Rear sway bar

[machman72]

As I was greasing my U joints today, I noticed that the bushings in my rear sway bar are shot. The passenger side is almost non existant, and drivers side is going fast. The end bushings look fine. These are the center pivot bushings. I have replaced these on cars, and small trucks in the past. Are they difficult to do on this rig? I guess my concern is just the size of it. It looks simple enough to unbolt the retainer from around the bushings, but what kind of "energy" is stored in this thing. Like a spring contains energy when compressed. It appears that it could be held up with a 2 ton floor jack while the retainers are off. Does a bushing this size come in 2 peices, or one peice with a split on one side to push over the bar? Any suggestions are helpful.

[machman72]

As I was greasing my U joints today, I noticed that the bushings in my rear sway bar are shot. The passenger side is almost non existant, and drivers side is going fast. The end bushings look fine. These are the center pivot bushings. I have replaced these on cars, and small trucks in the past. Are they difficult to do on this rig? I guess my concern is just the size of it. It looks simple enough to unbolt the retainer from around the bushings, but what kind of "energy" is stored in this thing. Like a spring contains energy when compressed. It appears that it could be held up with a 2 ton floor jack while the retainers are off. Does a bushing this size come in 2 peices, or one peice with a split on one side to push over the bar? Any suggestions are helpful.

[Hikerdogs]

I'm not sure what chassis designation you have, but if it's the F53 replacing the bushings isn't a major undertaking. I had to disconnect ours when I was drilling holes to install an auxillary sway bar. The bushings on ours were 1 piece and split on 1 side. You just flex them to open them for removal or installation.

My major concern would be getting the mounting bolts loose without breaking them. After 13+ years I'm sure they've accumulated some rust.

[machman72]

Thanks for the reply. Yes I have an F53 chassis. Found the correct bushings online. Split on one side as you said. As for rusty bolts, a little Marvel Mystery oil applied a couple of times a couple of days in a row loosens things up great. Works on 34 year old Mustang bolts. Guess I'll tackle this one myself.