I have a '99 Mazda 626 V.6. Are the following the same thing? "sway bar link kit" and "sway bar bushings and stabilizing links"? I had the former replaced in Feb. 2004 and am being told I need the latter. If they are the same, how often do these things need to be replaced, normally?
Mazda 626 sway bars
Aug 27, 2006
2 Replies
They should last many years.
The bushings are just rubber surrounds that go between the bar and the C-shaped brackets that hold them to the body. The links may be a bit more complex than the simple 6" bolt with a series of washers and bushings that most cars have...Ford and Mazda use a link design that is like a short rod with a ball stud on each end, like what you see on a tie rod end...
Anyway, the bushings hold the bar to the car, the links hold the bar end to the lower control arms. The links usually take a lot more beating than the bushings, but both should easily last 5 years or more.
It's not a case of they were done on the front, now the rear need done, is it? There's a stab bar on both ends of the car....
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