Need front sway bar

Need a car part and don't know where to get it or how to install it. Look here!
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refuge
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My tercel:: 1984 Maroon Toyota Tercel SR5 4WD, 1985 Cream Toyota Tercel Wagon SR5 4WD

Need front sway bar

Post by refuge »

My front end has been clunking lately, found it was the bushings in the control arms to the stabilizer bar. (Just bought this car). Bought new bushings and went to replace them, and the nut snapped off with the threaded portion of the bar.

So now I need a new stabilizer (sway) bar. (The bar was pretty worn down, it had obviously been this way a long long time). Anyone know where I can get a new one, or a passable used one? Below is the diagram of what snapped — looking for recommendations.
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Petros
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by Petros »

welcome to the forum!

I can not think of a place to find a new one, but there is likely someone on this forum with a parts car that will sell you a good used one.

Rust and repeated cyclying of the sway bar end will eventually cuase the end to break off. one forum member had it happen while driving, so you are luckly to find out while you had it on a stand.

where are you located? there may even be a forum member with a spare sway bar near you.

the '83-86 front wheel drive Tercel sedan and hatchback should also use the same front sway bar, so if looking in local wrecking yards you can check for those years as well.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
refuge
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by refuge »

I was hoping standard FWD Tercel’s used the same parts

I’m in the St Louis, MO area. I actually bought two wagons, one with a bad transmission, and there’s a third I have lined up as a parts car (with a good trans) but I have no idea about it’s swaybar condition.
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dlb
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by dlb »

If you have a parts car, you've already got a spare sway bar right there. use lots of penetrating oil on the nut and let it sit overnight before attempting to get the nuts off. If you have access to an impact wrench, that would help too. I have an electric impact wrench that has saved me a few times with badly corroded large nuts and bolts.
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Petros
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by Petros »

you use salt on the roads there, so your parts car may suffer the same fate. check it out carefully. But it may be good.

the site founder and owner, and one of the moderators, Tom is in St. Louis. And there is another forum member nearby to you as well. I do not know if they have any parts cars, but they should sign on this thread soon and say hello.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
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NWMO
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by NWMO »

Hey Refuge,

Welcome to the site! I have a second Tercel, but I don't call it a part's car yet, because I hope to make it nice and get it on the road some year :roll: . I would bet the one on your parts car is better. I renewed bushings early on and mine was in decent shape, can't say that for the sub-frame, floor, etc., but that is a different story.

Headed your way in the morning (with the fam in a van for graduation get together), going to swing by Tom's, but not get to see him. Keegan is in KC, I've been in contact with him and there's another fellow around Springfield that has 3 or 4 Tercels as well. I would love to set up a Midwest get together and may try to coincide with a larger event, something like Ozark 500. It would be fantastic to get 3-5 of us together to help "support" such an event. It would be even better to bring a junker and have some fun, but I won't have the time for that just yet. I would be open to other nearby events if others are interested. I will likely start an appropriately titled post before long, welcome again.

Chris
Psalm 37:4 "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart"

In remembrance of my friend ARCHINSTL:

T4WD augury?
"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
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The Professor
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by The Professor »

Addco makes a rear anti-roll bars for both the 2WD/4WD Tercels. I recently spoke to them about anti-roll bars for vintage Subarus and they said they would need 10 people to put money down to make a run of new bars, so if you guys want to start a group buy for replacement/upgrade front anti-roll bars, Addco is an option.

http://www.addco.net/aftermarket/catalog/toyota/
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refuge
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My tercel:: 1984 Maroon Toyota Tercel SR5 4WD, 1985 Cream Toyota Tercel Wagon SR5 4WD

Re: Need front sway bar

Post by refuge »

NWMO, I'd be happy to do a get-together in the area. My family has 60 Acres in the Arcadia Valley area (Johnson Shut-ins), so Ozark wouldn't be a bad trip. My first car was a Tercel Wagon 4WD, back in '96 (an '83 model). I loved that little car (Well, I hated it when I got it, because my mom bought it for me, and I was anti-japanese cars at the time. This is the car that eventually started my love affair with Toyota, which I've now taken multiple vehicles to 300,000 miles). I always swore I'd get another one, and these two came up for sale, and I decided to bite the bullet. I'm super annoyed the sway bar snapped, and I can't drive it now. Hopefully, the parts car I'm gonna look at has a good one, and I can just steal it, and call it done.

