1600 Sway bars

[Fortlauderdalian]

Anyone have a 1600 that they added sway bars to?

[halboyles]

We added them to our '71.  The attachment plates/holes are present so it is just a bolt on.

[uai]

Yes.
Check if the Axle has the brackets for it- mine (1967) didn't

Edited December 6, 2022 by uai

[halboyles]

21 minutes ago, uai said:

Check if the Axle has the brackets for it- mine (1967) didn't

Ours didn't either.  If you go with big diameter bars, you'll need matching brackets.

[autokunst]

My '68 has holes in the front components for relatively easy adding (both the subframe for the pivot brackets and also holes in the control arms for the links).  But there are no brackets on the rear suspension.  The tabs would need to be welded onto the rear trailing arms and also accommodations made for the pivot brackets I believe.

[andyleonard]

Yes. Had to weld ears on rear subframe. Front had bolt holes.

[adawil2002]

My 1968 Cabriolet only has provisions for a front sway-bar. So I put a stock Tii front bar on. It was a very tight fit. 

[Mike Self]

I wouldn't swear to it, but I belive the factory started adding the rear swaybar tabs to all rear subframes when the changeover from long neck to short neck differentials occurred, right at the beginning of calendar year 1969.  So early "first series" 69 1600s built before 1 Jan 69 and with long neck diffs have no mounts, but (I think) those with short necks do.  Can anyone with an either first or second series '69 1600 confirm?

 

Since the 2002s all came with front and rear sway bars from the factory, and early 02s (all 68 and 69s up to US VIN 1664760) had long neck diffs, there are long neck subframes with rear sway bar attachments...but it would probably be easier to weld on brackets to your 1600 subframe than swap to a long neck 2002 subframe...

 

mike 

[Fortlauderdalian]

Mine’s a 68 so I’ll have to fab some. Might be a long shot but any pictures of the rear mounting ears floating on someone’s device

[uai]

I have a couple of longneck rear subframes that have the mounts so there must have been a change.
A friends 68 1600-2 with longneck has the provisions to mount the swaybar from factory. With the introduction of the 2002 the provisions were added.

[mccusername]

Didn't the 1600Ti have rear swaybar from the factory? So maybe the changeover happened on all 1600s when that model was introduced.

[andyleonard]

4 hours ago, Fortlauderdalian said:

Mine’s a 68 so I’ll have to fab some. Might be a long shot but any pictures of the rear mounting ears floating on someone’s device

 

[north1602]

Mike, I believe you are correct.  My August 1969 production 1600, with the short neck diff, has the rear tabs.   I have also seen two other 69 models with the tabs.    

[Slavs]

I have an early 67 and an early 69 1600-2. I also had a 68 1600-2 and a 68 2002. All the cars mentioned have the long neck diff. I've never owned an 02 with a short neck diff. I consider those as newer 02s, not my cup of tea.

 

1. The 67 1600-2 and 68 1600-2 came with a provision to bolt on the sway bar up front. But, there were no tabs or provision to mount them at the rear sub frame. On my 67 a welder welded the mounting ears on  for me as I had a set which I sourced many years ago. I bolted on a set of 22mm, 19mm oversize sway bars. On the 68 1600-2 I just threw on a 19mm oversize bar up front, and it helped quite a bit.

 

2. My early 69 1600 with the long neck diff came equipped with provisions to mount a sway bars up front and at the rear. The mounting tabs were there at the rear. But, there were no sway bars on the car. So, I just bolted a set of 22mm, 19mm aftermarket bars, no big deal. But, after a couple of years my 22mm oversize bar up front tore off the factory mounting ears. A very competent fabricator welded mounting plates up front without affecting my new bushings on the control arms. Some oversize 22mm bars will tear off the stock mounting ears while others won't. I've never had problems with the ST 22mm bar, but I've had problems with a different brand.

 

3. My 68 2002 also had provisions to mount sway bars up front and at rear. The car was given to me by a passer by during the early 90s. It had a full suspension package with 22mm , 19mm ST sway bars and springs along with the rare Bilstein Sports, inverted at the rear. This car had no rust, but it had a history of accidents. Both, the rear clip and front clip were replaced. And, whoever did the work was an amateur as the rear clip was welded on slightly crooked. The motor had tii pistons with a factory replacement head. Back then 2002s cost nearly nothing (In this case nothing). So, I chopped up that car in my driveway with an electric saw, And, unfortunately I gave away that factory replacement front nose clip along with an excellent fuel tank and many other parts, including the rare early seats, hood, deck lid and doors (If I can only get that sheet metal back. It costs an arm and a leg these days).   I still have nightmares of chopping up that beautiful Manilla 2002. But, I did drive that car for a year with no problems. I threw that rear sub frame, complete with trailing arms and larger brakes  on to my 69 1600. And, I immediately noticed improvement to breaking. I also installed the bigger 2002 drums on to my 67. And, at times  I've ran that rare 2002  long neck diff in 3.64 ratio on my 1600s over the years. It actually works great in the 1600 and really improves highway cruising, no 5 speed overdrive needed. The only time you will notice a lack of torque is when you are fully loaded with 4 occupants. This is also the diff used on the 2 seater BMW 1600GT. For all you guys looking to install a 5 speed in your 1600, forget it. Just throw on a 3.64 diff from a 2002. It's a lot cheaper, easier and headache free.

 

4. Did the 1600ti come with sway bars at the rear ? I would assume it did. It was probably the first 02 to have sway bars at the rear in 1967, a year before the 2002 was introduced.

 

5. As I mentioned earlier, you can throw on a sway bar up front and forget about the rear as I did on my 68 1600-2. Just don't get too aggressive with the thickness of the bar up front, otherwise your car will probably be unbalanced. The factory stock bar will work fine. But, I wouldn't go thicker than 19mm, if you go the after market route.

 

So there you have it, a lot more info than what you asked for.

Edited December 8, 2022 by Alexei