soberstan

i got a 95 cx and i just installed the rear suspention techniques sway bar last night...it was made for civic w/o a stock sway bar so the end links mounted onto the lower strut bolt (shown w/ red arrow)...now my problem is...it seems lik its to short...and on the other side where the bolt goes onto the nut....is only threaded in about halfway and seems kind of dangerous...can someone give me a solution to this problem?...thank you

Basically

Go to NAPA and get a longer bolt....get the strongest one they have

soberstan

hmmm which bolt would i ask for...off of what car?

soberstan

help?...please?

Tad

u sure you didn't mix up the bolts?
if there is a longer bolt supplied with the kit that is used elsewhere,
use that, and see if your shorter bolt fits in it's place.

soberstan

there was no bolt that was supplied with the kit that was long enough to replace the strut bolt....i bought the kit used....i hope i didnt get jerked

MonkeyBoy668

A new bolt should cost you $10-$15 tops, possibly less. Just be sure to get the strongest grade bolt you can get your hands on and you should be fine. Crap, I can't remember what grade bolt that is, and my spare damper bolt is locked in a storage room.

BTW, it would be best to bring your existing bolt with you so you can make sure the thread counts match between old & new bolts. Alternately if your kit includes a replacement/2nd nut (sorry, only familiar with OEM sways, based on your pic it looks like you've got a 2nd nut on top of the one welded to the shock), you can bring that along - just need to make sure the new bolt will thread properly onto your existing nuts.

soberstan

thanks a lot...i believe its a grade 8 bolt.....but ill have to go to napa to check it out...thanks

Tad

yeah.. shouldn't be any problem finding another bolt at any hardware store with a good selection of bolts..

homedepot for example

soberstan

tru...but that bolt is always a bitch to do...plus the stock one isnt threaded all the way thru...

MonkeyBoy668

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by soberstan &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">tru...but that bolt is always a bitch to do...plus the stock one isnt threaded all the way thru...</TD></TR></TABLE>

My rear damper bolt is threaded all the way through, and then some (about an inch overhang). Then again I have transplanted ITR LCAs - maybe Honda just uses the same size bolt for all Civic-derived vehicles, and the ITR assembly is smaller... (shrug)

soberstan

ooo is it?....my strut bolt was only threaded lik for the first 2 inches then the rest was non threaded...hmmm...thanks for the help guys......i cant believe im driving lik this...lols

MonkeyBoy668

Oh. Sorry, I misunderstood. Too much caffeine today.

Yes, the thread only goes down 2-3 inches on my bolt - the load bearing portion of my bolts aren't threaded.

As far as a replacement bolt, long term you I suspect the bushing would wear out bushing faster if it's fully threaded, but the bolt itself should be fine. A very light coating of grease on the load bearing portion might help with wear, but my Helms doesn't mention squat about greasing the OEM bolts so I dunno - my pause is over the grease affecting the rubber parts of your bushing.

I would be wary of putting on the sway bar until you have the right size bolt installed. So long as it's torqued down and to the welded-on nut you're okay to drive around, too much stress on the tip of the bolt and it'll probably snap. Hence leave the bar off.

Good luck!

rukawa1one

NO!!! U dont need a new bolt, u just have to rotate that bracket there up^^^ I used to have ST sways, and when I installed it, I had that bracket up towards the body, not down towards the ground like u have pictured there.

jmk2888

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rukawa1one &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">NO!!! U dont need a new bolt, u just have to rotate that bracket there up^^^ I used to have ST sways, and when I installed it, I had that bracket up towards the body, not down towards the ground like u have pictured there.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I have ST Sway Bars on my EJ, and I'm looking at it right now.

The bracket points downward like his but my bolt is much longer, with some thread to spare. I had my kit for since 1999, no problems at all. But if I had to do it again, I would get a ITR Sway Bar with OEM mounts.

I will try to get my camera and post a pic up tomm.

Did you follow the instructions correctly?

http://www.overboost.com/story.asp?id=445


Modified by jmk2888 at 7:41 AM 5/25/2005


Modified by jmk2888 at 8:05 AM 5/25/2005

soberstan

i understand the instructions...but my main problem is that the stock bolt is to short...and no matter how i put the bracket on...it acts lik a washer and doesnt leave me enough thread to tourqe it down correctly

jmk2888

Did you look at the instruction link above with Pics?

Are you missing something from that website? I think it come with Longer Bolts from ST, is your sway kit used or new???

soberstan

i bought the kit used...and as far i im conserned the kit never came with replacement strut bolts....i read the article and it didnt say anything about after market strut bolts..."Don't forget to tighten the lower suspension damper bolt before installing the end link, as it will be impossible to tighten once the link is in place!"...sigh....

what lower strut bolt off what car will also fit my EG...and that is a little longer....?...integra?...accord?

jmk2888

Can you take a pic of the screws? diff angles....

soberstan

ill try...i lost the cable to my camera

EG_93Civic

i have the same problem, did you fix the problem? and how?