Sway Bar Replacement? What Did You Choose?

[Hornung418]

ZHP sways are 23.5mm stock. 328i ZSP is 24mm. That's all I have to say 'bout that.

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[TTI]

OEM Rear is 18 mm for 330 ZHP

[spencers]

ZHP sways are 23.5mm stock. 328i ZSP is 24mm. That's all I have to say 'bout that.

[M0nk3y]

ZHP sways are 23.5mm stock. 328i ZSP is 24mm. That's all I have to say 'bout that.

RootedDROIDXstatus. Come at me, bro.

Could be that the zhpmafia has a stiffer chassis. Iirc the m only had a 25

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[Hornung418]

Yeah when the facelift occured in 9/01, the chassis was also stiffened...so its jut my way of making myself feel better

Can't speak for the coupes.

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[bcleaver]

IMO 30mm isn't recommended for DD use. That's way too stiff for Non-M chassis

It really comes down to ride preference. A stiffer bar will reduce how independent the suspension is able to operate, but will add a great deal of roll resistance. So a 30mm bar will make the car 'flatter' so to speak over a 27mm or less bar. I don't see the relevance of the M vs non M chassis stiffness to this decision, as the sway bar affects roll resistance, not chassis stiffness.

If you want a slight 'upgrade' in reduced roll resistance from stock, then go with a 27. If you want more, go 30mm. There are plenty of people, running both non M's and M's, on 30mm front bars. I would try to drive both and see which you prefer. The other thing to note is most of these bars are adjustable, so a 27mm bar on full stiff is actually very close in roll resistance to a 30mm bar set to full soft. This also means if you ever want to go with less body roll you'll have the option with a 30mm bar, but not the case with a 27.

[SonOfWMB]

Back on topic, I just had the Racing Dynamics front and rear anti-sway bars installed. I like them so far.

[bcleaver]

Back on topic, I just had the Racing Dynamics front and rear anti-sway bars installed. I like them so far.

When picking a bar, the size is much more relevant than brand in terms of actually making a difference. At the end of the day it's a bent piece steel with some holes in the end, so not a lot can be done to provide variation outside of diameter and weight.

What size where the RD bars you had installed?

[murph]

Yep, the "M3" H&R 30mm works fine on non-M, though I agree it might be more than what's necessary for just street use. Felt a little goofy to me when running stock springs and the 30mm bar on full stiff.

For street use I like the H&R (and Turner are just rebranded H&R) bars because the bushings are lined with teflon, so they never squeak. For Racing purposes, I'll probably move to the Hotchkis bars at some point as they're hollow, and so lighter weight.

[quikryptonite]

I'm looking at this TMS setup:

TMS Non-M Sway Kit

I've heard that the "upgrade" to the 27mm bar up front is sufficient without worry about the rear sway bar. Should I just buy the front bar?

Is this a pretty easy DIY install? The BavAuto DIY Video seems pretty straight forward.