e46 front swaybar

[imwhyteyo]

im considering purchasing one, and i want to fit it, modifying some poly bushings i have.. is there anybody who has done any research as far as fitting this goes? are there larger diameter bars within the e46 models that change? i know its been brushed lightly, but i think its time this mystery has been solved! :D

[stonea]

I'd be interested in this. Let us know how it goes.

[nando]

Its not really a mystery, im pretty sure it will work fine. You'll need E28/E30 M3 drop links, and poly bushings with custom brackets. I just havent had any brackets made.

[Northern]

Couldn't you bore out ix front bushings to 21mm instead? Its just a matter of finding a way to efficiently and smoothly cut the rubber.

[nando]

no, you'd have like 1mm of bushing material left.

you can get generic poly bushings that come with brackets, which then need to be modified to bolt to the ix subframe.

E46 front swaybars are cheap too - I picked up mine for $50.

[stonea]

Pardon my ignorance, but is this just any E46 Swaybar, or ix/xi specific.

[Northern]

It looks like there would be plenty of material left, especially if you were to use poly bushings. I was thinking of picking up poly ix bushings after its proven to work with the stock ones, to keep the required modification to a minimum

[nando]

It looks like there would be plenty of material left, especially if you were to use poly bushings. I was thinking of picking up poly ix bushings after its proven to work with the stock ones, to keep the required modification to a minimum

No, not really. the smallest E46 swaybar is 21mm, the most common are 23mm. add the thickness of the powdercoat, and you have about 24-25mm diameter.

the ix swaybar bushing is only big enough for an 18mm bar. you'd have to bore it out 7-8mm to fit the XI bar - it's just not that thick.

I really think it makes more sense to come up with a different bracket, and use a standard aftermarket bushing (which you can buy dirt cheap).

Maybe what needs to happen is a small production of custom brackets..

[nando]

Pardon my ignorance, but is this just any E46 Swaybar, or ix/xi specific.

any standard E46 *except* the XI. although, I haven't looked at an XI bar recently, it's actually the standard E46 that has really similar geometry to the E30 ix.

[imwhyteyo]

id definitely purchase these brackets if they were made, do you know anybody who might have a means of fabbing a few up..? perhaps getting a group thing going we could really push the effort and start getting this done right!

[nando]

I know a couple people maybe - if anyone else has suggestions, I least have a set of stock brackets and the "generic" poly bushing brackets to work from.

the poly bushing would *almost* fit the stock bracket but you'd have to remove too much material for it to work.

another alternative could be custom bushings but I just think they'd be too thin.

[imwhyteyo]

wouldnt you think a thin bushing may not be so bad of a thing? perhaps as long as the bracket was sturdy enough, it might actually provide a more firm support under stress, allowing for less flex? if you might understand what i mean

[nando]

Or it will bind. Dunno! I'll look into it.

[imwhyteyo]

true, i understand that. im going to order one off ebay tonight, see about doing some personal research myself. let me know what you turn up for brackets and such.. maybe i can talk to my machinist across the hall from my garage spot, hes extremely crafty when it comes to odd custom bits. cant beat having your own personal machine shop 20ft. from where you wrench ;)

[nando]

Just had a look at it again - I really don't think the stock bracket will work even with a custom bushing.

there's just not enough room for any significant material - even the stock bushing is pretty thin, now you're taking about 7mm out of it, you have maybe 2-3mm of bushing material leftover. Also, cutting it down wouldn't be simple anyway, as the ix's bracket has a really odd contour that the bushing fits into.

However, the brackets that came with my 23mm bushings are *really* close to the same dimensions as the E30ix brackets. all that would need to happen is have one end modified so it would "clip" into the subframe like the stock one. Possibly the bracket it comes with could be cut and bent to have the tab needed to fit like stock (looks like there is lots of material). the bolted end will already line up perfectly (the brackets have a slotted hole). Probably would need to have them powdercoated, as the zinc coating would be damaged.

you'd still have to modify the bushing slightly to clear a little ~3/8" fillet on the subframe (near the corner of the bushing, opposite of the "clip" in the subframe) but that would be pretty easy to do with a file or utility knife.

there aren't a lot of "custom" shops around here but I know maybe a couple that could do this (diesel truck shops are my best hope). maybe if we could get 5-10 people and a set of brackets this could happen. Used E46 front swaybars only cost ~$50 - and a brand new one is only about $100. I think the bushings are about $25. even if modifying the brackets cost $50 it would still be pretty affordable.