What is a stabilizer bar bushing?
The stabilizer bar on your car is designed to absorb bumps and reduce noise when you’re driving. They feature rubber bushings that prevent your vehicle from rolling as it corners. Sway bar bushings wear out over time and can cause issues with steering and handling.
What does a suspension stabilizer bar do?
Answer: Sway bars, also called stabilizer bars, are used to keep your vehicle from rolling over. It is a U-shaped steel bar that is connected to each of the vehicle’s front wheels. When your vehicle goes around a turn, your vehicle’s body rolls to one side, or its weight shifts to one side.
How long do stabilizer bar bushings last?
The rubber bushing is designed to last as long as the rubber hoses. However, the bushings are to last for about 14 years, but the environment and management will contribute to this factor.
Can you drive with broken sway bar bushings?
As long as you keep your speed down and don’t take turns too quickly, you should be safe driving until you can have it replaced. Note that a broken sway bar doesn’t make your car “un-driveable”.
Can you drive with a broken stabilizer bar?
It is possible to still drive a vehicle with broken sway bar links, but handling performance will suffer so use caution by driving on paved roads, taking turns slowly, and staying off high-speed highways and/or interstates that require lane changes.
Are stabilizer bars necessary?
Sway control or sway bar hitches are optional pieces of equipment that you can add to your camper or hitch to prevent sway. Although they’re not required, adding a sway bar will provide a much more comfortable and stable towing experience and give you peace of mind.
How much does it cost to fix a stabilizer bar?
The average sway bar replacement cost is between $125 and $160, with labor making up $50 to $70 and the part costing between $55 and $110. It’s not usual to need a new sway bar. Typically, a car requires new sway bar end links or stabilizer bushings.
Is a stabilizer bar necessary?
Sway bars are an important component of a vehicle’s suspension. Also known as anti-roll, anti-sway, stabilizer, or roll bars, a sway bar reduces your vehicle’s body roll and “sway”. Not every vehicle has a sway bar, but they can be extremely useful, especially for larger vehicles like RVs and motor coaches.
When should I replace my sway bar?
If you can see looseness in the end links when you move the bar then they should be replaced. If the bushings are showing signs of deterioration (cracking or brittleness) or they have a gap or are misshapen then they also need to be replaced.