Need help fixing horrible rattling!

[diabloed]

I'm pretty sure it's called the rear sway bar. The round tube inside the U-shaped rear axle. it rattles around and spins freely. How would I go about fixing it? It's driving me crazy

[Screamin4banger]

I thought they were welded... now I gotta go look at mine

[Screamin4banger]

Yup, Mine is welded. L-Bodies FTW!!!

[diabloed]

so it should be welded at each end by the brake calipers?

[Screamin4banger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by diabloed so it should be welded at each end by the brake calipers?

I didn't say that... I don't really know, sorry. L-Bodies are different animals than the K based cars... I did try to look up you car but my factory service manual doesn't even mention sway bars for some reason

[1983Rampage]

I think it is classified as a stabilizer bar, not a sway bar.

[1983Rampage]

Well, went and grabbed my Service Manual for the 89 Model Year. And it says that it is indeed called the STABILIZER BAR, and the manual quotes it as follows:

"The rear suspension on these vehicles is a Trailing-Arm, solid (type) axle design. The "axle" assembly is fabricated from a transverse inverted u-section channel. An integral tubular stabilizer bar is positioned inside the u-section and attached to the spindle mounting plates at either end of the channel. The trailing arms and coil spring seats are welded directly to the channel."

From there it sounds like it is actually welded or somehow attached solid to the mounting plates. But that is about all the info I can supply. I will go and check the bar on my Daytona tomorrow when it is light out and can see how the bar is attached on it. Good luck.

[Screamin4banger]

I flipped to the section on rear suspension and looked at the diagrams. Usually they will show something and indicate it as "optional"... I guess I could actually have read the section but I figured it would be some vague reference, if at all.

[1983Rampage]

LOL, yah, that is what I kinda thought too, but when I got done reading the section, it had a reference for the figure and when I got to looking closer at the diagram, they had a hashed line and a line pointing to it with a label of stabilizer bar to it. If I would not have read that, I would not have seen it. Kinda sneaky.

[diabloed]

1983Rampage... you show you have the same car I do. Anyway you could crawl under there and take a look for me?

[1983Rampage]

Yah, I went out earlier and looked at it, but it seems pretty solid under there on mine. I will go through hopefully later this week (thursday or friday) and be able to look closer since I am upgrading the brake package on the rear, and i will be able to see it a lot better at that point. But I went through and tried moving it and it was pretty solid from what I could tell.

[1983Rampage]

Finally got a chance to look at the rear axle yesterday and found that my stabilizer bar is welded in solid. Thought I would let you know that I found out it was held in.

[diabloed]

thank you for taking the time and looking for me. I figured it was welded , but with my luck I would have screwed it all up and had to replace it all.