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  1. Site Related

    1. W-body.com Announcements and News

      Updates and information regarding the W-body.com website.

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    2. New Member Introductions

      Welcome to our community! Introduce yourself to everyone here.

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  2. General W-Body Discussion

    1. FAQs and Technical Information

      'How-To' articles and basic information for those who are new to the W-Body platform.

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    2. General

      General W-Body Discussion

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    3. Powertrain

      Engine and Transmission Maintenance, Repair, and Performance

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    4. PCM Tuning

      Looking for tuning advice or need help reading a scan? Need help getting your tuning software up and running? This is the place for you.

      140
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    5. Brakes/Suspension/Steering/Wheels/Tires

      This is the place to talk about brakes, suspension, lowering, wheels, tires, basically everything that affects your car's ride and handling.

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    6. Car Audio

      Need help putting a system into your W-body? Talk about it here!

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    7. Appearance/Car Care

      Body work, paint care, interior/exterior cleaning, detailing tips and tricks.

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  3. Specialty Forums

    1. Turbo Grand Prix

      This forum is for enthusiasts of the rare 1989-90 Pontiac Grand Prix Turbo.

      27.2k
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    2. Cutlass Supreme Convertible

      A forum for information and discussion about the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Convertible

      11k
      posts
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    sadolboy48
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  • Posts

    • sadolboy48
      Apparently I'm wrong again. You cannot change just the lower A-arms to adapt a different style of sway bar on your 1989 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme. Your 1988–1989 First-Generation W-body uses a highly specific, early-production front suspension setup. The sway bar has unique "looped" ends that slide directly over the front leg of the lower control arm, sliding into a thick rubber bushing pinned to the top of the arm. Why Switching the A-Arms Won't Work The 1990+ Redesign: In 1990, GM completely redesigned the W-body front suspension. Newer models use a sway bar that hovers above the frame and connects to the struts or control arms via vertical end links with small ball joints or vertical bolt bushings. [1, 2, 3] Subframe Differences: The 1990+ lower control arms will not physically line up or bolt into your 1989 engine subframe cradle. The mounting pockets, spacing, and geometry are completely different. [1] The Braking Threat: If you attempt to adapt or use a standard vertical end-link style sway bar on your original 1989 A-arms, the bar will swing wildly into your CV axles or steering linkage under a hard turn. Your Best Options for a Broken 1989 Sway Bar Because your early-style front sway bar is unique, you must replace it with a design intended for the 1988–1989 model years. Source a Used Factory Bar: Your quickest and most cost-effective solution is sourcing a front sway bar from a donor 1988–1989 W-body vehicle (Cutlass Supreme, Pontiac Grand Prix, Buick Regal) at a local auto salvage yard. Verify the Subframe Bushings: When installing the replacement bar, make sure to replace the main frame-mount bushings and the A-arm target bushings. If these bushings wear out and seize, they bind the suspension, which is usually what causes these brittle older bars to snap under stress.  SO, back to trying to find a specific donor car that no junkyard has. If anyone had any ideas i would greatlyappreciate it.
    • sadolboy48
      Nevermind about that the those holes are for brake lines and the plate is too flimsy. Apparently the 90 to 93 lower control arms have holes you can bolt endlinks to but mine don't. The 88 and 89 are the only ones with the bushings bolted on top of a arms so if I get a bar I'll have to change a arms to later model ones I guess. Thanks for responding. I'll keep looking I guess
    • Bake82
      any 1st gen w-body or 1.5 gen w-body will have a sway bar that will fit.  They MIGHT be different sizes, but will physically fit.  Grab the bar + brackets, and bushings.  and then get new bushings.       cars with a 3.4 DOHC should have a bigger front bar.    
    • sadolboy48
      After a little more digging I may have found a solution. On the struts they're are holes that look like swaybar inlink holes. A 2005 pontiac grand prix had the w body but switched up the swaybar setup to use inlinks and I've read that you can use this setup for the w body cars so I might try that. Has anyone ever heard of this?
    • sadolboy48
      Yeah and all junkyards don't have it either. If anyone has one on here they would be willing to sell I'd be happy to buy it. They don't make an aftermarket one either. I can get mine welded but it's meant to twist and bend so don't think welding would be a very good option but at this point it's the only thing I can think of lol. I'd hate to just junk the car cause I can't find a swaybar. That's just sounds crazy but without it is just sways all over the place unless you drive like a grandma.
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