[GTO2nv]

I am looking to purchase a antiroll bar for my 1971 GTO and was wondering if the weld ins are better than the bolt ins or vise versa

[harry k]

search function will show you a lot in here!

[68gtoMN]

First of all, one needs more information to provide an informed response. What is the purpose for your use of said anti-roll bar? If it is cornering (talking rear bar here), remember that you will need boxed lower control arms to prevent flexing of the attachment whether welded or bolted. If welded, then any adjustment to lower control arms or replacement thereof (accident, etc) will require replacing both control arms and sway bar. I would use a bolt-in variety if a street driven car for handling purposes. If for dragstrip launches, then you might gain some strength from a welded setup (still has negatives).

[T Syron]

My ARB is welded to the frame with the arms extending to welded tabs on the rear axle. IMO the best way to go for an A-body drag car.

Tom

[R 70 Judge]

Wolfe Race Craft http://www.wolferacecraft.com/Search...?CategoryID=29

[screamingchief]

There are pros & cons to both styles.

With the bolt-on ARB's,they definitely do the job very well,plus it's waaayyy easier to go back to stock if you ever change your mind or sell the car or such.

Weld-in ARB's are a much more permanent commitment.

Yeah,lots has been posted about this topic in the past,a search would be a good idea.

FWIW

Bret P.

[GTO2nv]

The car is for drag racing only,so maybe the weld in is the way to go

[T Syron]

Talking to TRZ I was told to eliminate any rubber bushings in the rear suspension of a drag car. I know some bolt in set ups use rubber mounts.

[screamingchief]

Originally Posted by T Syron

Talking to TRZ I was told to eliminate any rubber bushings in the rear suspension of a drag car. I know some bolt in set ups use rubber mounts.

That advice mostly pertains to the control arm bushings,it would'nt really matter for the bolt-in ARB mounts,as there is really no way for them to bind enough to affect the suspension travel like a control arm bushing would be prone to do.

And an FYI to all out there reading this,understand that most all poly control arm bushings are just as (or possibly even more) likely to bind than a rubber control arm bushing is,so poly control arm bushings are mostly a no-no for a drag car as well.

Best bushings for a drag car are either something like the global west Del-A-Lum (delrin lined solid bushing),or a true spherical type bushing (Roto-joint/Johnny-joint et-al).

The end links for all the aftermarket bolt-in ARB's all use spherical rod ends,so the only poly bushings for those are for the bar mounts themselves,and understand that those bushings wont bind up the ARB in any significant way.

If the OP opts to go with a weld-in ARB,I would advise being sure to research those very closely,as not all weld in bars are created equal,there are some very good & some not so good kits out there for that.

With the weld-in ARB's you should look at the mounting hardware and the arm design & construction very closely,and find out what the bar itself is made from,look at enough of them and you'll see that some are clearly better than others,so dont cheap out here.

And yeah,the rest of the suspension needs to be taken into consideration here as well.

A quick rundown of all the suspension hardware in place now would probably help here too.

FWIW

Bret P.

[T Syron]

Originally Posted by screamingchief

That advice mostly pertains to the control arm bushings,it would'nt really matter for the bolt-in ARB mounts,as there is really no way for them to bind enough to affect the suspension travel like a control arm bushing would be prone to do.

And an FYI to all out there reading this,understand that most all poly control arm bushings are just as (or possibly even more) likely to bind than a rubber control arm bushing is,so poly control arm bushings are mostly a no-no for a drag car as well.

Best bushings for a drag car are either something like the global west Del-A-Lum (delrin lined solid bushing),or a true spherical type bushing (Roto-joint/Johnny-joint et-al).

The end links for all the aftermarket bolt-in ARB's all use spherical rod ends,so the only poly bushings for those are for the bar mounts themselves,and understand that those bushings wont bind up the ARB in any significant way.

If the OP opts to go with a weld-in ARB,I would advise being sure to research those very closely,as not all weld in bars are created equal,there are some very good & some not so good kits out there for that.

With the weld-in ARB's you should look at the mounting hardware and the arm design & construction very closely,and find out what the bar itself is made from,look at enough of them and you'll see that some are clearly better than others,so dont cheap out here.

And yeah,the rest of the suspension needs to be taken into consideration here as well.

A quick rundown of all the suspension hardware in place now would probably help here too.

FWIW

Bret P.

This is the type that TRZ and I were talking about. This one is from Detroit speed with rubber bushings on the bar and rubber bushings on the links.

[T Syron]

This is what is on my car and works great for drag race only.

http://www.wolferacecraft.com/instal.../abodsway.aspx

[screamingchief]

The HR parts and stuff,Spohn,and BMR bolt-on ARB's all use spherical ends.

See ARB pics vvvv below,first one is the Spohn,then the HR parts bar,and last the BMR.

Those above bolt-on ARB's are the one's that most guys are using.

That Detroit Speed bar must be a new entry into the market,and it looks to me like it's more oriented towards the pro-tour market than the above bars are,as the above mentioned bolt-on ARB's are geared towards mostly drag usage.

No ARB be it bolt-in or weld-in will do much for a car with a poor suspension,and even with the best suspension,it still wont result in a significant change in 60' or downtrack times,all the ARB mostly does is allow the car to launch "flatter" (less twist) and be a bit more consistent than it may be w/o the bar,which makes tuning the rest of the suspension a bit easier,but one should never expect a huge gain in 60' times or such just from the addition of an ARB.

FWIW

Bret P.