C2 Sway bar selection

[Michael F.]

Even though I had a 65 convertible in the 90s. I never did any modifications to it. My main chevy performance experiences were on Camaros,small and Big block.

I started my '63 restoration/build with a 70s Camaro mentality. Much heavier car,solid axle,weight distribution etc.. Which seems to be the wrong line of thinking for the Corvette

On the '63 I installed the addco 1 1/8 front bar and their 7/8 rear. Its does corner like it's on rails. But after hearing JohnZs advice and reading some threads on the subject, I feel I am over sway barred! All of that and the fact that rear bar hits my frame.The above are probably bigger than most race Corvettes.
I am thinking I will to go with the F-41 front and no rear bar. My 63 has stock spring rates front and rear. It has 225/55-17 tires all around and Edelbrock performer shocks. I want performance street driving and some autocross,track use.I like a boulevard ride,so I don't want to go to higher spring rates. The sway bar is the only area I want to adjust.

Advice on bar selection is welcome.

[William C.]

Re: C2 Sway bar selection

Keep in mind that the larger front bar was counterbalanced somewhat by the heavier rear spring that was part of the package (along with higher rate front springs). You need to keep the front-rear balance in place.

[Duke W.]

Re: C2 Sway bar selection

The seventies vintage small block FE7 used the old HD springs and a 1 1/8" front bar in conjunction with a 7/16" rear bar.

Given that you are running the same size front bar with a larger rear bar and also considering that the '63 chassis has more inherent rear roll stiffness from the spring due to its higher roll center, I would say that your car will oversteer, but it depends on tires.

For a given roll stiffness distribution, as tire grip falls the car will be increasingly biased toward oversteer.

Quite frankly, the OE '63 spring and bar setup is pretty good. Even with decent tires is has oversteer bias at the limit, but this can be mitigated by installing poly bushings in the front bar links or installing the 13/16" front bar that was standard on late seventies Corvettes.

Your situation is considerably changed by your tire size. Short, wide tires are far from ideal on the '63 due to the high roll centers, which create a lot of camber/track change with jounce and rebound.

Ultimately it's a matter of testing to yield a setup that you are comfortable with.

And don't forget shocks. A recent quote from Bob Riley goes something like 90 percent of setting up a (race) car is shocks, so a set of adjustable shocks like Spax or QA-1 is the next best investment you can make (after tires) if you are looking for maximum grip.

Contrary to popular belief, modern race cars are set up with the softest springs possible - just enough to keep them from bottoming out depending on downforce and course bumpiness. Anti-roll bars are used to limit roll to acceptable values - say no more than two or three degrees per g - and fine tune the understeer/oversteer balance, and adjustable shocks are absolutely required and set up for each track.

The purpose of the suspension is to keep the tires in contact with the surface with as constant load as possible for the condition. If the springs are too stiff or there is insufficient damping, the tires will be constantly loaded and unloaded and the car will be a handful to drive!

Duke