Winter suspension setup
 

I am considering disconnecting the rear sway bar for this winter. Has anyone tried this for winter use? I am hoping to find a bit more traction on bumpy hard packed snow roads and maybe find a bit more ride comfort as well. I do run with winter tires but I would be suprised if I ever saw more than 0.5G all last winter so I don't think roll control is a concern.

If I do this should I just simply disconnect the end links and tie them to the chassis somewhere or would I be better off removing the entire bar?

I would consider disconnecting the front as well but that seems like it might be more hastle than the rear would be.

The best and easiest way is just remove one end link completely. Only disconnect the rear bar, not the front. It does not make a huge difference in the handling, tbh, but it does help. 100lbs of sand bags in the back seat DOES make a huge difference though, and also softens the ride.

Might that cause any extra wear on the bushings since the bar would be swinging alot more? Maybe not though, I supposed there wouldn't be any force and load on them.

I agree with the weight in the back, I had two 40lb sand bags in the trunk last winter and it definately helped.

Not a snow guru (although I have driven in snow with the S2000 on Hankook RS3s), but disconnecting rear sway will benefit along with extra sandbags in the rear. Obviously good snow tires goes a long way too. :thumbup:

No, it won't cause any additional wear. If anything it will be less due to no load. I prefer my sandbags in the otherwise useless back seats because first, they don't move around at all, second, keeping the ballast inside of the wheelbase gives a lower polar moment of inertia.

If you're from Saskatchewan, don't bother unless you fitted aftermarket suspension (in which case leave it parked for the winter!).

A set of snow tires is all you will need. You are correct that disconnecting the rear anti roll bar will improve cornering and especially traction in cornering but remember it will also make the car understeer seriously, especially on any bare or cleared and sanded road. I wouldn't do this, it will make steering where you want to go much harder.

If all your previous driving awd with fwd cars there will be a learning curve but if you drive a half ton in winter the Subie or the FRS will be a monster car come winter (the Subie will be a bit easier to drive in winter just as it is in summer due to the modest differences in sprung rates). You have a Torsen LSD, three stages of traction control (on, VSC or off) and a sweet handling chassis.

Under some conditions you might wish you had wipers on the side windows but for any Canadian kid you'll have no issues driving these beauties in winter, no sandbags and no tricks, just snow tires.

I did drive the FR-S all of last winter and the car was quite neutral, especially on smooth surfaces. It was also epic, to be honest, with oversteer on the throttle at both high and low speeds. Completely controllable and predictable with the neutrality making it easy to transition from under to oversteer. Keeping that neutrality in mind, even with winter tires I don't think I ever saw more than 0.5G lateral acceleration - there just isn't the grip for that, even on pavement when it is cold. So, weight shifts are much less than summer and so the chassis roll will be less.

My thoughts are that removing the sway bar will help grip on the bumpy roads by letting each wheel do its own thing and also that it will hopefully improve ride comfort a bit. Regarding the handling, I do expect a bit more understeer, more so on the bumpy roads, less on the smooth corners like ice or bare streets. I'll let you know how it goes.