I've replaced the LCA bushings & front sway bar bushings on my 2005 Mini S model. I haven't tightened the bolts that hold these together because I'm unsure of the proper sway bar position. I can see the sway bar slides side to side (as in towards driver or passengers side), and it also swings up/down, I assume to make sure it attaches properly to the end links. Once those bolts are cranked down, I assume there is no forgiveness or adjustment. With subframe hanging there, I can't dry fit it to see if everything lines up right. How do you make sure this is lined up and positioned correctly?

Thanks.

 

I'm going to assume you have a stock sway bar and stock end links. Side-to-side dimension should be relatively the same. Since you have no adjustment with your end links, you have no control over positioning. Yes, the bar will be tight but it will rotate. Hopefully, you coated the bar under each bushing with silicone grease. Just attach the endlinks where they fit. If you have adjustable end-links, fit them while the car is on a drive-on lift, sitting on its tires. The sway bar ends should be parallel to the ground and the end-links should have no pre-load on either side.

 

thanks. I did use silicone grease. I am uncertain about whether I centered my side to side dimension. I haven't cranked them down yet, so there's still time to do it right and adjust. I'll see what I can do to figure out how to measure and center it.

 

all done. I was worried about proper alignment, so I loosely fit it together, raised subframe back into position and checked. i must have been lucky on side to side because I checked the end links with a small level, and both sides seemed the same distance from the sway bar. It also helped me get the right sway bar angle for final assembly (I had the sway arm bolts lightly tightened so when I tilted sway bar up and down, it kept the angle. Even with final torque down of those sway bar/LCA bolts, I'm sure the sway would have pivoted up and down to align.

To prevent this in the future, I'd mark the sway bar with a scribe so the bushings get put back in the exact same spot. Even though you can see the clean spot, by the time you apply silicone grease, that spot gets obscured and is hard to see. So a mark will save the anguish. Someone also told me to do one at a time, but I pulled the entire sway bar out to get more room to work.

 

Stock rubber sway bar bushings DO NOT get coated with grease.
The torsional force of the rubber bushings add to the bars effectiveness.
They must also be tightened in the suspension;s loaded position.

If they are polyurethane, then silicone grease is warranted.

 

stock rubber bushings. at least silicone grease won't eat rubber because i know it's not coming apart to clean it off. I can't see how it'd make a noticeable difference for normal daily driving (not performance type driving).

loaded position? how do you tighten them loaded?