It does not.

The swaybar is simply anchored to the UCA and it tries to prevent the body from rolling. All stress in the bar is generated by the vehicle when it's turning or when one wheel is higher than the opposite wheel.

It didn't break from the stress of braking in a straight line............that's for certain.

I gotta call foul on this one...
the 126 front suspension UCA and LCA are single bushings... the guide rod HAS to be intact for steering and stability of the vehicle in a straight line on the LCA, and the UCA is held stable by the Swaybar...

without the swaybar mount on the UCA, the upper half of the wheel will hit either the front or rear of the fender opening on breaking/steering/accelerating...
in my opinion...

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Yes, I agree with this. Asking the guide rod to do the entire task of maintaining the position of the wheel during braking would be a bit much.

The swaybar would be in some compression to prevent the UCA from moving rearward during heavy braking. However, compression of the bar is not a mode that would induce failure in the bar unless some bending was also present (due to assymetric height of the two front wheels).

In looking at the Factory service manual, chassis and body, volume one it is clear from looking at drawing 32-6583-13A on page 155 that the stabilizer bar (10) laterally locates the steering knuckle (33).

With this part broken the camber of the wheel along with the steering input is free to change drastically according to any input from the direction of the car.

I don't see any other way to interpret this drawing.

I see now that two posts above were posted while I was writing this one up.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

It does not.

The steering knuckle is laterally located by the UCA and the LCA.

I'm defining lateral as an axis perpindicular to a centerline that extends down the middle of the vehicle from the front bumper to the rear bumper.

The bar, as John mentioned, stabilizes the UCA longitudinally, in addition to performing it's fight against body roll.

I see you are correct. I just realized I am looking at the drawing from the wrong angle.

In any case the car is unsafe to drive with it broken, agreed?

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Of course..........you can't safely drive it at any speed more than about 20mph in that condition.

Well, actually,..........you can drive it at any speed you want............you just can't stop it quickly.

Hi Everyone,

I just got back from work and read all of your posts. I can't thank you enough for such expert advice. Diesel911, I really like your idea of using the intact piece on the torsion bar as a guide for drilling a parallel hole. I'm going to see if anyone at my workplace is good at welding a new end on. If not, I'm going to pursue the other method by drilling/tapping it myself and using your hardware suggestions.

You guys are all right. When the swaybar connection broke, I was stopping very hard in a straight line. You might also see in my pictures that the plastic cover to my shock absorber cracked from this sudden forward impact. However, the vehicle has taken corners fairly well in the past (despite excessive body roll) without damaging the swaybar.

All else aside, I'm amazed by how much we can accomplish when we focus on something together. You are all truly intelligent, talented, and innovated people. I can figure things out pretty well on my own, but I feel empowered being a part of this forum because I can solve anything with your help.

I purchased this vehicle off the forum in 2009 and I may consider another Benz in the near future if I have access to this kind of support. Kudos to you all. This thread is exemplary of world-class collaboration and teamwork.

It's the "sudden forward impact" that I'm curious about. I maintain that you did not stop this vehicle very hard in a straight line and cause a failure of the bar just by that action.

pfft. it was likely badly corroded under the bushings, and was just waiting for an excuse to let go.
it's a shame MB did not design it to be water tight, and greased...

__________________
John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Yep..........but, I'm quite sure there was some type of impact force on the bar causing the combination of instantaneous shear combined with the compression that caused it to fail.

Hard braking alone can't do it.

To my knowledge the sway bar broke only from a straight line stop after my wheels began to lock and skid. It's kind of pathetic when you think about it, but I suppose due to the age of the vehicle, this can happen. I thought perhaps a poor wheel alignment could contribute to this failure, but after reading your posts, it doesn't seem to be related to alignment.

When I mentioned, 'sudden forward impact' I was implying that the control arm may have smacked up against my shock absorber when it dislodged, causing the plastic case to crack. There was no collision with another vehicle.

The "lock and skid" will provide uneven impulses to the skidding wheel.

Where's the ABS...........that vehicle should have never locked its front wheels...........??

Yeah, skidding tires could provide loading to the sway bar. But VS is right in the end, it was ready to go.

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

This whole thread reminds Me that I need to follow My own advice and to do what I said to My own Sway Bar Tip before it breaks off.

My Tip is rusted thinner right about wear the 2 Rubber Bushings come together where I put the green Lines at #6.

If I drill the hole deeper for a longer Bolt the Tip will still be there to act as a spacer and the Longer Bolt will Support the Tip Better.

The Red outline represents the longer Bolt.

Attached Thumbnails

 

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel