Hellwig Sway Bars for 3rd Gen?

I use my truck as a daily driver with occasional off-roading and light towing applications and as of now, it has a 100% stock suspension. I have moved to this truck from driving exclusively cars and I've noticed that when merging on to the highway I experience a little more body roll than I am comfortable with. Its nothing that feels super dangerous, but coming from a car I would like the ability to reduce some body roll for merging, strong cross winds, towing, etc.

I know that previous generations offered TRD sway bars from the factory and I'm a little Toyota opted against this for the 3rd gens? Is it because I have a lowly SR5?

Can I expect to see a noticeable difference by installing these? If I go with the rear how much improvement would I notice from using the front as well?

NOTE: If I want to add a leveling kit and AAL later should I hold off?

Thanks in advance for informative comments!

 

For reference:

http://www.autoanything.com/suspension-systems/hellwig-sway-bars

 

raising suspension will always increase body roll. sounds like an odd combo to go higher and stiffer stabilizer bar

 

That's my concern, really. That's why I was looking to go sway bar. If I'm already not crazy about body roll my thought process would be to correct it some before I go higher.

 

And why...? I'm interested in possibly adding them as well and will be towing a larger trailer on a trip soon. Sway bars might add a little piece of mind if nothing else

 

My understanding is the pro has a slightly stiffer front sway bar, maybe because it sits up a bit higher in front? I would think adding the hellwig sway bars would definitely make a Tacoma corner a little flatter, but might also reduce suspension travel off road. If you're concerned about the truck swaying more than a car, I wouldn't do any front level or anything else to raise the truck up.

 

Same thing can be achieved by stiff(er) front springs and rear leaf pack. You can keep the front at OEM height with coilovers or even some 5100s.

 

Sways would help your on road feel and improve feeling when towing without stiffening up the suspension unlike stiffer springs up front and leaf packs. The only time that it would decrease performance is when you need the tires to independently operate of each other like rock crawling or severe off-roading.

 

Thanks. Plus I'm guessing its a lot cheaper than new/stiffer springs and leafs. I only have a 4x2 so I most likely wont be doing too much severe off-roading

 

I know this maybe a little off topic here, but hope it helps someone.

I have had owned a FJ, 5th gen 4Runner now a Tacoma, all lifted with KING coilovers, superbumps, rear bags and have always removed the front sway bar. Even though my suspension rides amazing, the Tacoma has been slightly different.

I got to thinking what is different other than being leafs vs coils in the rear, and thought of the rear sway bar which I never removed and the Tacoma doesn't have. I do have a canopy installed if that makes a difference, closer resembling a SUV.

I offroad very often, but my terrain is desert, washboard roads, sand, etc. Rather than stiffening up the rear suspension even more to compensate and then have a shifty ride on road I added the rear sway bar. With the front bar removed, it allows the IFS to move independently and the rear side to side rocky motion drastically reduced. All I can say is I am very happy with the outcome now!!!!

 

this is true and the real consideration. folks going actually off-road often remove the bars to get more easy independent movement side to side.

i have this Hellwig rear bar installed set on the soft setting (3 mounting points), and i have a pair of Sumosprings back there as well. i'm on stock Pro suspension with E tires, but i have kept the sizing stock: 265/65-17, no a/m lift or any of that.

i added the Hellwig because i'm on the road 99.8% of the time, and i'm a mad driving enthusiast who lives to toss vehicles around to their limit, whether a sports car, a pickup, golfcart, or other. the Pro has a terrific suspension, i love it and don't wish to change it at all, aside from removing some rear roll and tightening up the rear somewhat. mission accomplished. the handling is exactly where i want it and i'm not changing anything else with the setup for now.

 

My '94 Chevy K2500 Suburban did not come with a rear sway bar. Yet all of the 1995-99 do. I put a Hellwig on and it did make the wagon a much better handling vehicle. Off roading on Colorado high elevation trails, I did not notice any problems with rear wheel articulation.

 

So is Hellwig the way to go if I wanted to install the rear sway bar? About how long would it take the dealer to do...sadly I dont have the tools

 

4wheelparts.com sells it, and they have brick & mortar locations with install shops, and they installed mine. i guess a dealer would do it but i trust dealers about as much as... well wait i don't trust dealers with anything generally..

 

How hard is the install? Do you have to drill holes for the rear? Can't find an instruction set online.

 

i believe there is a hole to be drilled on each side, and the u bracket wraps the axle housing. it's a straightforward install, but i didn't do it myself so i can't say more about it.

 

Yeah there is some drilling involved. I just ordered my

$430 Hellwig 7744 Solid, Heat Treated Chromoly, 3/4" Rear Sway Bar

Hellwig 7744 for the rear. I think its worth the investment and if I dont like it I will just remove it

 

when mine was installed i asked to have it set on the soft mounting point but the installer set it on medium, hole 2. it felt really tightened up in the rear, road car style.

i returned for inspection and retorque a few hundred miles later and had him put it on the soft setting at that time. big difference going from hole 2 to hole 1. keep in mind there's a stiff point as well.

i really like having a tight handling rear, but in this front heavy one-legger i'm keeping compliance and staying on the soft setting. there's basically no preload there and has stock traction at lower speeds and more casual handling, which i want for wet or icy weather.

so, i'm just saying you may want to play with your setup a bit to give it a real evaluation.

 

So the medium setting was a bit too aggressive for everyday driving?

 

i would say that depends on your tires. for me, with E tires combined with how i drive, i can easily spin the rears especially on a damp or wet road. so if i ran softer tires the medium setting may be acceptable. it's really a try-and-see thing and you should be familiar with all changes that affect rear traction on a wet road... just my opinion.