DIY: Installing a Daox rear sway bar

[Mark]

Well, I joined the broken Daox swaybar club today! I ordered mine at the end of 2020, so it lasted a little more than a year and approximately 10,000 miles. I did very little "sporty" driving in that time and was gentle with our Mirage overall. I did really enjoy the added stability of the swaybar, but won't be purchasing a new one, from any manufacturer, as it's not worth the worry of when it will break again. Oh well...

Bralexander - thanks for sharing those pics. My 1st generation rear sway bar failed in the same manner. I suspect my 2nd generation sway bar will fail some day, too.

It's a sign that the sway bar is working hard to stabilize the Mirage.

For those observing or considering all this, Erik's recent post displays the UR sway bar. Unlike the pipe used, the UR sway bar appears to be a solid bar. By design that bar may allow for some flexing, too! I suspect it's lifespan would be much greater.

If my sway bar failed tomorrow & I was planning to sell my Mirage in the upcoming year, I wouldn't replace it. If I were planning to the drive the car another 5+ years, I wouldn't hesitate to replace it asap.

I find it also helps stabilize the car at higher speeds. High speed highway driving with strong cross winds is not always a pleasant experience with a Mirage. I value the sway bar under those circumstances more than the winding roads in my area.

I appreciate Bralexander's pics & Erik's You Tube posting, too. Good stuff!

[Christopher_B]

I installed a slightly used DAOX unit today. Being concerned with the breakage others have reported, I thought perhaps rubber bushings between the bar would allow enough flex to not cause failure. I had the tires off from the oil change/tire rotation (37,500 miles on my '21) and thought this the best time to install. I bought a VSL225 from autozone and robbed the bushings from the package. I also used longer stainless bolts 2" (50mm) The bolts probably could have been shorter. I just added the thickness of a bushing to the length of the bolts I received with the bar. I may actually swap in shorter bolts in the future if i feel necessary. I then installed the bar with the bushings and tightened until the bottom washers no longer spun by hand. Then I reinstalled the wheels and made everything tight. I could not hold the forward bolt head very well as it was against the bottom rubber spring seat. I had to hold it with an open ended wrench inline with the bolt instead of the correct way. If I did it again I would find metric bolts with a smaller head. I did my best to avoid overtightening the bolts because I still wanted the hard rubber bushing to have some compression left.
Overall I was very please with the reduced body roll. My biggest hope is added highway stability during windy conditions from nature and semi trucks.

[Dodge Aries K]

Glad to see my old bar doing some good Chris!

[minibishi2]

I have a 2015 de, and found this thead by chance looking for coil spacers to make my car ride higher.. Anyways, you guys just need larger tires/wheels. I have 185/65/15 aftermarket hankook kinergys and cars cannot keep up with me on corners. Highways at 90+mph are no issue. The car handles better than my saturn sky, and eclipse gt did and theres no dangerous aftermarket sway bar in the rear ready to break at any moment and cause lawsuits, plus death in many directions..

[Mark]

I have a 2015 de, and found this thead by chance looking for coil spacers to make my car ride higher.. Anyways, you guys just need larger tires/wheels. I have 185/65/15 aftermarket hankook kinergys and cars cannot keep up with me on corners. Highways at 90+mph are no issue. The car handles better than my saturn sky, and eclipse gt did and theres no dangerous aftermarket sway bar in the rear ready to break at any moment and cause lawsuits, plus death in many directions..

I think you are overreacting a bit. A Mirage is not going to fall apart if a sway bar breaks. Glad you like your oversized wheels, however.

[minibishi2]

I think you are overreacting a bit. A Mirage is not going to fall apart if a sway bar breaks. Glad you like your oversized wheels, however.

Well one could argue in court that the seller sold an item which they know fails and they admitted doesn't perform as well as they intended and could blame and accident on the seller to avoid liability. Also if the item works as it's said to improving handling, one could take a corner abnormally fast and then lose control if the sway bar breaks. Things to think about, money to be made.

[Mark]

Well one could argue in court that the seller sold an item which they know fails and they admitted doesn't perform as well as they intended and could blame and accident on the seller to avoid liability. Also if the item works as it's said to improving handling, one could take a corner abnormally fast and then lose control if the sway bar breaks. Things to think about, money to be made.

I still think you're overreacting & missing the point of the sway bar. Adding a sway doesn't give someone the license to drive like a moron.

If your tires make you feel good about going 90 mph, that's great! I have no need for that.

As far as Daox's sway bars go, he didn't make any promises or claims. He made them so forum members could try them. It was an experiment, & no one put a gun to our head to try it. I still have one on my Mirage, & I like the added stability it creates (especially on windy days).

In some countries, your tires would be illegal to use on a Mirage. The tire laws would be enforced, too. So it's really all relative.

I do carry an umbrella insurance policy because of the way some people like you think, however.

[Top_Fuel]

I have larger wheels/tires and my Mirage still handles like a school bus. It handled better before my rear sway bar broke, however.

[mohammad]

I do carry an umbrella insurance policy because of the way some people like you think, however.

ive never heard of an umbrella car insurance policy. Probably just doesnt exist in my part of the world. My insurance contract won't let me make changes to the vehicle that modify the structure, handling or safety features in any way. Without their express permission in writing. Otherwise I could make cooler youtube videos

[Fummins]

I have a 2015 de, and found this thead by chance looking for coil spacers to make my car ride higher.. Anyways, you guys just need larger tires/wheels. I have 185/65/15 aftermarket hankook kinergys and cars cannot keep up with me on corners. Highways at 90+mph are no issue. The car handles better than my saturn sky, and eclipse gt did and theres no dangerous aftermarket sway bar in the rear ready to break at any moment and cause lawsuits, plus death in many directions..

Sure.