Since December when I got the coupe mid-pipe, and already having had the front and rear Hotchkis bars installed, my car had been banging and rattling like an old Vega. After actually solving the mid-pipe fitment issues I still had rattles and noises under the car. So to isolate the issues, I pulled of the heat shield that the pipe could have been banging and replaced the front sway back to stock. Well it sounded worse than ever after going back to stock.

It turns out the guy who is my friend at Conecelli Toyota puts the thing on his lift to swap out my front sway for some $ on the side forgot to tighhten the links that attach to the frame up high. Not the end attachment where the adjustment is but the link where it attaches with 4 bolts or so up high above the bar. I had to take it to the dealer to get him to determine that this was the cause and he said I was lucky the bar didn't fall off completely and create a serious problem damage wise.

After pulling off the Hotchki front I saw that the aftermarket collars I had installed were notched with a cut from the end link attachment on the bar slamming into them. The stock rubber bushing has a lip that keeps the stock bar collar from contacting the link attachment. This lip does not exist on the Hotchkis bushings.

I do not reccomend the Hotchkis bars at this point. The rear one seems fine but I am not sure it's staying on at this point. With the roll back again I miss the stronger bar but I think buying another set for 200 bucks or more is a bad idea for a cheap ***** like me. Anyone got a front bar from stillen or somewhere else for sale????

Maybe my collars were on too tight but this is a bad design. Before the collars the bar was way over to one side. They had to be greased a couple times and tightened a couple times. Not worth the hassle - it should be done right the first time and be a no brainer. If I want to deal with the same mod in the shop over and over again I'll go FI or stoker. Buh Bye Hotchkis

 

PS i'd be happy to shoot some pics of the damage to the collars from the Hotckis front bar if anyone is interested. My car is once again noise free and I can't be happier after 4 months of not driving it so as not to be embarassed.

 

Sounds like an install problem...

 

LOL - Which part of this mess? The original problem is that the collars are not included. And the bushings are not meant for collars is another problem if you intend to correct the first problem. There are too many people with Hotckis issues for this to be an install problem only.

 

Sorry to hear about the sway bar mess. I hear the Stillens come with the collars and fit quite well. BTW - Which dealer in Philly do you use?

 

Try the Eibachs ... they have collars too. The 350EVO/Nismo bars are also very nice.

 

Try the Eibachs ... they have collars too and cheap. The 350EVO/Nismo bars are also very nice.

 

I use Ardmore Inf. They are on their 4th service rep since I have gone there in 2 years but he is cool as hell and only charged me a 1/2 hour for fixing someone elses mistake related to an aftermarket mod. They are supposed to charge a full $90 hr. After all the hassle I would have given him more if he fixed it once and for all.

 

Dang, good thing I didn't buy the hotchkis sways when some shop had a special on them.

 

have no problems with mine at all after 6 months, I added the collars and it hasn't shifted.. no noise coming from it.. of course I installed it myself so I always double check to see if everything is tightened.. the only problems that I've heard about the hotchkis was the lack of collars, but that was fixed by buying the collar.. so rule of thumb, either install it yourself or find someone you really trust to install it..

 

Yeah I can only trust myself too but i don't have a lift and am not working on this on the ground. I don't have the skill or patience to work in a confined space. I think my collars were too close to the bushing and link perhaps. The chain of events led me to ditch trying anymore. I'm getting married in 4 weeks and don't want to drive off with the sound of tin cans banging without any tin cans attached to my car!

After thinking about it today, I remembered thinking this friend who put the stock ones back on did get the oil pan shield on a little quciker than I would have thought he should have but since I wasn't wathching his every move as I should have, I suppose I learned a lesson. Just keep using the mechanic that I trust and stop using this kid for even easier stuff just becasue he has a lift. I thought about going back in there to have him look at it again but after 6 or 7 trips to the lift I was getting some dealer help.

I'm sure some folks have them without issue and I slightly envy you as I enjoyed my bars when working quietly. I hate body lean and roll but I hate the sound of a skillet being slammed against my subframe even more. I had a Murphy's law experience with these and wouldn't expect too many people to confront what I have but after all my good luck with modding my first car - I can't complain too much. I still wouldn't take a chance and would reccommend another brand with collars that use stock bushings if someone asked tho. Why deal with it if you have a chance to get it right the first time?

 

Just to be fair ... what SixFive's experienced is due to faulty installation. The mounting brackets were not secured ... and that's BAD.

The Hotchkis bushing does extend past the metal bracket/retainers enough for a proper set of collars to bump against w.o. tearing itself apart. That is the case for the rear, but not so w. the front due to the goofy curvature. The aftermarket collar sits at a funny angle ... which could come in conact w. the metal bracket. I'm fabing my own custom collar piece for the front so they sit flush against the bushing surface for this very reason. Again, the rear is perfectly fine w. the McMaster collars.

At the end of the day ... why didn't Hotchkis just weld on four stinking pieces of collars!

 

No **** clint. PS I am SixFive. Not that I actually worry about the proper use of my handle but there is a user I haven't seen in a while who went by Sixone.

I think you cam up with the Mcmaster collar solution and it is a great one. I just had a confluence of crappy events that forced a do over on my part. The rear bar is perfect and always was even without the collar. I don't think the rear shifted but since someone smarter than me was using the rear collars, I decided this flaw could affect the rears as well and went for it.

I still can't believe they are selling them without the collars. If you have Hotchkis you need to consider them collars at least in the front or the bar simply won't work properly. You've said it and the installer of the collars said it when he couldn't believe how badly it shifted over to one side. I appreciate all the help trying to make these things work in the past, Clint.

 

Doh! So sorry. I meant 'SixFive' not SixOne.

Prior to the collars, the rear definitely shifted some, but not nearly the magnitude the front experienced. I definitely took notice at the track ... the front end picked up some understeer which I was not use to, yet I've made no changes to the car. That when I discoverd the front bar was badly shifted to one side.

If you're looking for an inexpesive set of replacement ... again, I would highly recommend the Eibachs. Those were the ones I was happily using for nearly half a year before having to return them to their owner. Darn! I'm not sure why they (Eibach) are not discussed here more often here. They do come w. collars welded on, full set of replacement bracket and bushings (front and rear!) and was only ~$275 at the time. The only thing you lose is one less adjustment holes at the front (two vs. three of Hotchkis).

 

Interesting. I had heard bad things about Ardmore Infiniti from a friend, although admittedly he hadn't been there in about 4 years since he had his G20. I bought from West Chester Infiniti in October (and had a good sales experience), but have only had an oil change there so far. Ardmore is a lot closer to me than West Chester, and I'm sure I'll do a sway bar mod at some point. Good to know Ardmore is somewhat "mod-friendly." Which service rep are you working with, if you don't mind my asking?