Bilstein steering stabilizer

[Sagecoachdriver]

Originally Posted by benagi

Newrver, check out my post # 202 in this thread . Those rear bolts go thru a threaded frame with very few threads and strip very easy with just a 3/8 inch ratchet and not much pressure . Good luck with your install. Those Hellwig sway bars are well worth it.

Ben, I thought it was just the fronts that had the striping issue and not the rear. How were you able to install the nuts atop the bolts? I haven't looked under the rear yet.

[Gidyupgo]

2016 E450 Rear, with sway and trac bar mounts. Bolts that come with new bar are longer and grade 10.

[RedLdr1]

Originally Posted by Gidyupgo

2016 E450 Rear, with sway and trac bar mounts. Bolts that come with new bar are longer and grade 10.

Who did your install, Three Way?

[Gidyupgo]

It ended up being a DIY. I tried to give three way the job but they said i needed to take it to a Ford dealer. It's not a bad job, but if I did it again I would have recruited a helper. This is pretty heavy stuff laying on your back in the street, heh heh. Do the sway and trac at the same time since they share some connection points.

[newRVer]

Originally Posted by Gidyupgo

It ended up being a DIY. I tried to give three way the job but they said i needed to take it to a Ford dealer. It's not a bad job, but if I did it again I would have recruited a helper. This is pretty heavy stuff laying on your back in the street, heh heh. Do the sway and trac at the same time since they share some connection points.

Well I did manage to install the Supersteer Trac Bar and Hellwig rear sway bar yesterday but ran out of time and the weather is not good today so the Hellwig front sway bar will have to wait for another day. A agree that this job is best done with two people. While the weight can be an issue (especially when your on your back) I was able to raise the sway bar up easy enough with a floor jack and bolt in the ends and D supports. I will say this, if for nothing else, having two people would have probably saved me some bruises on my hips as I was constantly rolling under the RV at 4 different points to get to assemblies in front or behind the axle.

I will have to wait till the next two weekends to determine how much better the new components are but I'm sure I'll see some improvement.

As for lessons learned. Make sure all bolts and nuts fit correctly and that you have the appropriate socket/wrench for each bolt. I got 95% done in a reasonable amount of time before I discovered that the two bolts used to mount the trac bar where a size that I did not have a socket or wrench for. Additionally, the two nuts for these bolts both had damaged threads at the top of the nut that I did not discover until after I had went out and purchased the additional tools. Consequently I burned up 4 hours of time running back and forth yesterday and it took me all of 10 minutes today to finish once I had the correct stuff.

[Gidyupgo]

Nice job New!

[Sagecoachdriver]

Yes, nice job!

[newRVer]

Thanks Guys! Looking forward to getting the front sway bar ASAP but I will probably wait until after my next two trips are over just in case I run into some issues like stripped bolts and such.

[benagi]

Originally Posted by Sagecoachdriver

Ben, I thought it was just the fronts that had the striping issue and not the rear. How were you able to install the nuts atop the bolts? I haven't looked under the rear yet.

Correct, just the front has the stripping issue. The rear is completely a different mounting and comes with all new hardware and bolts. If installing yourself, try to get a second person. We also used a floor jack to help with lifting that very heavy rear sway bar.

[benagi]

Originally Posted by newRVer

Thanks Guys! Looking forward to getting the front sway bar ASAP but I will probably wait until after my next two trips are over just in case I run into some issues like stripped bolts and such.

Newrver, nice job. Question, what made you go with the supersteer Trac bar? Thinking about adding one to our unit.

[newRVer]

Originally Posted by benagi

Newrver, nice job. Question, what made you go with the supersteer Trac bar? Thinking about adding one to our unit.

Mostly just cost as I could not find any information from a performance/installation perspective that would indicate SuperSteer was better than Blue OX or visa-versa.

[DaGrinch]

Originally Posted by newRVer

Well I did manage to install the Supersteer Trac Bar and Hellwig rear sway bar yesterday but ran out of time and the weather is not good today so the Hellwig front sway bar will have to wait for another day. A agree that this job is best done with two people. While the weight can be an issue (especially when your on your back) I was able to raise the sway bar up easy enough with a floor jack and bolt in the ends and D supports. I will say this, if for nothing else, having two people would have probably saved me some bruises on my hips as I was constantly rolling under the RV at 4 different points to get to assemblies in front or behind the axle.

I will have to wait till the next two weekends to determine how much better the new components are but I'm sure I'll see some improvement.

