Front Sway Bar Endlinks

[gorillamel]

So, the nut holding the bar on to the endlink came off on my front driver side sway bar set up. I was considering just replacing the nut and moving on and forgetting about the whole thing.

But after some research on the topic I came across mention of replacing the whole endlink set up with one better suited for lifted X's. These are the threads I read over on TNX: first and second.

PRG sells an OEM replacement set for Titans which would fit the X (I am assuming) for $79. But I really do not want to shell out $79 unless I really have to.

Anyone have an opinion and/or experience on this? Should I just keep the set up I have (my X is lifted ~4" all around) or replace with something better suited to compensate for a lift?

 

[J Everett]

I would compensate for the lift. But the only ones I can find on PRG's site are for lifted Titans, and they are heim joint, adjustable length endlinks, which are overkill and unecessarily expensive. And the heim joints will be susceptible to corrosion damage from road salt if you don't clean them and grease them after every single trip in the snow.


I had heim joint endlinks on my '08 and the salt from riding on the beach had them looking like complete shiz within 6 months. And, I can't even find those endlinks on PRG's site anymore.

I would suggest these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/compatibility-chart/B0049CBKQS/ref=au_pf_dp_chart?ie=UTF8&Make=Nissan%7C67&Model=Titan%7C2440&Year=2012%7C2012&carId=004

They're for a stock Titan, so they're a little longer than the stock Xterra endlinks, they're greasable, and they're $22.

 

[J Everett]

On second thought, don't use Titan endlinks. They are clocked differently. The ends are at 180° instead of the 80° that the ends of the Xterra links are. I'll see if I can find another solution.

 

[J Everett]

SWEET! The endlinks from a 2002 Chevy Trailblazer have similar angles between the ends and should fit. The front trailblazer links are a little longer than the stock Xterra links, and the rear Trailblazer links are a a couple of inches longer than the front ones and should work for lifted Xterras. Actually, when you think about it, the stock length should be OK, because the suspension travel is still the same as stock; only the ride height has been altered. So, I would think a good compromise would be the front endlinks from the Trailblazer.

Here's a kit that includes both front and rear for $40 if you want to try it out, but I couldn't begin to guess at the quality. Or, do what I did and search eBay Motors for "Trailblazer sway bar" and you'll see tons of endlinks. For some reason, the left and right sides are sold seperately in the better brands like Moog and ACDelco and Raybestos.

Anyway, that's what I would go with, and what I'll probably do myself when the time comes. I hope this helps you out a little.

 

[gorillamel]

So the oem trailblazer front endlinks should work, right? I will definitely look in to those. My X has almost 170k mi on it so I'm needing to replace well-used parts more often.
Thanks for your input.

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[J Everett]

Well, the OEM links are fat and look to be made of cast aluminum, but the replacements for those by Moog and Raybestos and such look just like longer versions of our Nissan OEM links, with the thinner steel rod connecting two steel caps for the ball joints in the end. The Raybestos ones come with grease zerts, so that's what I'd look into. Keep em greased and they'll last a lot longer than the Nissan ones.

 

[gorillamel]

Ah ha, gotcha. Thanks!

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[FaroutX]

One of my endlinks broke last year, that's when I just ditched the front sway bar!

 

[civicjoe]

Mel I have the prg ones yes quite expensive, thought they were the culprit in one of my clunk experiences as they were not but I destroyed the oem ones taking them off so they are still on. And as we live in the land of salt free roads they are ok, I can let know more once I get the tjms installed and I'm sitting at probably 2.5-3 up front. As they are adjustable so you can spin then to the angle you need. But yes they are 80 bucks for something simple. I think rook told me awhile back that moog makes some as well. Also idk about ditching the front swaybar with out a TS. I know that some people don't recommend it w/o TSing. But as you have a dd it might be ok for ya just don't know how much true road time the Dino mobile is seeing.


Sent from the Nighthog mobile command unit.

 

[gorillamel]

I also posted this question up on TNX and apparently there is a how-to to make your own front sway bar endlinks from McMaster-Carr parts.

Here is the how-to.
Here is the McMaster-Carr page listing parts.
$22.32 = 6072K34 11.16 EA
$23.68 = 6072K14 11.84 EA
$12.00 = Hardware (4 1/2-20 Nylon-Insert Hex Locknuts, 2 1/2-20 Hex Nuts, 8 1/2 Washers)
$62.00 = Total (including $5 shipping from McMaster Carr)

(Note, prices may be outdated)

 

[J Everett]

That is essentially what Greg at PRG did to make the ones he sells.

 

[02Xterra]

Swaybar?? What the hell is that!? haha I haven't had either of mine for a while

 

[civicjoe]

i could be wrong but, i think the front sway bar for a 1st gen it a little different in terms of necessity than it is for a 2nd gen.
the rear is a whole other story totally not needed

 

[gorillamel]

Yeah I dont know. The lack of torsion bars for us makes it a pain for lifting purposes, haha!

If I had a TS I would not bother with the endlinks. But, until then, I'd like to keep it on there. Right now, driving around town is very awkward.

 

[civicjoe]

I bet, Ive heard bad things about not having a front sway on 2nd gens that arent ts'd
no front sway+evasive maneuvers = DANGER! of course that is your middle name so you'd be in the clear!

 

[FaroutX]

^^^I've been without sways for about a year and no TS, rides fine, when turing it's a little different, I have to compensate for the sway while going into a sharp turn, that's all there is to it, as long as you compensate the sway the handling is fine, if you don't compensate the sway then you'll be drifting around your lane a bit, there is a slight technic to it, just the other day some idiot pulled out in front of me and I had to make a hard swerve left, my X reacted fine, there was a litte body roll but it was very controllable! I'm not planning to run any slalom courses so this setup works fine for me!

 

[J Everett]

I know you can drive the X sans swaybars with no problems if you're aware of it and drive to compensate, but what I worry about is being on the highway and having to do an emergency lane change maneuver for whatever reason. That is what is generally the cause of SUV rollovers, and since I spend a fair amount of time on the high way at 65 or 70 mph, the sway bars stay. For me, it's not a big deal to unbolt them if necessary when I leave pavement. I mean, of course, to each his or her own. But I felt I'd weigh in.

 

[gorillamel]

Well, I went ahead and bought the parts and made my own endlinks. Installed them today. Took about 1.5-2h simply because my X is old and worn and it took some manpower to remove some stuff.

Here are the pics:

All the parts I used. Got them at Tacoma Screw rather ship from McMaster-Carr.

Old endlink (bottom) w/ two halves of new.

Final product

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[J Everett]

Judging by that invoice, you could have just ordered em from PRG.

 

[gorillamel]

Yep. I just tell myself at least I kept my business local. Haha, and feel a sense of pride for building my own product.

 

[J Everett]

Hey, that's fair enough.