Anti-Roll Bar...... or Anti-Roll Tube?

[Ross365]

I'm just doing some work on my trusty Rover 620 (aka MkIV Honda Accord) and it's in really quite good condition for a car which is just under 24 years old. It generally gets through MoT's without advisories.

A possible exception to that comment would be the degree of rust on both anti-roll bars. I've never handled a roll bar off-car and I'm just curious about whether some roll bars are not bars at all but actually made from tubing? That would obviously have major implications for components with significant rust. Can anyone enlighten me as to what might be expected on a saloon?

 

[Moose McAlpine]

Yes, some are tubular.

Looking on eBay, both yours appear to be solid bars.

 

[OJCar]

Some competition car Anti Roll Bars are tube.
I haven't encountered a standard production car anti roll bar that was't solid, but that is not to say ...

However, if your AR bars on your Rover 620 are so rusty that you fear they would fail then why not change them.

TBH I doubt the loss of torsional rigidity due to rust will have more of an adverse effect on your car's handling than worn out AR bar bushes.

Edit Moose knows better than me about modern cars

 

[Barking Mat]

Sand them down and paint them ?

Bisch, bosch, bang ?

 

[Moose McAlpine]

Bisch, bosch, bang ?

Robert's your brother's mother.

 

[Ross365]

I've just gone over the rear one with a needle scaler followed by an angry grinder with wire brush and no holes have appeared. I'll paint them appropriately, which should get to the stage where Mr MOT man stays sweet

 

[MetalMonkey]

Rover 600 are solid bars front and back.
Rear one is still available, Front is NLA I believe.
They tend to pit badly where the bush sits, otherwise it should clean up.

 

[m_c]

Only thing I've ever seen tubular anti-roll bars on are the rear suspension of lorries, but there they've also doubled up as the main suspension pivot.

I did see my first ever snapped anti-roll bar a few weeks ago, on a two year old Ford Transit that also needed two rear springs. Driver claimed he hit a pot hole...

 

[Moose McAlpine]

Lots of cars have tubular ones. VW/Audi for one have used them for a long time on B-, C- and D-platform cars on the front.

 

[gt6s]

Only thing I've ever seen tubular anti-roll bars on are the rear suspension of lorries, but there they've also doubled up as the main suspension pivot.

I did see my first ever snapped anti-roll bar a few weeks ago, on a two year old Ford Transit that also needed two rear springs. Driver claimed he hit a pot hole...

I recall a local dairy brought a truck in with all four springs busted. They were baffled what did it. ERMMMM Loaded to the gills (Overloaded as per usual) and thrashing the nuts off it !