As for lessons learned. Make sure all bolts and nuts fit correctly and that you have the appropriate socket/wrench for each bolt. I got 95% done in a reasonable amount of time before I discovered that the two bolts used to mount the trac bar where a size that I did not have a socket or wrench for. Additionally, the two nuts for these bolts both had damaged threads at the top of the nut that I did not discover until after I had went out and purchased the additional tools. Consequently I burned up 4 hours of time running back and forth yesterday and it took me all of 10 minutes today to finish once I had the correct stuff.

As the others have said..... Nice Job!

I know what you and Gidyupgo mean about having some help. Sure would have been nice!

[Gidyupgo]

New, likes Blue, 'cause it rhymes, hehe

[newRVer]

Well I must say that after putting 700+ miles on the RV, post rear sway & trac bar upgrades, the handling of the vehicle is much improved. This included 260 miles on the PA turnpike with lots of trucks passing me on the left and now it's hardly a noticeable event. I'm sure that when I replace the front sway bar in a few weeks time it will even be better although I may not be making any more trips this year to really test it out.

[Gidyupgo]

NewRV, that's great! Glad you had a good experience.

[newRVer]

So the weather was good today and I had no plans so I thought I thought I could spare a few hours and try and get the front sway bar on. The back bolts on the d-clamp came off easy enough but the front bolts were secured with some loctite blue on them which made it slow going to get them off since I do not have an impact wrench. Once off I can see why some people had issues with the back bolts stripping. The are much smaller (see photo) and do not have a nut on the inside of the frame. I suspect that people might be making the mistake of tightening these bolts last after tightening the fronts since the directions give no particular order. If you do it this way the bolts while surely pull through. So based on my experience with the back sway bar, this time I did check all the bolts, cleaned off the loctite and tried putting them back in before mounting the new sway bar. And just like the rear sway bar, I ran into another issue. One of the larger d-clamp front bolts either got stripped during the factory install or they over did it with the loctite and somehow that damaged the threads as I was slowly backing them out. Either way I had to take off the bumper to really see what was going on. (see picture).

At this point I need to figure out what is the best way of correcting this. Do I get a bit and try re-threading the hole? Or do I just drill it out and place another nut on the existing one inside the frame?
Suggestions?

[Sagecoachdriver]

Originally Posted by newRVer

So the weather was good today and I had no plans so I thought I thought I could spare a few hours and try and get the front sway bar on. The back bolts on the d-clamp came off easy enough but the front bolts were secured with some loctite blue on them which made it slow going to get them off since I do not have an impact wrench. Once off I can see why some people had issues with the back bolts stripping. The are much smaller (see photo) and do not have a nut on the inside of the frame. I suspect that people might be making the mistake of tightening these bolts last after tightening the fronts since the directions give no particular order. If you do it this way the bolts while surely pull through. So based on my experience with the back sway bar, this time I did check all the bolts, cleaned off the loctite and tried putting them back in before mounting the new sway bar. And just like the rear sway bar, I ran into another issue. One of the larger d-clamp front bolts either got stripped during the factory install or they over did it with the loctite and somehow that damaged the threads as I was slowly backing them out. Either way I had to take off the bumper to really see what was going on. (see picture).

At this point I need to figure out what is the best way of correcting this. Do I get a bit and try re-threading the hole? Or do I just drill it out and place another nut on the existing one inside the frame?
Suggestions?

Been there, done that. I found the easiest way was to reinsert the stripped bolt, place a washer and lock nut on the inside of the frame. Then I placed a wrench on the nut and tightened the bolt on the outside. Amazing that my bumper only had four bolts holding it on. Took less than 5 minutes to remove. You could insert the bolt from the inside and have the nut on the outside, but it may be difficult inserting the bolt.

[benagi]

Did the same thing as Sage. Just used the original bolt and backed with a nut and lock washer. Works great and shouldn't have to worry about again .

[newRVer]

Originally Posted by Sagecoachdriver

Been there, done that. I found the easiest way was to reinsert the stripped bolt, place a washer and lock nut on the inside of the frame. Then I placed a wrench on the nut and tightened the bolt on the outside. Amazing that my bumper only had four bolts holding it on. Took less than 5 minutes to remove. You could insert the bolt from the inside and have the nut on the outside, but it may be difficult inserting the bolt.

Sage,

In my case, I am having the issue with the larger bolt and the bolt itself is not stripped but the large nut that is welded to the inside of the frame is.

[Sagecoachdriver]

Originally Posted by newRVer

Sage,

In my case, I am having the issue with the larger bolt and the bolt itself is not stripped but the large nut that is welded to the inside of the frame is.

What's the issue, diffcult to get going and ever harder too tighten?