Squatting Dog
FRF Addict
Because of its rear-wheel drive (normally 2wd) and front-end weight bias, the Ford Raptor naturally understeers. It tends to "plow" in turns and resist steering inputs. Installation of a rear sway bar is an easy way to add some stiffness to the rear suspension and reduce this understeer. It gives a more "precise" feel to the steering. It makes the car turn easier and feel more stable. It makes the front tires wear longer.
What do I need!
1. Rear Steer! to pivot the car around corners less understeer
2. Traction!
3. Speed faster around corners and accelerations
After looking at many bars I picked Hellwig Performance #7705 for the rear bar, 4140 chromolly steel, American-made, Adjustable unit.
I was worried about adding a sway bar and making the Raptor loose around turns, only just the opposite happened, the car not only cornered better but some how had more traction! and a very easy to drive traction line, it now has great traction and slowly slids out making it very predictable in corners,
After setting it up on the Raptor, I noticed that the Raptor stays more level in the turns. That means the rear weight wasn't transferring and unloading and loading from side to side. That forced the tires to grab traction, and helped the Raptor traction quicker out of the corners
So....Do I really need a rear anti-roll bar on a Raptor? I personally say. Yes! For both on road and off road performance.
In an effort to correct excessive body roll on early, the common approach is to add a large front anti-roll bar (which the Raptor has). This may initially appear to correct the issue, but with the unintended result of increased understeer on an already nose-heavy vehicle. To regain vehicle cornering balance a rear anti-roll bar may be needed. For mild street-performance vehicles a rear anti-roll bar will provide a noticeable improvement to the “tightness” of the handling. However, on high-performance vehicles operating at or near the vehicle’s traction limits, careful testing is required. First, to determine need of a rear bar, and then to properly setup the vehicle to optimize cornering balance. Testing your vehicle with different springs, shock settings and anti-roll bars will definitely yield increased handling.
Why do Manufactures leave the rear sway bar off many of the cars they build?
An obvious reason is to save money.
Many manufactures decision was also based on assumptions about the driving skills of the typical car owner.
Understeer is the accepted norm among average drivers in the U.S., many have never even heard the terms over-steer, under-steer, bump-steer, and so on
When the car doesn't seem to be going where the driver wants it to go, he just brakes and turns the steering wheel farther -- an intuitive design considered defensible in court.
Adding a rear sway bar not only reduces understeer, it also makes the car more likely to oversteer -- for the rear end to lose adhesion and swing out when cornering. That makes the car more fun to drive (it turns quicker), but also more dangerous because it could lead to a spin-out. To correct for oversteer, the driver must stay off the brakes, add power, and turn the steering wheel in the direction of the slide -- a design considered indefensible in court, and one that could expose manufactures to liability.
The Raptor understeers and once you remove front swaybar, it corrects some of the oversteer. The issue is now it makes the Raptor wallows like a pig during any quick changes of direction. By adding the rear swaybar it corrects the understeer without slowing the steering by increasing bodyroll...
I will be testing this set up at Texas Raptor run and during bullrun rally..
-Greg (aka squatting dog)
What do I need!
1. Rear Steer! to pivot the car around corners less understeer
2. Traction!
3. Speed faster around corners and accelerations
After looking at many bars I picked Hellwig Performance #7705 for the rear bar, 4140 chromolly steel, American-made, Adjustable unit.
I was worried about adding a sway bar and making the Raptor loose around turns, only just the opposite happened, the car not only cornered better but some how had more traction! and a very easy to drive traction line, it now has great traction and slowly slids out making it very predictable in corners,
After setting it up on the Raptor, I noticed that the Raptor stays more level in the turns. That means the rear weight wasn't transferring and unloading and loading from side to side. That forced the tires to grab traction, and helped the Raptor traction quicker out of the corners
So....Do I really need a rear anti-roll bar on a Raptor? I personally say. Yes! For both on road and off road performance.
In an effort to correct excessive body roll on early, the common approach is to add a large front anti-roll bar (which the Raptor has). This may initially appear to correct the issue, but with the unintended result of increased understeer on an already nose-heavy vehicle. To regain vehicle cornering balance a rear anti-roll bar may be needed. For mild street-performance vehicles a rear anti-roll bar will provide a noticeable improvement to the “tightness” of the handling. However, on high-performance vehicles operating at or near the vehicle’s traction limits, careful testing is required. First, to determine need of a rear bar, and then to properly setup the vehicle to optimize cornering balance. Testing your vehicle with different springs, shock settings and anti-roll bars will definitely yield increased handling.
Why do Manufactures leave the rear sway bar off many of the cars they build?
An obvious reason is to save money.
Many manufactures decision was also based on assumptions about the driving skills of the typical car owner.
Understeer is the accepted norm among average drivers in the U.S., many have never even heard the terms over-steer, under-steer, bump-steer, and so on
When the car doesn't seem to be going where the driver wants it to go, he just brakes and turns the steering wheel farther -- an intuitive design considered defensible in court.
Adding a rear sway bar not only reduces understeer, it also makes the car more likely to oversteer -- for the rear end to lose adhesion and swing out when cornering. That makes the car more fun to drive (it turns quicker), but also more dangerous because it could lead to a spin-out. To correct for oversteer, the driver must stay off the brakes, add power, and turn the steering wheel in the direction of the slide -- a design considered indefensible in court, and one that could expose manufactures to liability.
The Raptor understeers and once you remove front swaybar, it corrects some of the oversteer. The issue is now it makes the Raptor wallows like a pig during any quick changes of direction. By adding the rear swaybar it corrects the understeer without slowing the steering by increasing bodyroll...
I will be testing this set up at Texas Raptor run and during bullrun rally..
-Greg (aka squatting dog)
