I have a 2004 Sunfire 1SB. I thought when I bought the car that the 1SB gave the FE2 suspension (22mm front sway bar) because that's what's
published by GM at
GM's Media Communications Site. under the 2004 Sunfire information (they specifically say "1SB PEG, 1SC PEG: ... 22mm anti-roll bar") ...come to learn recently that I have the FE1 suspension with a 19mm front bar! Goes to show I can't trust GM to have their act together. Not only did they misleadingly write that the 1SB option would give a 22mm front sway bar but for the 2004 model year, the only sway bar sizes offered were 19mm(FE1) and 24mm(FE2)... the 22mm sway bar is from previous model years. They are even publishing that the 2005 sunfire comes with a 22mm front sway bar for the 1SB and 1SC options. This is completely misrepresenting their product and there's nothing I can do about it now. Thanks GM! I would have bought the 1SC if I knew the 1SB didn't provide the FE2 suspension!
Sorry, I had to get that out of my system.
As I stand now, I have Koni yellow, eibach sportline, 225/45-17 BFG KDW2's, strut tower braces, and I'm getting a 1" rear addco bar. I've read where people have a 1" rear and 22mm front and like the handling. I've read alternatively that people are happy with the opposite; a 1" front and 22mm rear. ...I've been looking at member profiles to see what people are running and reading threads about what kind of setups people have for different driving. I just thought I'd ask for a JBO "seal of approval" before I take the plunge with my wallet.
I have four options to pair with the 1" rear addco bar I'm getting: Keep 19mm front, buy 22mm, 24mm, or 1" front.
I'm basically looking for a street setup that I can take for autocross. With the 1" rear bar I'm getting, I'm afraid of too much oversteer for the street with the 19mm front bar... That leaves the difference of about 4mm ranging between a 22mm to 1" for the front bar. Does that 4mm make the difference between oversteer and understeer? If I can take corners at the track at 80mph without worrying about the back end coming around... I'll be a happy camper. What do y'all suggest? Thanks for the help!
drive it with the 19mm. see how it feels, see what kinds of times you can pull off.
if you want less overstreer, more understeer, and less body roll, get a bigger front bar.
remember that bigger isn't always fastest, if nobody else has gone out and tested this, then the burden falls on your lucky shoulders.
on top of that, have you tried talking to the dealership you bought the car from, and informed them of the misinformation? or did you think that badmouthing gm and talking @!#$ on the internet would magically fix this problem?
I have a bent front subframe due to an incident with a curb. I'll be tackling the front sway bar while I'm replacing the subframe to kill two birds with one stone.
I'm definitely going to test the 1" rear bar as soon as I get it to see how it feels with the 19mm front bar. From what I've read, it'll probably give me more oversteer than I want... that's why I thought I'd collect opinions to give me a better idea of how much difference is between 19, 22, 24, 1" so I can balance out the 1" rear bar with the front bar.
Don't get me wrong... In fact I did talk with the dealership which is how I was able to learn that my vehicle came with the FE1 suspension which I learned is the 19mm front sway bar. The dealership never misrepresented the vehicle and I have nothing against them, they're cool and I'd buy from them again.
I also spoke with Pontiac customer service on the phone to express my concern over this situation of GM publishing the wrong information which I used to make what I believed to be an informed purchase decision. I was basically told that GM makes no claim to accuracy of specifications they publish for sales or marketing purposes and that it was my fault for trusting that information. I was advised to contact the administrators of GM.com if I wish to pursue this further because it's GM.com that is at fault, not GM which I mistakenly assumed were the same entity. I'm not going to pursue it though, I'll just learn from it for the future. (I did email gm.com though to hopefully bring attention to their error)
Sorry it sounded like I was bad-mouthing GM. My intent was to share my experience so that anyone reading may not make the same mistake I did in assuming information on GM.com was the gospel truth. Best advice I was given in all this: When shopping for a new vehicle, ask to speak with a technician at the dealership about any technical questions that sales can not answer before purchasing it.
I have the 1 inch front (26mm i guess it is) and the 22mm rear rk bar....
I used to have the 18mm front and 22 mm rear... I didn't like it at all...the front bar seemed very weak compared to the rear. once I upgraded the front it was alot better...
I would go with a 22mm front bar at the very least with that huge rear bar your getting
if it was my car I would get the 1 inch front bar to match the rear....I don't think much of oversteer though...I'm not the best driver I guess and having a car that understeers I find is much better because controlling the tail when it does kick out it easy..specially with a front drive car...
<img src="http://registry.gmenthusiast.com/images/gunslinger88/thumbnail_personal_pic.jpg">
