I've been on the Hotchkis site everyday for the past 2 or 3 months. Finally they have some pay dirt!!!

http://www.hotchkis.net/p-752-08-sci...sway-bars.aspx

Can't wait until they get springs in production and I'll scoop up the TVS kit. Maybe even make my own strut tower brace, too. I know a guy that knows a guy that has a CNC plasma cutter... I'll be set!

 

Finally. $300 though? I would have preferred a fron strut to a front sway. Like the finish.

 

you cant buy just the rear? it doesnt feel like the car needs both front and rear, it already understeers like a _____. someone buy this and tell me how it feels haha.

 

I'm debating buying the TRD sway or coughing up the extra dough for this setup.....hmm.....Looks good though

 

If you search since early on my gripe with this setup has always been the larger front sway, never understood it...
I hope it works out for folks though.

 

Still no springs yet....

 

I had the H-Sport springs and front & rear anti-sways for my Cooper. Hotchkis does the work required to offer the best product. The rear bar works to the best advantage with the front bar. On the Cooper, I could not use the rear bar on the stiffest setting with the stock front bar (the rear has 3 settings on the Cooper bar). The rear end was just too loose. With the front and rear bar, the car was incredibly balanced and predictable. From my experience, I wouldn't hesitate to get these bars.

Note: On the Cooper, the engine subframe had to be dropped to get the bar in and out. 18 bolts in all, all needed to be removed, the smallest of which was "only" 1" of threads. If the xB is assembled the same, the task for replacing the front anti-sway is very tedious. There are Mini mod shops that refused to replace the front bar. If I didn't have an air compressor, I wouldn't have done it either. The Hotchkis site does say "easy to install" and I don't think they'd have said that if it were anything like the Cooper.

 

I decided to just give Hotchkis a call and see what they had to say. Here are the points:

Their rear bar is ROUGHLY 50% stiffer than the TRD rear. Since their front bar is about 50% stiffer than the stocker, figure on similar balance to a stock front/TRD rear setup. Obviously, the Hotchkis setup would be stiffer overall, and be considerably lighter than the stockers (they are hollow).

Handling balance is supposed to be very neutral, excellent for daily driving, canyon carving, etc. Hard-core autocross and track work would probably benefit from a stiffer/adjustable rear bar, which they "might" make. This is straight from the owner who has a 2008 xB and has run it on the track.

Install is super easy on the rear and fairly easy on the front. The rear installs like the TRD bar in ~15 minutes. The front bar requires that you "disconnect the lower link on the passenger side", whatever that means. It is supposed to be much easier than the old xB front bar.

Finally, you will save money by buying from a distributor, not from Hotchkis. Supposedly you could knock off ~15% from their price.

 

If I ever decide to start racing my box, I'm definitely looking into a set of these bars. Until then, the stock front and TRD rear bars work pretty well for a daily driver and cost half as much.

 

im intrested in rear sway bar

 

If you're just interested in the rear bar, find one that's designed to be used with the stock front bar (ie. TRD). The greater the difference in stiffness between the rear and front will cause the car to "rotate" quicker.

Imagine the very real scenario of entering an on ramp a little too fast and as you're coming in you're applying the brakes and turning up the ramp. In the stock set-up, the balance is such that the nose pushes and the radius of turn increases as the front pushes (understeer). On a "balanced" set-up, the radius remains constant. On an overly stiff rear bar, the rear end begins to step out or even snaps around and you're facing the wrong direction (oversteer). On the street, you don't want that last condition. The car is unstable and difficult to maintain control. I believe the Hotchkis rear bar, with the the stock front, will be too stiff and cause significant issues.

My driving style favors stiff and balanced anti-sway bars with compliant springs. Others prefer to create balance with springs and tweak with bars. This is why Hotchkis offers their TVS which is a package of parts designed to work together. None of the street parts are too radical but you need to consider how they will affect the car and what's the net affect of other changes.

 

Score! I snagged the last set of these on sale from Hotchkis! I wonder if they will make another run before the end of the year?

 

I wonder what, if any advantages would be of running the front sway bar with the strut tower brace. I've currently got the TRD strut tower brace and rear sway bar...I'd be interested to see if they sell just the front. Is that overkill?

 

The strut tower brace and the front sway bar are unrelated. They have different effects and do not attack the same problem.

You would not want their front bar without their rear bar. The hotchkis front bar is 50% stiffer than the stock front, and the hotchkis rear bar is stiffer than the TRD add-on. If you had the hotchkis front bar and the TRD rear bar, your car will understeer more than it does now.

 

I love my Hotchkis sway bar kit. Huge improvement. Now this xB is fun to drive.

 

Springs, too or just the sways?

I'm torn between waiting a couple of weeks for the Hotchkis springs (probably what I'll do) or just buying some Tanabe DF210's. midgethearsexb and I installed the DF's on his xb and it looks awesome!

 

I ordered DF210's and sway bars back in early November. The Sway bars came right away.The springs did not show up so I called and I was told early January. I decided not to wait to install springs and sway bars at the same time.
I went ahead and installed the Hotchkis sway bars a few days ago.
So for right now I am just running the Hotchkis front a nd rear sway bars. They really make the xB feel very stable on the highway and a huge improvement in the corners and ramps. I did not know Hotchkis made springs for the xB. Perhaps I should look into that.

 

hmmm.. no osprings yet.. What is a TVS?
http://www.hotchkis.net/c-835-08-xb.aspx

 

Isn't the tvs the swaybar & springs combo sold together? Not 100% sure though

 

Yep.