Quote:
Originally Posted by inTgr8r
I did find a note on the web site relating to tab height.
"Please note that ALL sway bars only fit stock sway bar tab height"
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Probably because the bars come with non-adjustable end links. From all the pictures I've seen of the kit, the end links are fixed length. Hence you will need adjustable links, or links made to a certain length to accommodate the differences in different strut designs.
I'm going to let you in on a little secret.
The automotive aftermarket industry is bleeding knowledge. Fast. When the industry was in its prime, all through the 60s, 70s, and 80s, you have a bunch of young kids in their late teens starting out at most of these local speed-shops, working on their own cars, tinkering, and gaining tribal knowledge about what things do what on what car. Those same guys in the 60s and 70s move up the ranks in the industry, and by the mid 90s are well in their waning years of productivity. By early 2000s the backbone of the industry have mostly reached retirement age, and that same tribal knowledge isn't passed onto the next generation because those that are entering into the industry in the 90s and early 2000s don't know how to work on their own car. Or those that DO, are working on cars that are increasingly difficult to work on. Take a look at our mighty MZ4 Coupe. I have all the tools and knowledge to work on a vast majority of the mechanical issues except for what happens inside the engine. Just 2-1/2 years later, my wife's old E92 328i? I never even took the wheels off of that car the entire time we "owned" it.
So what's happening now, is People that entered the industry in the 60s and 70s, who were executives at automotive companies, are leaving the industry faster. People who have entered the industry in the 80s are now in executive positions and aren't usually the ones that deals directly with the customers, although they certainly have the tribal knowledge to do so. Those that enter the industry in the 90s and early 2000s are now in management position and while they may be knowledgeable, they refrain from working with customers because of liability. Those that face the customers today, typically are your millennial type. Someone who's rarely ever turned a wrench, or have turned a wrench but simply don't have that universal knowledge that the last 2 generations have. They rely on a computer database to tell them what fits and what doesn't fit. They're not authorized to tell you to go modify your end links or buy adjustable end links because their managers are afraid of liability. Thus they give you vague answers and as little info as possible because they either don't know it, or can't tell you, or a combination of both.
It is the state of the business we're in, and it is the sad and unfortunate truth today, that those of us in the enthusiast community, those of us who used to drive this industry, are a dying breed. More and more of these cars being built are built as a disposable commodity and the aftermarket is just adjusting to reflect that.
I say this, because I live it and see it every day.