Hotchkis Front Sway & End Link Issues (Pic. Inside)

[akak1997]

I've similar issue when I first installed. it sounds like some rock is hitting your wheel well or under the car. Usually it is something got loose...

1. claw under the car to see if the endlinks are at the right length (they should be perpendicular to the sway bar hole).. if not, take them out and readjust.
2. check if the lock nuts on the endlinks are tight, use 2 small adjustable wrench to try tighten it.
3. check if the endlink is tighten down to the sway bar and to the strut.

check both sides...

[Fireflyer239]

Whether you're using the stock end links or the Hotchkis, there must be no preload at static ride height with the wheels on. you should be able to drive up on ramps, loosen the lower end link bolts, and slide them right out of the sway bar ends. This will indicate that the sway bar was properly rotated into position during install.

[rodi]

is it making noise because the new end links are not adjusted to the length of the stock ones? or only because they are not tight enough??

[rodi]

tightened the shit out of them. still noise.
called Dan @ United, said the stock endlinks are about 12" so I'm going to adjust these to that length and see what happens.
My shop guy is not answering his cell. guess he doesn't want to deal with his error. mad.

[rodi]

update:
lack of grease in the bushings. that was the noise I was hearing/feeling.
also made both hotchkis endlinks 11" since when put at 12", there was only about a 1/3 inch left of thread on the bolt. seemed not right.
noise is gone.
I'll still pick up my stock endlinks from the original shop on Monday just in case.

I guess they didn't lube the bushings. anyone else have this problem?

[adrean8j]

^^^Glad you got this problem fixed!!! Looking forward to that Deals Gap run now?

[supracg]

So what do you think of it after the install and everything?

[rodi]

yep! thanks for your help.

and thanks for the replies, adak and fireflyer

[SlickShift]

What are your impressions?

[rodi]

it's definitely worth it. feels more level with much less roll. it's not roll free but it's half way there. still want coilovers next month.

but I haven't really been able to drive it proper - atlanta's been covered in rain for over a week, with another week's worth on the way.

[akak1997]

Originally Posted by rodi

it's definitely worth it. feels more level with much less roll. it's not roll free but it's half way there. still want coilovers next month.

but I haven't really been able to drive it proper - atlanta's been covered in rain for over a week, with another week's worth on the way.

Glad you got it fixed. I might have to regrease mine too. I'm hearing that knocking noise when I go over larger bumps. I might have to get a new boot for the joint, mine is torn already...

I just got KW V3 on a week ago, No More Roll, well, maybe only 10% of what stock is. The car doesn't squat as much on launch and doesn't dive as much on hard braking. Stock dives pretty bad even when you taps the brakes a bit, but after coilovers, it doesn't do that anymore. There's more Psssh sound when the shock is compressed, more so than stock, but I don't really care for that. It's just slightly more harsh (I've rebound and compression in middle right now), you can just barely notice it if you're as sensitive as I'm. My wife didn't feel any differences, just noticed the roll ("scariness") is gone.

What coilovers are you getting?

[rodi]

awesome.
once we took the endlinks off and rotated the bar, you could hear the sound in the bushings which were lacking sufficient grease.

I'm trying to decide between Cross, TCKline DA's and the Bilstein PSS10's.

[Fireflyer239]

I used the whole tube of lube between both bushings, no noises after 200 miles. I would be concerned for any installation where the bolts are not at proper 90 degree angles though. When doing my install, I mounted the bar by the bushings first but did not tighten them right away. I then put the link bolts through the end holes in the bar, and the bar fell right into its proper and natural position. No forcing or wrangling necessary. Then I finished tightening the bushings. Then I made sure the link bolts would still slip easily in and out of the end holes in the bar, which they did. Then I tightened everything up. The car was on ramps the whole time, with the front wheels still on.

[Mandinca]

Was I glad I found this thread. I just put the BMW performance front sway bar on my car and put the end links on back to front (L-R). The bottom ball joint looked kinda messed up so I went looking for images on google and found this thread. Sure enough, I had them reversed. Thanks to this 9 year old thread I was able to quickly figure it out and fix it.

[bbnks2]

Originally Posted by Fireflyer239

Whether you're using the stock end links or the Hotchkis, there must be no preload at static ride height with the wheels on. you should be able to drive up on ramps, loosen the lower end link bolts, and slide them right out of the sway bar ends. This will indicate that the sway bar was properly rotated into position during install.

This is not true. Sway bar orientation has nothing to do with preload if you're using bushings that don't bind on the bar... With adjustable arms you will always be able to dial out preload regardless of whether or not the swaybar is in the proper place.

Proper orientation of the sway bar is essential in ensuring the sway bar wont contact the lower control arm or the chassis. It also has an impact on how effective the sway bar is. Mount the sway bar pointing in the wrong direction and it will be leverage more/less.