Disco Trackbar




In the quest to squeeze every little bit of flex I can from my suspension, I removed the front and rear trackbars (also known as panhard bars). I didn't even notice any difference in road handling when I removed the rear bar, but when the front was removed the steering felt loose and the Jeep would wander a lot, especially when going over bumps. The only solution to retaining the bar for on-road handling and removing it for off-road flex was to make it disconnectable, like sway bars.

This mod is actually very simple. I cut 2" from the track bar in the the upper straight section about 6" from the center bend. I got a 8" long piece of pipe that would fit right over the track bar and welded it to the upper section right up against that bend. I slipped the 2 pieces together and bolted it back in place. With the Jeep loaded as normal and the suspension and steering straight, I drilled a hole for the pin right through the pipe and bar, 4" from the lower end of the pipe.


At this point is was fully functional, but I often end up driving through deep water or mud so I wanted to seal the holes I had just made so water wouldn't stay inside the bar. I drilled out the pin hole in the bar to slip in a sleeve which I then welded and grinded flush. For the ends I used a nut to fill in most of the hole and welded in the rest. The upper end doesn't really have to be sealed as any water that gets up there will drain, it's the lower section that's important.

I was wondering if the weld or the pin would survive some abuse, so on a off-road rally I did a few weeks later I left it connected. After much driving into holes, and rock bashing, and hill climbs, and general abuse, the new bar and pin didn't show any sign of weakening. I have had it for a year now and it's still fine.

As for it's usefullness, that's still to be seen. I did some quick tests on a RTI ramp on grass and didn't see any difference, although the bar does compress and extend +/- 1/4" when flexing. It's easy enough to remove the pin before hitting the trail, but reinserting it can be difficult, I have to be on level ground and usually have someone play with the steering to line up the holes.




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