I am thinking of putting a 1 1/4" sway bar on the front of my 1966 Chevelle. The sway bar came off of a WS6 Firebird. I am using urethane bushings and end links to mount it. I'm a little worried that it is too stiff for my car. There is a BIG difference between 1 1/8 and 1 1/4. Will this cause other stress related issues down the road such as frame cracks, etc. I just finished changing the front springs for new 'stock' springs and installed the sway bar. The front of the car is still on jack stands and I'm thinking about taking that monster sway bar back off. Opinions?

According to a sway bar rate calculator that I played with last year and based on pretty close rough measurements, I was able to determine the rate of different diameter sway bars for our Chevelles.

Here is a link to what I discovered - http://www.chevelles.com/forum/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=7;t=003794

Bob I just installed an 1-1/4 front bar on my 64. I notice the front to be a lot stiffer which n turn should make the car handle better.I don,t think it would be hard on anything up front . I also installed a quick ratio box and ebach lowering springs.by the way thats a nice 66 you have.

Thanks for the replies guys. I will leave it on for awhile and try it. It looks HUGE!

Bob,

Bob,

I installed a 1 1/4" sway bar in my 66 Chevelle and what a difference. For one, my original sway bar was cracked and I didn't know that when I took it out. That's probably why it felt like the door handles almost hit the ground on a corner. The car now feels very stable at higher speeds and it corners like a more modern car. I haven't installed a rear sway bar yet, so that will help out even more. The car doesn't doesn't feel overly stiff.

Kevin