Sway Bar Links

MRT is constantly looking for new products to improve your car. One recent discovery is the replacement sway bar link. It works like this: sway bars control cornering 'sway' by pushing back on the suspension control arm when the vehicle starts to lean under the effect of cornering forces. The controlling force is fed into the suspension via the sway bar links.

On Subaru models such as the Impreza, Liberty/Legacy/Outback these links are made from a rigid plastic, and bushed in soft rubber. The replacement link is made of steel and uses low tolerance polyurethane bushes.

The OE link is a compromised design, a largely unsuccessful attempt to blend low cost, the ability to transfer force and low NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) into one component. In particular the OE link does not transmit force in a linear fashion as cornering speeds rise. Instead it deforms, bending and stretching which makes the output suspension movement far less predictable. The new steel links transmit force with much more precision, greatly improving the 'predictability' of the car's handling under fierce cornering conditions.

One might expect this part to increase perceived NVH in the cabin, but this is not really the case. As noted below, STi models have a similar part fitted as standard, and no one has complained about the increased cabin noise in an STi!

Note: As mentioned above, the STi model comes with a similar part as standard. STi models do not need this part.

Front Sway Bar Setup

Replacement Control Arm and Sway Bar

MRT SWAY BAR LINKS