Sway Bar options...

[pondside36]

I'm looking for some input on the different sway bar options and peoples experience with them. I've searched with very little results. Basically I found that people like the RS4 rear upgrade for lowered cars with positive results. I am wondering if any one has gone with the Neuspeed (which needs welding of brackets), H-sport set, and H&R (I like the idea of the teflon bushing and no lubrication). Also why people seem to run just a rear upgrade and not the matching front. TIA...

[mxrz]

Because if the car understeers, you don't want to put a stiffer bar in the front.

[jon102034050]

Ive got a non sport - its def 4x4 status, with an rs4 rear sway and I love it. Its most definitely worth the money

[05A$SE]

my car pushes in turns, the front end pushes out rather then turning all the way. i have a non sport quattro and i'm looking to improve the handling

[Kerschera4]

our cars understeer very badly. Understeering is the feeling when you are turning hard and the back end is feeling like its not coming around and the car just pushes through the corner. A rear sway help this problem a lot. not a front one. which is why most people opt only for rears.

if youre buying one i recommend an OEM rs4. 22mm sway and are actually cheap. i believe ecstuning still has them for $120. HIGHLY RECOMMEND

[vdubstreets]

i still have to do this mod, right now i have the sport sway bar. I hope it improves handeling as much as people say it does.

[Kemiksiz]

What about the 20mm S4 ones? They are pretty much more plug and play? Is it correct?

Also RS4 is 22mm - S4 is 20mm, is this too much difference on the handling issue? Or both are great?

[AudiAdi]

Yeah... the back end comes around pretty good on lowered suspension and RS4 rear bar. In fact, on hard corners, you'll feel the back tires "skip" as they come around. That's my experience anyways, fwiw.

[pondside36]

Alright, so we have a RS4 review, I forgot about going to the S4 bars, I know there are some people out there with the aftermarket set ups, any positive feedback on these...

[B6Lovin]

what about the H-sport RS-4 kit?

the rear is supposed to be ~300% stiffer than the RS4 rear sway....
overkill? (i think it's an adjustable 29mm rear bar...) lol

linkkkk

[PRVWing]

i have the RS4 with OEM sport suspension, and it is awesome! I think the H-sports RS-4 kit is not worth it... maybe on a S4 or RS4 with heavy V8's... but 400 bucks is too much for our cars which handle great with the RS4 sway for just a 1/4 the price.

[aaaudiprotein]

I've heard good things about Hothckins sways.

[koolade9]

I've heard good things about Hothckins sways.

I had a hotchkis 24mm rear sway on my evo, three adjustment points and hollow to save weight. Only problem I had was ripping off the brackets during autox. Hotchkis responded and issued a recall on all their original brackets, sending out a free set of beefed up brackets to all owners. I never had a problem again. Great customer service and a great product... there's my $.02 plug.

[pondside36]

^^^ So the three adjustment points affect the stiffness? And did you use the hotchkins sways (front and back or just rear?) on a daily driver and autocross, or just autocross?

[RED1.8T]

I've got an RS4 rear for sale and an ADDCO front, PM if your interested...

[NyteEscape]

ive got an rs4 rear and i love it. no, it doesnt oversteer, but it does feel very neutral. a lot more neutral than my stock sport 18mm bar.

mind you i have stock sport suspension. in the rain i can easily get the back to slide, pretty much on demand. i assume once i upgrade to stasis streetsports, the car will be more oversteer-friendly in the dry.

[koolade9]

^^^ So the three adjustment points affect the stiffness? And did you use the hotchkins sways (front and back or just rear?) on a daily driver and autocross, or just autocross?

the three adjustment points adjust how much force is exerted accross the bar, so I guess you could say it adjusts the 'stiffness'. I just used the rear bar, as the car was slightly understeer-happy from the factory since ayc wasn't an option on usdm models. This was on my daily driver with coilovers, autox was just a weekend hobby...

I plan on buying the rs4 bar, for $130ish, and considering it's oem, it's a no-brainer...

[dewey527]

have the neuspeed and i like it. had a local exhaust shop weld the brackets for 50.

[AudiA4_20T]

Peter, do the RS4 if you just want something simple/cheap, but the H-Sport kit is going to be the best overall

[pondside36]

Nice.. nice I think we covered them all at this point, except for the H&R and I haven't seen the Addco yet so that was new, more info for all is always welcome.. thanks for all the input thus far...

[dirtybrd]

I say an S4 frt and RS4 rear. The stock frt. can use a small amount of help, but the rear needs it the most.