If anyone wants to get in on an Addco order for front bars, I would jump on that, possibly to the tune of at least two.
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NWMO
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by NWMO »

refuge,

Were those two cars from the Omaha area? I remember a CL ad that looked tempting some months back. I get some grief about Tercel #2, but after we get my son's Maverick back on the road, it will go in the garage for repair/hiding. While my lovely wife can't appreciate the desire for Tercel #2, she did purchase it for me for Christmas and even lined up a friend to get it hauled home! My first Toyota (Geo Prizm/Corolla) was a CL car from northern AR with 180k miles. I did basic maintenance and some repairs while driving it to 328K. The fuel injected 7A engine coupled with a 5 speed was a nice set up. I'm enjoying my rebuilt 4a, but it still drags going up long hills. Other than that, it is pulling around nicely.

Chris
Psalm 37:4 "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart"

In remembrance of my friend ARCHINSTL:

T4WD augury?
"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
T.S. Eliot - "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"

"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
refuge
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My tercel:: 1984 Maroon Toyota Tercel SR5 4WD, 1985 Cream Toyota Tercel Wagon SR5 4WD

Re: Need front sway bar

Post by refuge »

These were actually in Springfield, MO. (The second one is still there, since the trans is bad, I need to tow it home and I have to steal a friends trailer for that).

I also have 3x AW11 MR2s, and I'd love to find a Geo Prism LSi with the 140 HP 4AGE in it. I also have a 85 4runner, an 87 pickup, and a 03 Vibe GT. :P. It’s a sickness.
refuge
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My tercel:: 1984 Maroon Toyota Tercel SR5 4WD, 1985 Cream Toyota Tercel Wagon SR5 4WD

Re: Need front sway bar

Post by refuge »

The Professor wrote: Thu May 23, 2019 7:47 am Addco makes a rear anti-roll bars for both the 2WD/4WD Tercels. I recently spoke to them about anti-roll bars for vintage Subarus and they said they would need 10 people to put money down to make a run of new bars, so if you guys want to start a group buy for replacement/upgrade front anti-roll bars, Addco is an option.

http://www.addco.net/aftermarket/catalog/toyota/
Id be interested in going in on these. Depending on the actual costs, I'd love to buy 3 of them. (two for cars, and one spare). I'd much rather trust a new bar, than some older used one. Did you ever get a quote on what the cost per piece would be?
cyyzgnus
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by cyyzgnus »

I would buy at least one bar possible two if the price is reasonable.
Neil
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Petros
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by Petros »

A good welding shop, that knows what they are doing (kind of rare these days) may be able to do a competent repair to the old sway bar. it would have to be shaped for a good bead weld, multiple weld passes, than ground down, and heat normalized.

be cautious about getting a larger "performance" front bar. The stock car already has heavy understeer (common for production cars), putting on a larger front bar would make it understeer more. you would want to enlarge both the front and rear bars to avoid excessive understeer (larger front bar incresses oversteer, larger rebar increases over steer). if you change tire size, and front and rear springs, it would also affect under/over steer.

Ideally a performance suspension should have neutral steer. OTOH, too much roll stiffness on rough gravel roads will reduce loose surface cornering ability. Personally I would go with a larger rear bar before installing a larger front one.

OTOH, if you are just looking for a new replacement bars made for the front, all critical dimensions need to match the factory bar. stronger metal will not affect its spring rate, all steel has almost all identical elastic properties. a more durable, or corrosion resistant steel alloy might make it last longer if you live in an area where corrosion is a problem, and will retain the same anti-roll properties if it is dimensionally the same.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
Comoxvalleyterc
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My tercel:: 1988 4wd tercel wagon, manual trans. No mods yet just keeping it moving

Re: Need front sway bar

Post by Comoxvalleyterc »

Hey every one. I need a sway bar. Vancouver island BC, Canada. Snapped mine where it enters control arm. If anyone has one to sell or any ideas?
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dlb
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Re: Need front sway bar

Post by dlb »

I just pm'd you :)
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