MG MGB and MGB GT Tech Talk
I was thinking of adding a rear sway bar onto my 1970 BGT. I'd like to do this addition to keep the rear end in place (side to side movement)and stabilize the car when cornering. I already have a 1977 rear end installed (has the brackets). What am I going to need besides the actual bar? Am I going to need to do any body modification for the body mounts? Any help from anyone who may of done this will be greatly appreciated.
Tony.
Look at my comments under the "Consensus regarding sway bars" thread.
To prevent oversteer problems you have to uprate the front sway bar before increasing the rear roll stiffness.
The typical match is a 7/8" front bar to 3/4" rear bar.
The factory 77-80 bar is pretty soft and if you are looking for a handling improvement it's going to be more trouble installing it than it is worth.
An alternative would be to use the factory bar on your axle, since you have the mountings but shorten the arms of the bar to increase the effective rate. Then fabricate new end fittings and appropriate body pickup points.
Personally, I think you'd be better off going with an aftermarket rear bar kit (after increasing the front bar rate). But be careful if you run one that is body mounted (preferred, less unsprung weight) to make sure the mountings are suitably reinforced.
Two matched front/rear bar kits were available out of the UK, some of these come up used from time to time.
Evolution = 1" 3/4"
Ron Hopkins/Special Tuning = 7/8" 3/4"
Addco also made a US kit for the MGB = 7/8" 3/4"
Personally, I'm a believer in upgraded front and rear bars if matched correctly to increased damping rates.
K.
A sway bar won't do much to positively locate the rear end side to side. It will increase roll stiffness. A panhard rod will however http://www.frontlinedevelopments.com/products/mgb/panhardrodkit.shtml
Tony,
Lloyd posted regarding adding the sway bar from the earlier cars. The factory sway bar from the later cars necessitated the moving of the gas pump to the trunk and the two battery box cars also don't have the clearance for the factory sway bar in the later cars. His advice was that this was not a way to add the rear sway bar to a car.
Gary
The Hopkinson kit is 7/8 9/16 . It's been on my 72 since the early 90s, autocrossed, track days and normal driving. No signs of any structural failure in the rear. Shame they don't seem to make it anymore.
Guys, What I basically want it for is centering the axle. Sooo, perhaps I'd be better off fabricating a panhard using the oem sway bar mounts?
A properly done panhard rod will yield results....and keep the rear end from moving laterally in the chassis. But as with every suspension component...it is not a stand alone factor.....everything is inter-related. The geometry of a panhard rod is not ideal.....therefore it needs: to be as long as physically possible in the car; to be mounted level when the car is driven straight forward (usually a problem with a lowered car); and the height that the bar is mounted at will effect the rear roll center. It is not just something used to prevent tire rub. Of course it goes without saying that the mountings need to be strong enough to resist any flexing.