[Kemiksiz]

So;

1- ) I heard that the RS4 sway bar is HARD to install with our current brackets, is it right? Do we need the WHOLE setup?
2- ) S4 ones will plug and play without any brackets? and is there any NOTICABLE difference between the RS4 one or they are both great improvements?

Please someone answer these [:D ] , Thanks!

[SportSter]

I love my H/R sway bars.

Back helped the most. However, against popular opinion the fronts helped alot too and improved my track times...

[3ohAvant]

i don't get how everyone thinks the front is a bad idea.

yes, the "general rule of thumb" is that to increase oversteer, get a larger rear, and to increase understeer, get a bigger front bar. but that is a general rule of thumb.

for the most part, these are sold in kits, and a lot of time, mfgs will not break up a kit, because the handling is not as good when you do one and not the other.

i would get a F&R, and get a matching set.

i have the original A4 h-sport kit. before they had a s4 or rs4 kit. its great. it helped the car out a lot. feels more plated, cause it doesn't roll as much. I'd get the h-sports over the neuspeeds because they are hollow, so they are lighter, AND they don't transmit as much of the vibrations into the car, so its a plusher ride than a solid bar, when going straight over lil bumps.

FWIW, a front bar will limit how much the front end rolls. thus it wont roll over on the front tires. meaning, if you are camber challenged, this WILL help with handling.

all things being equal, our car, or most cars in general, w/ or w/o a larger front sway.. my money would be on the car w/ the larger front sway if it was on a track, autox course. etc.

[HeHateMe]

So;


2- ) S4 ones will plug and play without any brackets? and is there any NOTICABLE difference between the RS4 one or they are both great improvements?

Please someone answer these [:D ] , Thanks!

I too would like to know if there is a big difference between the s4 and rs4 rear sways. I have had the s4 for 3 years and I LOVE it. Flattens the car out considerably. I will ungrade to the rs4 one if it makes more of a difference.

[dtm4me]

hardy har har. I laugh at understeer now with my H&R RS4 24mm rear sway bar! It was easy to install and the teflon bushings are maintenance free.

[pondside36]

^^^ Bam... finally someone with the H&R rear sway bar. So I take it you only went with the rear?

[Kemiksiz]

So;

1- ) I heard that the RS4 sway bar is HARD to install with our current brackets, is it right? Do we need the WHOLE setup?
2- ) S4 ones will plug and play without any brackets? and is there any NOTICABLE difference between the RS4 one or they are both great improvements?

Please someone answer these [:D ] , Thanks!

Son of the *Bump*

[pondside36]

I don't think the install would be hard at all... the mounting points are in a tight spot but other than that, just jack up the car remove the old bar and install the new bar (if I am looking at it correctly). If you look at the ECS website for the RS4 bar it is a larger diameter than the S4, how much better no idea hence why I started this thread to get an idea on what people were running and pleased with.

[SportSter]

hey hey! I said I have H&R and love them. (2 for H&R)

[pondside36]

Oops sorry SportSter... 2 votes for H&R... I'll buy my set soon, still haven't decided yet between the H&R and H-sport but we will see and I'll post a review in here...

[AudiAdi]

I recommend getting your rear wheels up on ramps when installing your rear sway bar. That way you can have the suspension stay loaded.

[B6Lovin]

^good advice.

also, if using stock brackets to install a rs4 bar (or s4, or really anything where you don't get new brackets) i HIGHLY recommend you either have a couple pairs of channel-locks, big vice grips, or you get some longer and skinnier bolts/nuts and use them to pull the bracket down - otherwise you're going to have a BITCH of a time getting them on... the stock bolts just aren't long enough and it's way to hard to squeeze the bracket down over the bushing.

[NyteEscape]

i used the stock brackets to fit the rs4 bar on. i did get new bushings with the kit, but with a bit of elbow grease, it fit on. it's pretty snug now.

i used to check it everyday to make sure nothing came off. then after a week or two, i checked it once a week. now i check it every time i check my oil, so like once/twice a month, depending on how many times i fill up.

no problems, still nice and snug.

[HeHateMe]

so has anyone gone from s4 to rs4 rear sway?

[a4darkness]

Exactly.

Here's my write up / review from a while back as well if you're interested...

http://forums.audiworld.com/a4gen2/msgs/1081462.phtml

i have the RS4 with OEM sport suspension, and it is awesome! I think the H-sports RS-4 kit is not worth it... maybe on a S4 or RS4 with heavy V8's... but 400 bucks is too much for our cars which handle great with the RS4 sway for just a 1/4 the price.