I have a 2004 Ex., 6.0 with 106,000 miles. It has the OEM rear sway bar. I would like to upgrade that bar to something larger but I am at a loss as to exactly what OEM is a direct replacement. I have read countless threads and some mention it but I am sure there are some that specifically say "the rear sway bar from XYZ is a drop in swap" but I am at a loss to find them. I know it must be from a SRW truck. I don't want to change the end links if possible -- they're a week old. This really all started when I tried to find rear sway bar bushings for the OEM bar -- and couldn't. So with this much frustration, I decided to upgrade -- but to what? It seems like 250 and 350 OEM bars may work but from what years and are all 250 and 350's Super Duty now?
I know Hellwig is top shelf and there are others, I am sure but there has been a lot of maintenance and bringing it back to specs the three months I have owned it -- Hellwig is not on the radar screen. I will do the V and B mod upgrades in the spring. For now, I just want to remove a bar and the bushings and replace with a heavier bar and bushings -- same end links would be real nice. The tech folder didn't real help answer this question, I looked.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Doug

 

I would like to know as well. Good post.

 

Thank you.
I am certain that there is a reasonably simple answer but before I go to the pull and pay or where ever to get a bar that it is correct I really want to feel confident about what I need. Read a lot, learned a lot, couldn't be sure of what I needed. With as much skill and brains as there is on this site...

 

WOW. I really didn't expect this response -- or lack of. I really thought some one out of over 100 readers would have said, "Oh yea, no problem...." and given myself and oldflguy the skinny. I didn't ask the questions without hours of work first. I did not go to the dealer and ask, true.
So, if this is the way it goes, then it goes.
I appreciate all who did read it.
Thank you,
Doug

 

So, i tow a 9500# travel trailer and having read all the great Hellwig reviews put one on my X in place of the factory sway bar. It is heavier duty, but to be honest, I wish I saved the money. I have noticed no difference whatsoever. Could be the totality of the other suspension mods I have made, but I wish i had saved the money. Fortunately, I was able to off-set some of the cost by selling the OEM bar. Good luck!

 

gmcbride,
thank you for the response. Since I have done no mods other than Bilstein shocks, the sway bar is my next affordable upgrade. Hellwig, not so much ($$$). I was reading something in the tech folder about springs about an hour ago and there is a single bullet point that says "The 30 mm swaybar off of a Super Duty is much better than the stock ones if your Excursion came with one." That was authored by Stewart H. I am perhaps leaping to conclusions but an F350 rear sway bar sounds like a bolt-in replacement for the stock Excursion one -- except for the frame bushings, of course.
Just a quick question -- I had a professor once whose first name is Dean {McBride}(when he was Dean of Students he was Dean Dean). Anyhow, any relation?
Thanks,
Doug

 

You did find most of your answer.. I don't know EXcactly but the stock bar is like 27MM the F-350 is 30MM. Are U going to tell a world of diff, no But for the X's (like mine ) that don't have a bar at all, Well, Yes big diff. Almost anyone going for the f-350 bar is getting it in the salvage yard SO go get the biggest you can that crosses & pops right in. Are the links the same ?? don't know, you get the links with the bar SO if they are , Great, if there not, well you have the ones it came with. My brothers name id Dean...No relation

 

I didn't have a sway bar and when I added one I just added one from a 2004 excursion that was 27MM. I have upgraded to the B "mod" and V-codes in the front. I see no need to spend that much on a Hellwig. I did add RAS and truck had airbags in the back when I got it. It was a noticeable difference to not having one. I do not think you would see much. Plus the super duty sway bar you are looking for is no longer in production so you will have to hunt one down at a junkyard, craigslist, or eBay.

 

I don't have the answers you are looking for other than to say that you won't see/feel much difference between a 27MM and 30MM sway bar. Have you checked with Energy Suspensions for a set of 27MM bushings for your stock bar?
My EX didn't have a factory bar, I was towing a 9500lb toyhauler with the stock Ex suspension and the addition of a rear Hellwig was a huge improvement to that situation. It really helped but didn't make it "good enough" so I moved ahead with an X/B (modded) spring swap which made towing that trailer and the new heavier one so much better.

 

Thank you to all who responded. I am looking for a set of V/B springs as we speak. If I happen to find an F350 rear sway bar, too, then I will probably swap it out if it is reasonable. I will check Energy Suspensions for the OEM size bushings, thanks.
Otherwise, I will just swap out the springs and see how that improves things. It sounds like I may get all that I need from the spring swap anyhow.

 

I was out of town over the weekend, so sorry for the late response. Harley4jcs has it just about covered. Mine also came with none, so I found a couple of 27mm bars (1 excursion and an F250), before I found a 30mm from an F350 (which is what I'd been hoping to find.)
The other difference I saw was that the truck links are longer, due to the taller springs. It's a couple inches difference, so with the modified B springs they are perfect. Not sure how much it'll affect the geometry if the ends of the swaybar are not exactly parallel to the ground, but mine ended up looking perfect, and works great! Best $25 bucks I ever spent.

 

Check out this thread for 30MM part numbers

 

holeshotwalt;
Thanks for the response. The longer links OEM is understandable. Mine came with significantly longer links that I just swapped for the correct MOOG links. The ones I took off were in great shape -- so if I can find an F350 sway bar I can use it as is. When I get the mod B's on it, Ill just switch back to the longer ones I took off. Cool!


Turfzilla; Great link -- told me everything I needed to know. I sometimes have trouble when I do searches because I don't word it right or something. That link was what I was looking for.
Thanks all.
Doug

 

It's not just you Doug, I have a hell of a time with searches for over 2 Years. The ticket is to book mark all the threads of interest WHEN you find them.

 

That is a great thread, thank you !!