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Popping after Progress Tech Rear sway install, '19 Abarth

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 9:07 am
by JamesL758
Just as the title suggests, recently installed the Progress technologies 16mm rear sway bar and mounting hardware onto my Hypnotic Red 2019 Manual Abarth 124.

Now, instead of plowing into a turn it wants to wag the tail out everytime I'm not on my correct line. I don't mind so much, it's much more heroic looking (if just as slow) to wag the tail out than it is to plow over a line of cones with the wheels locked into a turn. But hey, learning is occurring.

My issue is that I'm hearing a popping noise coming from the rear of the car when going over speed bumps, things like that now. I already checked the torque on the mounting fasteners and everything seems to be fine there. I'm wondering if the axle height sensors and the rear sway bar end links are now occasionally interfering with each other. (I'm also wondering if the stock muffler is moving around on the mounts and bumping into stuff when lateral Gs are applied.)

If so, are there Slimline rear sway bar end links available, or can I just swap the links from one side of the car to another? The only difference I could see by doing the latter is on which side of the upper end of the link the bar mounts. OEM, the link mounts on the inside of the bar, I'm talking about switching it to the outside. This would keep it from interfering with the axle height sensors.

The other possibility is that, now that the rear is much stiffer than stock, I'm hearing all the creaking and popping from the relatively floppy body moving around like my old f-body Camaro. Without punting myself into another class for SCCA by installing bracing where there presently isnt any, is there anything I can do stopping the creaking and popping?

Re: Popping after Progress Tech Rear sway install, '19 Abart

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 9:34 am
by Brian
Pop noise almost always a dry spot....need more lube. Lube needs to get places that folks don't always think of up front. For example, there is a 'slide stopper' and the face of that is against a poly bushing. Without lube on that interface you can expect the poly bushing will GRAB that slide stopper ring that is welded to the bar when the bar attempts to rotate it will do a loud POP. Even more common is folks also miss spots inside the bushing that holds the bar, that's the most common by far, even a little dry spot in there will surprise you with how easily it will grab the bar and release it with a pop. With the cars we race we eventually get the pops, we go back in and pull those bushings and add more lube and the issue will be gone again for a few years.

I have not seen an interference issue with rear bar and headlight leveler link with this Progress brand. Not impossible to imagine but I have not seen it yet.

Re: Popping after Progress Tech Rear sway install, '19 Abart

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 9:52 am
by JamesL758
Pop noise almost always a dry spot....need more lube.
Given my propensity to overthink things, it surprises me that this never occurred to me. I'll check it tonight!

Thank you Brian! You guys are awesome!

Regards,
James