front anti roll bar

[samc]

do you need a front anti roll bar? and what does it handle like without? as ive heard some people taking them off. why would you do that? cheers

[burgo]

the general rule of thumb is if you have coil overs remove it, if not dont

[samc]

im just putting some spax rsx on so i'll try it without.

[mowgli]

Remove it if you are planning forest rallying, otherwise, keep it

[General Baxter]

Remove it if you are planning forest rallying, otherwise, keep it

take it off when going down the A5 and A47 then lol

[Iain]

the general rule of thumb is if you have coil overs remove it, if not dont

I thought if you had any uprated (stiffer) suspension, not just coilovers, you should remove it.

[Dan]

Remove it if you are planning forest rallying, otherwise, keep it

Daft comment tbh, please explain why you believe such if you type it, makes it alot easier for others to understand.

Personally i havent run one for many years and dont intend to again when running jamex/billie sprintline/avo spring/avo coilovers etc etc etc, the anti roll bar design was created when chocolate teapots were first invented. If you uprate your suspension you may find it more of an advantage to remove it. Tbh for the sake of a few bolts its an easy one to try and see what you prefer. On standard suspension i would still advise to keep it

For the various nova's i have crewed for over the years within the rallying i havent come across one that runs an antiroll bar either (tarmac btw not forest ;)) Also dar has a few good views on this subject as its something he looked into with regards his sprinting etc.

End of the day its personal preference but i have built and setup my car over the years with various suspension setups and settings and this is where my comments come from. I dont know much, but i know what makes my car feel good and it enables anyone to just jump in and drive it to its limit.

[GRUNT 16V]

I Have'nt Run One For About 6 Years On The Valver.

[mowgli]

Right, here is my answer.

For forest type rallying, where maximum traction is a must, having a very soft suspension with loads of travel is the best setup. This would render an ARB useless, because its job is to stop body roll under hard cornering on tarmac, and by design, it will limit the independent travel, & lose grip on the stage, so you lose overall speed.

If you set up a car for track use, you lower & stiffen the springs which will certainly have a similar effect to having ARB's fitted. A decent FWD track car usually has the rear stiff with an ARB & the front a bit softer so the driven wheels have decent traction.

For road use, with a fairly standard suspension setup, then ARB's will improve the general handling of the car. They do this by allowing the springs to be softer, giving good traction & smooth ride on straight bits, & stiffening up the suspension on cornering, so you get a good compromise between ride & handling.

My last nova had ARB's & springs so stiff that the scuttle was shaking itself to bits whenever I hit a pothole, I also could get terrible understeer on roundabouts. I put softer springs on & the shaking & understeer disappeared.

I hope that is ok.

PS. General:- At the moment between the camera vans, the community speedwatch groups, the floods & the farm traffic getting busy, speed is on hold for the foreseeable future, so ARB's won't make any difference.