Is there a major difference between a 21mm skunk2 sway bar compare to a 22mm or 23mm type r sway bar? If there is, I might think about switching to a type R bar. And I need help on where can I find some good endlinks for the skunk2 sway bar.

 

Some people say yes. There was some equation some guy put up once showing how to calculate sway bar thickness, and that one millimeter showed that a 23 over a 22 was much stiffer. My friend went from his 22mm stock bar to a 23, and he said he noticed the difference. Hope this helps.

 

I have read about this too but don't remember where. The equation I saw showed quite a remakable difference in just 1mm of thickness.

 

search archived posts created by RR98ITR. And have some fun! Come back in a few hours after your eyes have bled.

 

or your head explodes!

 

it depends. does the skunk bar have all the same bends and lengths of the itr bar? does it bolt to the same point on the lca as the itr bar?

a 22mm itr bar has a wheel rate of 310lbs/in.

a 23mm itr bar has a wheel rate of 360lbs/in.

the skunk2 bar, if it has the same dimensions as the other two bars, has a wheel rate of 260lbs/in.

those are rough numbers, but only +/- 3% or so.

now you know your swaybars spring rates. what that does for you, i don't know. i'm still trying to learn the relation between springs, swaybars, roll centers, and the total effect they have on the rate of lateral weight transfer.

nate

 

First off I don't think Scott's old archived posts have mentioned anything about the comparison between sway bars with different diameter. :dunno: So having him spend hours of time going thru those posts might not get what he's looking for.

To answer the question, torsional stiffness for a circular section is directly proportional to the moment of inertia (axis of moments throught center). So to compare solid bars with different diameter, just take the radius to the 4th power.

21mm bar --- 21^4 = 194481
23mm bar --- 23^4 = 279841

279841/194481 = 1.439 ---> the 23mm bar would be 44% torsionally stiffer than the 21mm bar.

It's all based on the assumption that the mounting points and bends are almost identical, so that the applied torsion to be bar would not be dramatically different.

 

of course, of that 44% increase in torsional stiffness, you only see 28% at the wheels. 28% of 44% of......oh yeah. we never had a number to start with. our increase in stiffness may only be to the tune of 15lbs/in.

what good is 44% stiffer? what is it stiffer than? more importantly, to what degree will it effect the suspension?

nate-i'm starting to see why scott says so many things are better off not trying to figure out. what good is a number if it has no meaning?


[Modified by solo-x, 8:30 PM 3/6/2003]

 

Well they were all just strictly based on a sectional property standpoint. Not sure how else we could "compare" 2 bars with different diameter.

44% stiffer means it is 44% stiffer than the 21mm bar. If you want to get into details, we can find out how much this 44% increase in stiffness can reduce the angular displacement of the bar --- then interpret that and find out how much roll it reduces under the exact same scenerio.

 

the final answer to your question is this. if you are a good enough driver that you are already getting 100% out of your car AND your car doesn't already have sufficient rear roll stiffness, then yes, getting the bigger rear bar will make a difference. if however, you are not already getting 100% out of your car, the $100 or so could be better spent on an evolution school or other such driving school.

nate-who's finally getting the whole "shut-up and drive the damn thing" way of thinking??