramp. Don't do this if you don't feel comfortable or safe!. I figured even if the jack fell, it would land on the ramp which was only 2 inches below the wheel.
Step Put the end link in the new sway bar. Lower the car to the ground to settle out the suspension, then reach in and final-tighten all the fasteners. Raise the car once more, refit the plastic splash pan, and you're ready to put the car down for its test drive. The front install should take less than an hour, and again there are no real hassles to watch out for. Best of all, no alignment changes will occur from swapping out either bar unless you significantly cock up their side-to-side placement, that is.
A after making a major change to the suspension like we did here, you need to resist the urge to dash off to your favorite twisty road and push the car to its limits. For a little while, those limits are again unknown to you, so probe the new feel carefully.
I personally know two different people who stuffed their cars right after putting on new antiroll bars: The chassis feels so much flatter and grippier through the comers that a false sense of security often settles in.
While beefier bars will make the car hunker down flatter longer, they also diminish the amount of warning you get of impending trouble. Get to know the car's new over- and understeer limits again before you get too cocky.
Once you do get used to a larger set of antiroll bars, however, you may wish you'd installed them the day you bought the car. On our '93, the ride was not degraded in any perceptible way, while feedback and tautness during cornering were much improved. The overall balance in hard cornering is also a lot better, and the car now settles down between tight, fast corners much faster.
I was very impressed with the finish of Racing Beat's parts, though the urethane bushings they supplied did start creaking after a few days.
You can swap these for graphite-impregnated units found in speed shops to quiet the bushings if needed. This article was printed in Miata Magazine VI. Miata Magazine: Sway Bar Installation. Select the correct sway bar for your Miata: Sway Bar - Solid - Front Miata Racing Beat-designed sway bars for the Miata reduce chassis roll in turns and increase your car's Sway Bar - Solid - Front Miata Racing Beat-designed sway bars for the Miata reduce chassis roll in turns and increase your car's Sway Bar - Tubular - Front Miata Racing Beat-designed front tubular sway bar for the Miata reduce chassis roll in turns and increase your Sway Bar - Tubular - Front Miata Racing Beat's front tubular sway bars for the Miata applications offer you the ability to further tune Feature article reprinted from the VI issue of Miata Magazine.
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