Tech Chat

Hotchkis Performance Sway Bar Install

Last month we lowered my 1998 Dodge Dakota with a Hotchkis Performance lowering kit. The Hotchkis Performance lowering kit included 2” drop coil springs for the front and 3” drop leaf springs for the rear. We also installed a full set of the specially valved Bilstien shocks.

This month we continue with the installation of the Hotchkis Performance sway bars. The sway bars come with a 1 7/16” front bar, 1 5/16” rear bar, and all the hardware to install. The new bushings are made of polyurethane and are greasable for long life. All the fasteners are high quality grade 8 and the U-bolts are stainless steel. The sway bars and end-links are powder coated in gloss black. As you can see, this is a very high quality kit.

We started with the front. After jacking up the vehicle and supporting it on jack stands, we removed the front wheels. Removal of the factory front sway bar is very easy, just unbolt the end link upper nuts and remove the front bushing retainer bolts. The bar will slide right out.

Before installation, some grinding must be done to make room for the new bar since it is thicker. The corner of the bump stop pad must be ground down about a 1/4". Once that is done, the new bar can be installed. The inside of new bushings must be greased with white silicone grease. Hotchkis provides the grease with the kit. The new bushings are installed over the bar so the split faces the front of the truck. The bar is installed on the truck by attaching the new bushings and brackets to the truck. After that is done, you will want to rotate the bar up and down to make sure that the areas you just ground give you enough clearance. Once everything checks out, install the end link onto the sway bar and tighten everything down to torque specs. Put the wheels back on and let the truck down. Now it is time for the back.

The rear of the truck is pretty straight forward. My truck did not come with a factory sway bar in the rear. If the truck did come with a rear sway bar, I would have used the brackets welded to the axle and of course had to remove the old sway bar. The first thing was to install the new end link brackets. The install into the existing holes on the frame and include all the bolts and nuts for installation. Next I greased the end of the end links before installing them into the new brackets. I placed the stainless steel U-bolts over the axles. The bushings where greased and installed with the slit facing the front of the truck. The bar was installed onto the new U-bolts. Next I attached the bar to the end links and tightened everything down.

After the truck was back down on the ground, it was time to see if this did any good. I took the truck out and hit some pretty good corners. All I can say is, “WOW.” The truck corners much better and the ride is much smoother. I can take corners harder. The truck is much more of a pleasure to drive. The guys at Hotchkis Performance did one hell of a job on this kit. Everything needed was included. Hotchkis even includes detailed instructions on this. Well until next month, it is time to drive some more.

Vincent Wright
sales@kmwperformance.com
http://www.kmwperformance.com