# Sway bar bushing brackets



## 65Teal (Jun 10, 2020)

Looking to replace the bushings & end links on my '65 GTO. The mounting brackets don't have the tabs to hold the bushings centred, & the bushings have squished out to the side. To the best of my knowledge, these type of brackets should have the bushings with the outer ridges to keep them in place. What was stock? The original owner of this car kept meticulous records of work done, & there is no record of any work on the sway bar, so I have doubts that the setup is anything but original.


----------



## GTOJUNIOR (Aug 7, 2011)

IIRC the '64-'65 Bracket has a raised center Vs the tabs on the side.
Does yours have the raised center?
From what I gather the correct bushing is VHTF.










OLD OE Bushings,


----------



## 65Teal (Jun 10, 2020)

Yes, my brackets look like those with the raised centre. I guess I need bushings like the one on the right in the picture, with a ridge down the centre.


----------



## GtoFM (Mar 23, 2018)

I also have been looking for the correct bushings. GTOJUNIOR, are these reproduced for 15/16"?


----------



## 65Teal (Jun 10, 2020)

Does VHTF mean very hard to find? Any leads anyone? If you used a bushing without that ridge, would it squish into the recess when the bolts were cinched down, & stay in place? Or would that be a bad idea?


----------



## GTOJUNIOR (Aug 7, 2011)

FWIW A few real old posts show part # SU - 1148 63 =67 15/16" F41 for early corvette, as functional replacements.
I do not know if this is still available and/or good info.


----------



## jtpeters (Aug 29, 2021)

63-67 15/16in F41 Front Sway Bar Bushings (Restoration Poly)


----------



## 65Teal (Jun 10, 2020)

Apparently, C2 Corvettes use the same style bushing, and Corvette Central shows them. My buddy has a '65 Vette, so I checked his to compare. His bracket has the same width & bolt hole spacing, but it is about 1/4" less deep than my GTO. Seeing that, and looking at the Corvette bushings, I didn't think that the Corvette bushing would be big enough to have enough rubber to compress, so I decided to modify the Moog K 5241 bushing that was specified for my GTO(no way I could see it working). Anyway, here's a pic of what I came up with, haven't installed it yet, but hopefully it works okay. If not, I'm not out much.


----------



## GtoFM (Mar 23, 2018)

65Teal, bench grinder, dremel, exacto knife... to form the bushing? The C1 '53-'62 Vette used a spacer under the bracket which may take up the 1/4" difference. I called the supplier to ck bolt spacing, should be ok with my original brkt. No 15/16" rubber bushing offered until C2 '63-'67, so I'll order those also. Looks close to original using rubber bushings. $40 experiment.

Corvette Bushing Front Sway Bar Heavy Duty 15/16 Inch Each 63 67 ( #E9647 ) | Corvette Pacifica
Corvette Spacer Front Stabilizer Sway Bar Each 53 62 ( #E14274 ) | Corvette Pacifica


----------



## 65Teal (Jun 10, 2020)

GtoFM, I used a Dremel 9933 tungsten carbide attachment. I cut the base of the Moog bushing so there is about 1/2" to compress. My only concern with the Corvette bushings is if there is anything to compress due to the less depth of the bracket.


----------



## 65Teal (Jun 10, 2020)

Got busy, & forgot to post my results. Anyway, I started to install the bar with the bushing shown in post#8. Still had a lot of rubber to compress, and I ended up breaking the threads in the frame for one of the bolts. So, off the bar came, & I cut more off the bottom of the bushings, re threaded the bolt hole, and got everything bolted up okay. Probably ended up having to compress about 1/4" of the bushing. Time will tell how it holds up.


----------

