Rear Sway Bar Removal Test

Last year in Moab I removed my rear sway bar on my 2024 392- (Clayton 2-3" lift springs, fox 2.5 DSC shocks and Fox Hydraulic bumps up front), trying to achieve a better ride- Yes it rode better without the rear sway bar! In fact it rode so much better that the other two jeeps in the group also removed their rear sway bar with the same result! After watching some videos of with and without the rear sway bar I decided to do an articulation test- driving up an articulation ramp it actually articulated less without the rear sway bar.... like the passenger rear did not have enough tension to fully compress the opposite front shock and hydraulic bump stop. I also might contribute this to the heavier Clayton springs, and heavier spring rate for the 392 engine, and the fox hydraulic bumps taking force to compress as well.

This time I did a before and after video on my 2023 XR 2.0L turbo. Slightly different setup- same fox 2.5 DSC shocks but stock XR rear springs, Mopar 2" lift front springs and Timbren Active suspension bump stops. Yes, again, it rides NOTICEABLY better without the rear sway bar but this time it actually articulates MORE! Im guessing the softer Mopar lift springs (Softer than the Clayton) as well as softer due to lighter engine, and not having the Fox Hydraulic bumps to compress allowed it to still fully compress the front without the added tension of the rear sway bar.

After driving this jeep on the street and offroad I have no intention of ever re installing the rear sway bar. The street handling is just fine- with the front connected of course, not much if any added body roll on the street. As far as offroad with the front Disconnected- it rides way softer and does not rock back and forth near as much! Kids are no longer hitting their heads on the side windows! lol

I would be curious to try this again on a 392 with stock front springs and no fox hydraulic bumps....

See video here

I am going to remove mine tonight.

I’ve tested ours with rear sway on and off. While I loved it in the trails. We do a lot of mountian roads and the tiny bit of tip in it gives on the hwy when turning at speed less ideal for how we like to drive. But it’s 10 times better out on the trail versus having the front disconnected. And totally fine around town, actually made driving through the gutters much nicer. And it keeps your steering pretty positive at speed in the dirt. If anyone is ever debating disconnecting sway bars or anti rock I would suggest just unbolting the rear sway first.

I installed the heavier sway bar in the rear. noticeable improvement on the freeway. Definitely happier with it on.

About ten years ago during EJS I put my JKUR on Metalcloak’s flex trailer. Discovered the rear sway bar and links were acting like limit straps. Guy operating the trailer suggested removal and gave a whole series of reasons why it wasn’t needed. I removed it when I got home and have never looked back. Better ride, more flex, no significant increase in body roll on highway.

Makes sense that it would make off roading more comfortable. I've been considering QDs on the rear sway for exactly this reason.
For those that don't know, sway bars (anti roll bars) are engineered to provide understeer so that a vehicle, a higher center of gravity vehicle in this case, will push or slide through an aggressive turn maneuver to prevent rollover. The electronic stability control (ESC) is designed to help prevent roll over by controlling traction in the appropriate wheels. The ESC is tuned to expect the sway bar connected. For probably 99.9% of on road driving, you won't need the rear sway bar, but when you're in accident avoidance, you can easily find yourself in a bind. Look up the moose test.

Get the RockJock rear sway bar. Gives all the handling and articulation without the terrifying body roll.

Interesting, my 1981 Toyota shortbed did not come with any rear swaybar. I eventually removed the front swaybar and DD and multiple Rubicon trips every year...drove just fine. However, it was lifted using Rancho 44044 front springs (Jeep Wagoneer) with a leaf or two removed, cut and drilled front spring shackles to get the lift/flex/pinion angle I wanted, rear Chevy pickup springs (longer and thicker leaves), 36" TSL/SX bias ply tires, and 22R engine.

I accepted that it was a low geared wheeler and drove as such, my Jeep is much more powerful and better accelerating and has a hardtop all the way to the rear which definitely induces more rear sway.

A friend has 2017 Rubicon v6 2door and couple weeks ago removed both swaybars and he likes it. His Jeep is lifted iirc 4", 35" tires on Fuel wheels and always runs soft top or maybe a bikini top. Interesting to see how y'all like it without.

Track width has a lot to do with it too. I've run a gazillion miles on one of my gen2 Dodge trucks with no sway bars running 38x15.5x15 tires with a stupid amount of negative offset making the truck a full 12" wider.

It cornered better than stock even with all the sidewall flex

I'm running without front and rear sway bars in my old TJ, and it's amazing. The ride quality on trail is night-and-day, so much better than the violent back-and-forth rocking with just a rear swaybar. Although it gets quite sideways while turning at stoplights (much less so after I went to long arms). Was thinking about doing that to my JL too. Really wish someone made a simple quick disconnect for the rear.

Das_Cheese said:

I'm running without front and rear sway bars in my old TJ, and it's amazing. The ride quality on trail is night-and-day, so much better than the violent back-and-forth rocking with just a rear swaybar. Although it gets quite sideways while turning at stoplights (much less so after I went to long arms). Was thinking about doing that to my JL too. Really wish someone made a simple quick disconnect for the rear.

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Absolutely no reason you can’t run some front disconnects out back. Just try and match length. Lots of lift kits have you move rear sway links from the rear to the front.

another option is sdi elink is my Plan for running a very stiff rear sway for the drive up and down the mountains and running disconnected everywhere else

Bdoza10 said:

Absolutely no reason you can’t run some front disconnects out back. Just try and match length. Lots of lift kits have you move rear sway links from the rear to the front.

another option is sdi elink is my Plan for running a very stiff rear sway for the drive up and down the mountains and running disconnected everywhere else

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Oh interesting. I thought there were more differences than just length between front/back links. Isn't there a different sideways offset?

I’d be curious to see the before and after scores on a CTI trailer like @Metalcloak uses.

FWIW: You can probably get the same results as the Antirock rear swaybar by using OEM parts. A used OEM rear bar is much cheaper, and just as reliable as stock.

Jeep painted the underside of the swaybar bushings depending on their diameter. Unfortunately most of this paint doesn't stick to the bushing, but on mine I could see some overspray without actually removing the swaybar.

Bdoza10 said:

Absolutely no reason you can’t run some front disconnects out back. Just try and match length. Lots of lift kits have you move rear sway links from the rear to the front.

another option is sdi elink is my Plan for running a very stiff rear sway for the drive up and down the mountains and running disconnected everywhere else

Click to expand...

I've been considering rear swaybar disconnects, specifically the Apex AutoLYNX... but still need to check measurements/clearance/etc.

I also found that Apex makes a similar product to the SDI E-link that is cheaper but not automatic or in-cab selectable: Apex airLYNX