Sway bar endlinks - Ford Forums - Mustang Forum, Ford Trucks, Ford Focus and Ford Cars

TARDIS_P71 · 11-16-2010, 20:58

My front sway bar has about an inch and a half worth of play in it.. This is more than likely the cause of my car handling like a massive cargo ship when things get twisty.

I had a few minutes at the time, so I pulled the car onto my ramps and took a look at the end links. From what I could see in my rush before I had to be at work, they did not look like they had broken.. But moving the back back and forth with my hand, I could see that both endlinks on either end are moving quite a bit. It looks as if the side of the endlink which attaches to the hub might be missing a piece... but looking at a replacement unit, I'm not convinced of this. There is a threaded stud, and a corresponding nut. It almost appears as if neither end is tightened down properly, as there's a massive gap in between... However, I don't recall seeing threads below where the nuts rest currently, so tightening them down does not appear to be an option.

So I'm curious as to the failure, really. If my plans fall through tomorrow, I intend on putting the car back on the ramps to have a better look, or I may just jack it up and put it on stands to take the wheels off and have a proper look.

New end links aren't terribly expensive, but good lord is this another annoying thing to add to my list of 'To Do's'

Any tips?

Cheers,
- The Doctor

no_common_sens · 11-17-2010, 20:22

Somebody failed to properly tighten those links and they've probably been rattling long enough to eat those threads you can't seem to find. Regardless, they're a common wearing part on the car so you'd probably do well to just change them out. Look for play in the ball sockets themselves. If they're the original ford links, they're likely to be toast anyway. Moog makes them serviceable and they're reliable replacements. While you're down there, look for play in the sway bar bushings too. If you can rattle or slide your sway bar, they're worn out as well. Ford used a couple different kinds of bushings and one kind tends to live a much longer useful life than the other. If the bushing is totally donut shaped, you probably won't need to change them. If the bushings have a flat top mounting point, it's the type that's more prone to wear.