polyurethane sway bar bushing size for XJ

[Black Dog]

My jeeps got a death wobble problem, and I found a bunch of stuff online that tells what the various fixes might be. So far my first course of action is going to be a tire rotation\balance with alignment, new steering dampener (current one has a leak), and all new bushings. I'm going to get polyurethane bushings instead of the cheap OE rubber ones, and I've found this daystar brand super kit that has all of them. But I have to choose which size of bushings to get for the sway bar, my choices are 23mm through 28mm. This is the measurement of the length of the bushing right? Not the diameter? And my next question is, does it really make much of a difference which I get? It seems like a bigger bushing (length-wise) might be better, but I don't want to get the biggest one and not be able to use it.

I've got a 2 inch budget lift kit if that has any effect on your answers, I doubt it will though. Thanks a bunch!

 

[Explorer 1]

Sway bars

I had installed the JKS quick release sway bar system to my XJ, On one trip to the mountains I was in a hurrry to get down so after wheeling I decided to travel down the mountain without reconnectiing the sway bar. I figured if it handled too bad I could just pull over and re-connect them. I made it all the way down the mountain and drove the 50 miles on the freeway without ever re-connecting the bar.

I was really surprized how little difference it made. I removed both the front and rear and have driven with both for now over three years. Just a suggestion, try driving without one and see what you think before you invest in something that really isn't needed.

Thanks,
Fred
Explorer 1

 

[Backwoods Rambler]

On the flip side; I've been driving my 4.5" lifted XJ for about a year now without the sway bar connected and I'm getting ready to purchase the JKS Quicker Disconnects because I don't like the way the jeep corners. On the straights it's fine, but I'm trying to control the lean while cornering, even at slower speeds. Hopefully it won't be wasted money :snorkel:

 

[mudbutt]

kc0tma,

While I have no personal experience, I have heard others say that running on the street without a front sway bar is a VERY bad idea.

When I get home after work today I will try and remember to measure mine up and give you dimensions.

What year is your XJ? I have a '98....

 

[Maximus Ram]

Join the club...
There is a post here somewhere that has a nice check list of things to look for. Unfortuneately I can't seem to find it even with a search. Hopefully someone will chime in with it. I have changed every tie rod end and bar possible an dits still there. next is shocks and hubs for me.
If that doesn't solve it, I'll have to shoot it and put it out of my misery..:Wow1:

 

[Explorer 1]

No Sway Bars

I've been told that I have so much low end weight that it causes the Cherokee to sit more stable in corners. Along with the wider track is probably why I haven't seen any real difference with the sway bar attached.

Good luck with fix'n that wobble.

Thanks,
Fred
Explorer 1

 

[XJeeper]

The 23 -28mm dimension is the bar diameter. You can just measure your bar to see what you have and purchase accordingly. Poly swaybar bushings will control the bar better and provide a slightly firmer antisway effect but they have been known to squeak incessantly. On your typical daily driver rubber bushings are probably a better choice.

 

[Backwoods Rambler]

Polyurethane is the Devil's spawn :ar15:

 

[Eric S.]

Stick with rubber bushings. They flex much better than polly and lat WAY longer. The swaybar bushings are sold by swaybar diameter not length.

 

[toledotimber]

If you don't have a caliper, use an adjustable wrench to get the size, then measure that gap with a mm. ruler.

 

[Black Dog]

I didn't even think that the measurement would be the diameter of the bar, thanks for clearing that up.

For who ever it was that asked, my jeep is a 1999 Sport trim, 4 door unit. Its mostly stock, with only the K&N FIPK, 2.5" Rusty's lift and new leaf packs, cragar soft 8 wheels, and Medalist Sport King tires which suck so don't waste your money on them.

I figured I'd do those bushings for sure because I can tell that some of the existing ones are shot. They're dry and chapped and a few of them are pinched pretty good. And the steering dampener is wet with its own oil so it needs replaced. Those appear to be the cheapest and easier things so thats what I'm trying first.

My next course of action will be those JKS quicker disconnects and a track bar I think. I'm limited on cash so I'm taking things one at a time to fix it. I found a check list of stuff to look at on another forum, I think it was the jeeps unlimited forum or something like that. That is what I'm going with to fix it.

That death wobble hasn't been much of a problem up until lately. It would do it some times but not others, and every once in a while it would be as small as just a shimmy. But about a month ago we were driving on a curvy highway with some bad patch work done to the pot holes. The road had a 45mph speed limit there, which is where my jeep wobbles the worst. To make a long story short, we wound up turning around and doing the 100 mile drive home at about 35mph.

 

[ExpoMike]

Okay, I'll put in my 2 cents worth.

First, run away from Poly suspension bushings. These are much firmer and will not flex as much as stock. In return this adds a lot of extra load on the mounting points and you can actually rip the mounting flanges off the frame and/or axle. On a sports car they might be great but for an offroad vehicle, in this application, this is not what you want.

Second, 90% of people's death wobble comes down to 3 main things. The most common thing of the three is a worn out track bar. The stock one was designed for a stock hight vehicle. When you start lifting them, they will start wearing out very quickly due to the design of them. An aftermarket one like from T&T, JKS or RE will eliminate the slop and won't wear out like the stock one will. Second item is the alignment. XJ's are very sensitive to caster and at ~3" of lift, you actually need longer lower arms. IIRC it was 16" center to center which is 1/4" or so longer then stock. Higher lifts need even more. Adjustable aftermarket arms can take care of this (I like the JKS ones). Third item of this list is worn out ball joints and tie rods. Tie rods are fairly easy to see if they have play by having someone turn the steering wheel while you watch the joints and see if any movement of the tie rod before the wheel starts to turn. The ball joints are much harder to figure out and typically cannot visually be seen. If you have corrected the above items and still have DW, then ball joints are typically the issue, especially if over 100,000 miles. Also note that the track bar frame mount can come loose and cause DW so check that too.

As for the steering dampner, a leaking/worn out one will not cause DW. A new one will mask the real problem, which will return. The steering dampner is for the drivers comfort, NOT to fix a problem. It helps dampen the steering jolt when you hit a bump/pothole/rock/etc. It helps to keep from having the steering wheel ripped from your hands when you hit these. Many vehicles over the years never came with them and did not have DW problems. If yours is leaking, replacing it is fine but it is not the solution to the DW.

Hope this helps and guides you to finding the problem.

 

[Markos]

FYI, Napa also sells thermoplastic swaybar bushings. I'm in the process of replacing mine, and considered giving them a try. Apparently, they don't squeak like poly bushings do. I haven't seen much discussion from the Jeep community, but if you run a google search you will see hits from various car forums.

I don't know how the remove your swaybar discussion popped up since the OP never mentioned it. By all means - keep your swaybar. JKS discos are a worthy addition but aren't really necessary until you are on trails that really benefit from articulation. Larger rocks, moguls, etc.

 

[Black Dog]

I'm definantly keeping the sway bar, probably 97% plus of my driving is on the highway for my commute to work. I had looked at those JKS quicker disconnects and was interested, but I think I'll try a few other things before I do that. Maybe if I get my problem fixed before I can do that I can still get them just as an upgrade later on.