For whatever reason (curbing costs?), Ford didn't seem to put anti-swaybars on the Excursions. On stock suspension, handling could be dicey, at best. We love the vehicle otherwise though. So, I ordered the Hellwig anti-swaybar that is popular in the Excursion forums and installed it last night. As expected, the instructions were pretty lousy, but once I got everything lined up and tightened down........WOW. I can't believe the difference this one thing made. It literally feels like driving a (giant) car now. Extremely little to no body roll on my neighborhood test drive and I have it on the "medium" stiffness setting. I can't wait to get it on the freeway and start towing with it now. Wish I'd put one on sooner!
Ford Excursion Anti-Swaybar
- Thread starter 28oz
- Start date
- Status
I put a thicker rear swaybar on my FXT and felt like it handled much better in the dry after the swap...I think it also made the car a bit more likely to slide on icy turns in the winter, though, seems like there is a bit of a tradeoff involved. I've noticed a few others on subaruforester.org who made a similar change reported that they felt they lost a bit as far as emergency winter handling went.
My daughter's Impreza didn't come with a rear swaybar and I was going to slap my old one on there as I'm pretty sure it would fit, but the wife and daughter weren't crazy about the idea...it's just sitting in a box in the garage for now. At least I didn't go ahead and buy the endlinks just to have them sitting around...
My daughter's Impreza didn't come with a rear swaybar and I was going to slap my old one on there as I'm pretty sure it would fit, but the wife and daughter weren't crazy about the idea...it's just sitting in a box in the garage for now. At least I didn't go ahead and buy the endlinks just to have them sitting around...
I thought one of the first things off-roaders did was ditch the sway bars for articulation? A body on frame 4x4 suv without sway bars does not surprise me at all.
I'm surprised the Excursion didn't come with a front bar? My Dad's 03 F150 4x4 has a huge front sway bar on it, so the roll stiffness seems out of whack compared to the softer front springs.
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
I'm surprised the Excursion didn't come with a front bar? My Dad's 03 F150 4x4 has a huge front sway bar on it, so the roll stiffness seems out of whack compared to the softer front springs.
I believe the trucks and the other SUVs (Expedition, etc...) got one, but for some reason the Excursion didn't.....front or back (although, I've read 2004+ models got one, but I don't know for sure). The Hellwig I put on is in the back, but I think they make a front one also.
I'm surprised the Excursion didn't come with a front bar? My Dad's 03 F150 4x4 has a huge front sway bar on it, so the roll stiffness seems out of whack compared to the softer front springs.
I believe the trucks and the other SUVs (Expedition, etc...) got one, but for some reason the Excursion didn't.....front or back (although, I've read 2004+ models got one, but I don't know for sure). The Hellwig I put on is in the back, but I think they make a front one also.
Originally Posted By: 28oz
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
I'm surprised the Excursion didn't come with a front bar? My Dad's 03 F150 4x4 has a huge front sway bar on it, so the roll stiffness seems out of whack compared to the softer front springs.
I believe the trucks and the other SUVs (Expedition, etc...) got one, but for some reason the Excursion didn't.....front or back (although, I've read 2004+ models got one, but I don't know for sure). The Hellwig I put on is in the back, but I think they make a front one also.
Rockauto shows sway bar links for 2003 so I think you are missing your front bar. With a stiff rear bar and no front, I think its actually pretty dangerous right now. A sharp tug on the wheel at highway speeds might bring the back end out.
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
I'm surprised the Excursion didn't come with a front bar? My Dad's 03 F150 4x4 has a huge front sway bar on it, so the roll stiffness seems out of whack compared to the softer front springs.
I believe the trucks and the other SUVs (Expedition, etc...) got one, but for some reason the Excursion didn't.....front or back (although, I've read 2004+ models got one, but I don't know for sure). The Hellwig I put on is in the back, but I think they make a front one also.
Rockauto shows sway bar links for 2003 so I think you are missing your front bar. With a stiff rear bar and no front, I think its actually pretty dangerous right now. A sharp tug on the wheel at highway speeds might bring the back end out.
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Originally Posted By: 28oz
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
I'm surprised the Excursion didn't come with a front bar? My Dad's 03 F150 4x4 has a huge front sway bar on it, so the roll stiffness seems out of whack compared to the softer front springs.
I believe the trucks and the other SUVs (Expedition, etc...) got one, but for some reason the Excursion didn't.....front or back (although, I've read 2004+ models got one, but I don't know for sure). The Hellwig I put on is in the back, but I think they make a front one also.
Rockauto shows sway bar links for 2003 so I think you are missing your front bar. With a stiff rear bar and no front, I think its actually pretty dangerous right now. A sharp tug on the wheel at highway speeds might bring the back end out.
