sway bar

[mavtricks71]

My 91 Ranger doesn't have a sway bar? is it supposed to?

 

[JoshT]

I want to be an ass and tell you to search, but I'll answer this time. The short answer is no. Not all rangers came with swaybars. If you want more... Search. The sway bar topic has been covered many times.

 

[KnockKnock]

I've heard rumor of rear sway bars equipped on some Rangers from the factory, but a lot of folks on here are putting Bronco II rear sway bars in. I'm not 100% knowledgeable on the topic, but do a search as there's tons of info on this posted.

 

[James86]

Sway bar is a stabilizer bar, right? I have front and back, and people have told me having one in back is odd.

 

[90longbed]

my 90 doesnt have one.....I think it depends on how the truck was optioned....I believe my ranger is an "S" model and my 88 I had was the same model and it didnt have one either

 

[90longbed]

fyi an S model was a stripped down model of ranger......

base engine(2.0 till 88, 89-92 2.3)
no radio
no rear bumper(most often installed by dealer or first owner)
14" steel wheels with hubcaps
manual steering, transmission, windows etc(later ones had power brakes)
reg cab.... long bed or short bed(from the info I can find there was no ext cab S models)
most often solid back window( slider window dealer installed option??)
vinyl bench seat, rubber floor mat
no sway bars

 

[adsm08]

I've heard rumor of rear sway bars equipped on some Rangers from the factory.

Some did get rear bars from the factory. Mine had one originally. From what I have seen of the old ones at the yards the supercabs got them, on any other body it was an option until the mid-90s.

Postin' from teh Galaxy

 

[LilGreen]

Some did get rear bars from the factory. Mine had one originally. From what I have seen of the old ones at the yards the supercabs got them, on any other body it was an option until the mid-90s.

Ya that would make sense. More weight to allow it to roll.
I'd say if its a pavement princess leave in there. If u wheel it rip it out or get quick detach links.

 

[adsm08]

I'd say if its a pavement princess leave in there.

Even if it is a street queen it's not that important. I deleted mine when I did the Explorer axle because I didn't have U-bolts big enough for the tubes and I did have messed up links. I have yet to miss it and I try to drive it like it's a Formula-1 car.

 

[mavtricks71]

Very interesting never knew a sway bar was an option up until 1995...ill see if I can find a sway bar from a 91-92 in the wrecking yard.

 

[adsm08]

Very interesting never knew a sway bar was an option up until 1995...ill see if I can find a sway bar from a 91-92 in the wrecking yard.

I didn't say 1995. Nobody said 1995. I think it was more like 1993 that they became standard.

 

[James86]

I didn't say 1995. Nobody said 1995. I think it was more like 1993 that they became standard.

Guess that explains why my 1999 extended cab has one in the back. If it's negligible having it, why is it even there? Does it do much on a solid rear axle?

 

[JoshT]

...ill see if I can find a sway bar from a 91-92 in the wrecking yard.

Don't limit yourself to those two years. Front from 89-97 can be installed, can use rear bar from same years or later as long as you have the right size u-bolts for your axle. As said before there's a lot more info on those in the suspension forums. If you need more specifics it's on here.

Guess that explains why my 1999 extended cab has one in the back. If it's negligible having it, why is it even there? Does it do much on a solid rear axle?

I don't see why its being said that it makes a negligible difference. Years ago I installed the largest sway bar I could find (aftermarket 1.25") under the front of my 84 2wd. Truck went from being a boat (this was with new shocks) to riding riding on rails. The I found a 1" BII bar in the junkyard and it nearly had the same improvement again. That was on a 2wd with a much center of gravity and less weight. Higher COG and weight should have made for a better improvement, unless there is just too much sidewall flex, sway bars can't do anything for tires.

No offense to ADSM, but if he hasn't noticed a difference then he isn't very good at driving "it like it's a Formula-1 car."

 

[FritzTKatt]

Couldn't tell the difference w/o a front sway bar when I had rough country coils in, and with my duff setup it rides just fine at speed and doesn't need one.

I'd imagine the rear does make a difference especially with a load, but with no load, I can still stuff the tires completely. So it stays...

 

[FritzTKatt]

double post...