Just got my ATR rear bar!!!!

[Fast87V6]

Man this thing is BIG!!!!!

Is there anything special that im supposed to do when i install it??? Like jack the car up a certain way etc?????

THANKS!!!!!!!

 

[UNGN]

Put all four bolts in loose before you tighten any of them.

Putting the two front bolts in then swinging the bar up and rubber malleting and crow barring and floor jacking and screwdriver poking to get the back to bolts in is the best method I've found.

You get the general idea.

The biggest mistake people make is bolting one side up an then trying to get the other side bolts in. won't work.

 

[TheDoughboy]

Maybe use a little Loctite blue on the fasteners. My ATR bar was loose. I did the fuel pump today and checked the bolts while I was under there anyways.

Well good thing I did, 3 needed tightening. One was wobbling around. They have Loctite blue now.

I admit I did Not install this bar myself, the original owner did. Maybe he did not torque them properly.

Just a thought.

Ron

 

[UNGN]

They have nylon lock nuts so the bolts don't really loosen that way. What happens is the bar is so massive and stock LCA's are so spindly that the bar crushs the LCA and the bolts get loose. If you box the stock arms, make sure there's a support at the bolt holes, or better yet, get some aftermarket LCA's.

 

[GotGrunt]

Would this ATR bar damage the stock LCA's? Would you recommend them for the stock arms? ...I plan on doing my rear suspension later on but would like the bar, airbags, and other stuff first.

 

[Kid with a toy]

Get braced.....

Get braced for the noise. That unmistakable sound. The sound of your LCA's starting to feel the bind. You'll hear it when you pull out of your drive way. You'll hear it when you ease over an uneven area of road way. But you'll know what that sound is.

Trust me...I'm living it now. It's a low pitched groan. Sounds like the metal tearing apart from a sinking ship. Or possibly like an old squeaky bed from an early 80's porno. Once you hear it, you'll know it's time to either replace them with a set of after market LCA's...or box 'em in.

I bolted my big ATR on, and in just a couple of months...it was there. That damn noise was there. Actually, it's not that bad. I just tell everybody that asks, that the sound they hear, is my new polly bushing breaking in.

Erik

 

[GNVAIR]

I just got mine a week or so ago and was planning the day to install it. I just finished boxing my control arms last night. This is HIGHLY recommended. When I removed my 130k mile stockers, there were signs of distortion where the stock 7/8" sway bar was bolted. I can only imagine the destruction that huge ATR bar would cause. I used cut up pieces from a Buick rocker arm shaft to reinforce the bolt holes and then strips of 1/8" thick steel plate. They do weigh a good deal more, but should be worth the effort.

 

[strikeeagle]

"... an old squeaky bed from an early 80's porno"



Can it be that the ATR bar serves no purpose whatsoever when coupled with the stock LCA's - it'll just transfer all of the deflection to them, being as they are crap???

 

[UNGN]

The bar still "works" with stock LCA's. It's just that it turns them into tacos over time.

 

[Fast87V6]

well i guess its time to give hrpartsnstuff a call and get some LCAs from them....

 

[matt87]

i had to re-tighten my atr bar after a few miles and i have metco upper and lowers. its been fine since. man this thing hooks great now with no wheel hop and barely any tire spin. i also tossed the front bar with no ill side affects.

 

[bgn87]

Boxed CA's

That's the single best traction enhancement I have made on my car is the boxed control arms. The bar works but you REALLY notice a difference with the boxed arms.
If $$ is an issue, get the boxed arms before laying out the cash for a big bar IMO

 

[Fast87V6]

well then i guess i should really notice a difference with the bar and upgraded LCAs!!!!

 

[Kid with a toy]

GNVAIR,
Where exactly did you place the rocker arm pieces on the LCA's to brace the bolt holes? This sounds like a cool idea. Even more so, since TurboGN and I just replaced the stock clitter clatter under the valve covers. So, now I have the left overs, to cut and weld up to the LCA's
If you've got a diagram or have pics...send 'em. That sounds like a super low budget pain in the ass, that would work like a champ. When it comes to saving money, I'm all on it.

Erik

 

[GNVAIR]

I placed the cut pieces side to side. The hole in the center of the rocker shaft is slightly bigger, so make sure you place 1 of the bolts OR some other object in there to hole the spacer while you weld. I will let you know how it works since I will be installing them control arms after work.

 

[GNVAIR]

Installed it tonight with Kease Mease. It is SWEET! Definitely made a huge difference in the amount of body roll in the rear. You can feel more undulations in the road, but it is definitely not obnoxious. There were no issues installing the bar. Our only beef was the fact that ATR gives stainless bolts of unknown grade. They should really be grade 10's being they are only 3/8".
It was also a piece of cake. I was expecting a horror story like others had reported (which is my usual luck).

 

[Kid with a toy]

Tell Keith, his a$$ is supposed to be working on down pipes, not lca's. But since my lca's are shot, and I already have my Mease pipe...we can make an exception.

A couple of questions:
Did you guys weld the plate with the lca's still on the car?
If so, what secrets or tricks would you care to share?
Did you remove the sway bar before welding (to take tension off)?

If I can get all the parts-n-stuff together, I can try and get it done by next weekend.

Comedy Act In Texas
Erik

 

[Sergeant]

How thick is the bar and who has the cheapest price?

 

[GNVAIR]

All welding and fitting was done with the arms off the car. There is no way in hell that you would be able to do it on the car unless you are a contortionist. Ofcourse the sway bar was off in order to perform the work. No squeaks or rattles as of yet.
The sway bar is 1 3/8" in diameter. Average retail on it is $179.95.

 

[darkfa8]

ok, my rebuff...

In order to prevent traction loss at the rear axle under hard cornering, you either use lower spring rate coil springs and a heavier anti-roll bar, or stiffer springs and a lighter anti-roll bar.

If you use to heavy a antiroll bar, it can hurt traction exiting the corners. The bar will actually lift the inner tire off the ground in hard cornering.

Using stiffer springs at the rear will help control body roll without resorting to a stiffer bar.

So I presume, that adding the ATR bar to a G-Body with stock springs will be somewhat beneficial. But, if you've already upgraded your rear springs to a stiffer type, then putting on a larger sway bar could potentially hurt traction.

I also presume, that one reason why Global West basically makes their rear control arm/spring/shock package optional with a rear sway bar is because they've optimized the spring rates to where a sway bar isn't really needed.

- So, for $179.95, I'd rather spend that on stiffer rear springs and optimize the rear suspension frequency using the stock bar, before I consider changing it.

On another note, I was curious if anyone has tried to adapt or run coil-overs in a G-Body?

Lee, I'd like to go out a a large parking lot, or even a sanctioned autocross event and video tape your runs. This way, we can play them back and watch the tires and see when, where and if they come off the ground at any particular points during the race.

Wish I could trade you my car for a week or so. I'd like to get a feel for the changes you've made.