Not always. If you have a traction problem, or slow 60fot , try It.
My swaybar has been on/off for years, but know Im running the STEEDA drag type, ( much like the 4sylinder unit ) Steady 1.6x 60fot and good streethandling.
If you remove it compleatly, you use forward related energy, just for lifting your car up and down, without going any faster.
A set of Strange etc adj struts, and a four sylinder swaybar, works fine.
Install longer bushingpins at the A-arms, for a slightly higher lift.
Just Me
ive had mine off for a year now. Doesnt handle that great anymore meaning there is lots of body roll/sway. I think it helps at the launch though. After taking mine off i could feel the front end come up more.
That is just my experience though.
I noticed a huge difference, but especially because there was a set of huge turns right down the street from where I lived... Seriously though, it sucked. Like said before the body roll is horible, but I say try it and see, then realize how useless it is, then put it back on
I have had my car for about 2 1/2 years and have had the sway bar off for this past season. It should have been the first thing I did when I got the car, tiny bit of body roll but it is not bad at all hardly noticable. The setup I have at the moment I would try taking a corner at 80 mph but it is still 100% drivable and you will notice a difference on the launch. Seems to me you just want your car to go straight when you drop the hammer, get rid of it!
I agree with bentley429. If you have a car that you take to the strip often, then id take it off. I can only notice body roll when i take a corner with some speed.
You can always just pull it off and try it.
IMO a Mustang is a drag car the more I can keep the weight ratio to the rear wheel the better. You may not notice a big difference with just the sway bar by itself but if you go tubular k-member, a-arms, bumper support etc etc you will notice a huge difference and it will reflect in your timeslips. If you are into turns and stuff just go with a lighter aftermarket one.
Uh, there's barely any difference in handling. Mustangs handle like **** with stock style suspension no matter what, so it's not a huge affect. Cornering hard on the street is not cool anyway. That's FAR worse than street racing imo. There's always kids in the road, people backing out of driveways, etc. You will notice a difference in launching though. After I took mine off, even with a stock motor and street tires the front end rises and falls a lot farther and faster without it, and it does hook better. Plus, it's quite a chunk of weight. Mine will never see the car again.
The handling is bad but you get used to it. The more power you make, the more you will notice a difference. A stock 5.0, leave it on as u will get the chitty handling and no real gaines, a bolt on or above motor, do it!!
Ran my ole 93 for 1 year w/o it, u get used to it and learn to take curves a little slower and no problem.
In fact I still have that old sway bar collecting dust right now.
hmm. lots of varied opinions here. thing is when i first got my car it didnt have the sway bar on it but the seller gave me new sway bar links and bushings for it. so i put it back on. it seemed to help the handling a LOT.
but now my car is making a a tad more power and ive got big and little tires on it, and i cant take corners very hard anyway because the rear tires will scrape.
the only suspension i have on the car are upper and lower control arms and a bag in the passenger rear spring. other than that it has stock replacement shocks.
I have been able to cut 1.8 60fts pretty consistantly.
im gonna try taking it off.
Drive it to the track with the bar in place. Take it of at the track (like 4-8 bolts, can't remember right now) then put it back on to go home. Or just take it off at home, drive to the track to get used to the different handling and put it back on if it doesn't help or you don't like the handling.
Holy **** people, it's not that bad. He's running a drag setup, just take the thing off. Maybe I just don't corner hard enough to notice a huge difference. You guys shouldn't be road racing on the street anyway. I barely notice it in daily driving, and it's just a little body roll, it's not gonna kill you. It's not like the car flips over anytime you're not going straight.
Edit: Oh yeah, recently I went a 200 mile each way cruise with 8 other Mustangs through the rollercoaster/motocross track style highways of NYC and NJ (We did get air on probably more than one occasion). Believe it or not, my car had no sway bar, and I'm still alive! It worked just fine, and I had no worries at any point that had anything to do with a swaybar.