[sailorward]

Last Spring while riding in the Black Hills of South Dakota it seemed that my 03 Griz wasn't handling quite "right." It seemed to be less stable and tended to "dive" to the right front when applying the brakes. I looked it over, didn't see anything, and assumed it was just a different riding area with different conditions. I stepped up the shock adjusters and didn't worry about it.

Last month, while loading up for another trip to the Black Hills, I noticed what looked like a broken pipe near the left rear A arms. On tracing it out I learned, sure enough, I had a broken sway bar. I assume it broke sometime prior to when it felt "not quite right" last spring.

After I got back from the Hills I replaced the sway bar--about a 20 minute job. It makes a HUGE difference! I can understand why some folks remove them for serious rock-crawling, to get better articulation. But for normal trail riding, it's a must have!

I've owned my Griz for less than a year and am about to turn 2000 miles on it. I ride quite a lot, so I have a pretty good idea of the change in handling characteristics when I put the bar back on. I'm kind of embarassed that I didn't dig deep enough to find the problem sooner--when I first noticed the handling issues! I guess at that point I just hadn't ridden enough different terrain to realize it was the quad, not the ground, causing the problem.

I'll know if it happens again!

 

[robg]

I removed my swaybar and don't miss it at all, even for higher speeds. Part of it may be that my tires aren't real good for higher speeds... or maybe they are... I dunno. At any rate, I don't miss it at all.

Rob

 

[sailorward]

Yeah, Rob, I'd read on other forums that some people take them off and really don't notice much difference. Maybe it's the way I ride or the fact that I'm a pretty large individual and tend to carry a lot of "crap" on the racks--the heavy load on the Griz, I'm sure, makes it want to roll around on the suspension more than lesser weight would.

Glad taking the bar off worked for you--sure didn't work for me! Which is why we each get our own ride and set it up for our individual tastes!

 

[jimschevey]

i am new to this forum and read about taking off the swaw bar. took it off yesterday. just never got the chance to take a ride yet. but i cant wait to try it. thanks to all for the great information.