lamrith

Hello all, new 944 owner here. I picked up a '87 944 last weekend. This is mny 1st Porsche so a bit of a learning curve. It has been sitting 3yrs+ and I finally got it up on jackstands lastnight for a good look around.

It has many needs, one of which is a full suspension runthru. It has a blown bushing on front right of swaybar that makes a sweet clunking sound all the time. I measured the OD on it lastnight and it was 25.7mm, but my research using the build codes tells me it should not be that big, maybe it was changed at some point? When I was under the tail I was not seeing any swaybar at all, or are they hidden up above everything someplace? It just does not seem right to have a larger sway bar in the nose and nothing in the tail? Can anyone fill me in on what the "std" configuration was for an 87 944? (not an S or turbo)

MAGK944

Hi and welcome. A front 25.5mm sway bar was an option on a 944 in 1987, the standard was 21.5mm. Rear sway bars were an option on all 944's, only ones that came with a standard rear sway bar were the 944S, 944S2 and turbo. There is comprehensive suspension information on Clarks Garage. Please post pictures of your car when you can, we all like pictures here

lamrith

Thanks MAG!

I will post pictures soon. She is not a pretty beast right now aside from the flowing lines of all 944's. Rough around the edges but we plan to get her roadworthy soon.

screamin94Z

I thought rear sway bars were standard on all 944's after 86? If your 87 does not have one you can easily add it. The mounting points are there but you will need brackets, bushings, bolts and end links. Check out the for sale items or well known 944 dismantlers as they come up for sale quite often. With the larger 25.5mm bar up front, I would recommend getting the 18mm rear bar to balance it out or find an adjustable 19mm M030 version if you really want to fine-tune the handling. I have stock spring rates with 25.5 front/18 rear and it understeers a bit more than I like.

lamrith

Thanks Screamin. I spent a while under there yesterday looking around and just did not see a bar in the tail, which struck me as quite odd given it had a heavier than normal bar up front. One reason I asked this is that I stumble on a local guy that has a set of of 25.5mm 968 waybars for sale and I was thinking of snagging them, just worry that big rear bar might make it tailhappy?

Here is a picture of the sway bar bushing (lack of)

jderimig

There was no 25.5 rear swaybars, those are probably fronts.
I run 23mm front and 18 (turbo) rears with stock springs and the balance is just about perfect. I'd look for a 18mm or m030 19mm rear bar as was suggested earlier.

mj951

Your bushing disintegrated from oil/power steering fluid contamination, common problem for the passenger side bushing. Worth replacing both center bushings with delrin bushings, replace the outer bushing with oem rubber if for the street. Also a good time to add an additional brace at the inner sway bar mount... https://www.paragon-products.com/KLA..._swaybrace.htm

lamrith

Yeah totally oil soaked and shot. By inner you mean Item # in the image below and the outer are Item 2? The brace looks like a good idea too, when I saw the original setup I thought it looked like it could flex a bit.

thomasmryan

all this. https://944online.com/index.php/944-...shing-kit.html


you might see if the castor block has been contaminated and/or the lower control arm bushing. elephant racing and powerflex are options for these items.

do fix the leak(s) first or you're jousting at windmills.

the item number 4 in the picture can rip out of the chassis if things get too stiff.

951and944S

What are you...., like a medieval time traveler....?



T

lamrith

Thanks, been there done that with Oil soaked items.
Will the braces mentioned earlier help keep the brace from ripping out? We are not looking for race tuning at this point. Rather have it "bone stock" to start being his 1st car, so will probably stay OEM rubber bushings. Let him appreciate the OEM engineering and ride, tinker later (on his dime).

HAHA I liked his Don Quixote reference.

mj951

Yes, inners being #1, outers being #2 and #3 bushings.
As mentioned, also check your caster block (rear control arm mount). That shouldn't get oil soaked but if it's not the 968 updated style then that's also worth replacing.

Haha...jousting at windmills, awesome.
Yes, clean up the mess and fix the leaks, priority one.

mj951

The 45 deg brace for the inner sway bar mount will not cause failure. Many here have them, I've been running the setup described on both street and track for ten years without issue.
Use a torque wrench for tightening, you don't want to over tighten the chassis mounts and strip a thread. Also have the vehicle resting on its tires when tightening the suspension.

Ball joints are also worth checking when you start taking the front suspension apart.
Good luck, the fun begins!

lamrith

Forgot to say thanks for that link!

I am not looking to "improve" handling on the car at this point, my goal is to get it solid and reliable in stock trim. Given he is a new driver I want to avoid any tendancy toward the car wanting to oversteer, but also do not want it to push like a '57 chevy, so I think a stock setup makes the most sense starting out? With that in mind I am debating now do I find a 21.5mm front bar to swap in and run no rear or maybe put a 14mm rear in offset the larger 25.5mm bar already installed up front but still keep the car balanced toward pushing rather than oversteer? I worry the 25.5 with no rear at all will really make it push?

thomasmryan