Interesting. If it had one at all, don't know why someone would take it off the front, but I see what you're saying. I can't find anything definitive on when/if the bars were offered or standard equipment or whether they put them on the front also, or ever at all. It felt very solid jerking the wheel back and forth in the neighborhood, but admittedly, haven't tried it on the freeway. I think if I had to jerk that wheel hard enough to bring the back end around, I'd have bigger things to worry about. That thing is a tank and seems like it'd be like trying to get a school bus to drift.
I will look into putting one in the front, however.
Originally Posted By: 28oz
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
I'm surprised the Excursion didn't come with a front bar? My Dad's 03 F150 4x4 has a huge front sway bar on it, so the roll stiffness seems out of whack compared to the softer front springs.
I believe the trucks and the other SUVs (Expedition, etc...) got one, but for some reason the Excursion didn't.....front or back (although, I've read 2004+ models got one, but I don't know for sure). The Hellwig I put on is in the back, but I think they make a front one also.
Rockauto shows sway bar links for 2003 so I think you are missing your front bar. With a stiff rear bar and no front, I think its actually pretty dangerous right now. A sharp tug on the wheel at highway speeds might bring the back end out.
Interesting. If it had one at all, don't know why someone would take it off the front, but I see what you're saying. I can't find anything definitive on when/if the bars were offered or standard equipment or whether they put them on the front also, or ever at all. It felt very solid jerking the wheel back and forth in the neighborhood, but admittedly, haven't tried it on the freeway. I think if I had to jerk that wheel hard enough to bring the back end around, I'd have bigger things to worry about. That thing is a tank and seems like it'd be like trying to get a school bus to drift.
My 2000 Ford Excursion 4x4 has a front sway bar from the factory and every other one I have seen also has one.
I wouldn't want to drive without it.
I wouldn't want to drive without it.
Originally Posted By: HeritageHighRoof
My 2000 Ford Excursion 4x4 has a front sway bar from the factory and every other one I have seen also has one.
I wouldn't want to drive without it.
Given I've never looked underneath other Excursions, but I wonder what would have happened to mine then? Pretty sure it ain't there, but I'll look again. It should be pretty obvious.
My 2000 Ford Excursion 4x4 has a front sway bar from the factory and every other one I have seen also has one.
I wouldn't want to drive without it.
Given I've never looked underneath other Excursions, but I wonder what would have happened to mine then? Pretty sure it ain't there, but I'll look again. It should be pretty obvious.
Ok, I definitely do not have a front anti-sway bar. There were impressions around the holes where end links would bolt onto the body/frame, so it appears it did have one at one time. Why some previous owner would remove it is beyond me.
You can see the mounts for it on the front axle in these pics.
I guess I'll try to locate one in a junkyard (Any ideas on interchanges? Expedition or Super Duty maybe?), or order the Hellwig front bar and some end links. I'm still extremely pleased with how it handles with just the rear bar!
You can see the mounts for it on the front axle in these pics.
I guess I'll try to locate one in a junkyard (Any ideas on interchanges? Expedition or Super Duty maybe?), or order the Hellwig front bar and some end links. I'm still extremely pleased with how it handles with just the rear bar!
Last edited:
Well, I found a stock front anti-swaybar at my local Pic-A-Part. With the end-links, I got the whole setup for a grand total of $21. I think the rear made the most difference in handling, but the front did add some overall feel. The handling of that beast is unbelievable now. So glad I did it!
I'm glad you added the front bar. Indylan is right - the axle with more anti-sway is more likely to drift out; it is a part of the handling equation. Stiffer rear bar creates a greater likelihood of oversteer, whereas a stiff front bar does the opposite. Same with the above post about imprezas, oversteer, rear bar.
While the excursion might likely roll over first on dry pavement, it could still be affected in rain, especially winter.
Glad it handles better!! Good job!
While the excursion might likely roll over first on dry pavement, it could still be affected in rain, especially winter.
Glad it handles better!! Good job!
Originally Posted By: meep
I'm glad you added the front bar. Indylan is right - the axle with more anti-sway is more likely to drift out; it is a part of the handling equation. Stiffer rear bar creates a greater likelihood of oversteer, whereas a stiff front bar does the opposite. Same with the above post about imprezas, oversteer, rear bar.
While the excursion might likely roll over first on dry pavement, it could still be affected in rain, especially winter.
Glad it handles better!! Good job!
I'm glad you added the front bar. Indylan is right - the axle with more anti-sway is more likely to drift out; it is a part of the handling equation. Stiffer rear bar creates a greater likelihood of oversteer, whereas a stiff front bar does the opposite. Same with the above post about imprezas, oversteer, rear bar.
While the excursion might likely roll over first on dry pavement, it could still be affected in rain, especially winter.
Glad it handles better!! Good job!
- Status
Similar threads
