Well, the PandaWagon has developed a PS leak. Looks like the XT6 sway bar on the front was making contact with one of the pipes on the steering rack and has kinked the pipe. I know the steering rack was replaced not long before I bought it, but I don't know if it was for a wagon or an XT. I also noticed the bar will not sit square in there - it's off to the right a bit and it will not sit centered.

Has anyone else ran into a clearance issue with the XT6 sway bar up front?

 

For the time being, I will be putting the RX sway bar in there till I can find out why the XT6 bar sits so close to that power steering line.

I will be watching this for an outcome. I have an xt6 sway bar I am putting on my wagon soon.

 

worn out sway bar bushings maybe?

 

Ben

I would vote for that, and also the idea that maybe the steering rack came from another model and the lines run differently than they originally were.

The sway bar mounts on an XT6 are further forward on the crossmember than EA82s, so it's not a direct fit. Mine contacted the control arms a bit. But it should not be anywhere near any power steering lines. Perhaps installed upside down?

 

In fact, I don't think there should be any power steering lines at all in the vicinity. Sounds like something's botched. You should post some pictures if you can.

I compared the install between the PandaWagon and the XT6 and they are installed the same. I also compared the brackets that attach the bar to the control arms between the EA82 and ER27 and they are the same length. I'll get it up on the ramps tomorrow, take a few pics, and we'll go from there.

Thanks

The sway bar mounts on an XT6 are further forward on the crossmember than EA82s, so it's not a direct fit. Mine contacted the control arms a bit. But it should not be anywhere near any power steering lines. Perhaps installed upside down?

 

In fact, I don't think there should be any power steering lines at all in the vicinity. Sounds like something's botched. You should post some pictures if you can.

 

This +1......

 

Never had any issues with mine other than the control arm touching as Numbchux has already noted.....

The steering rack is a reman for a wagon. So, that might take it out of the equation.

Just finished my sister's suby and now I'm off to look into the PandaWagon.

Well, I finally had a chance to put the car up on jack stands last night. Yes, the sway bar does make contact with the power steering line. In fact, it had to have been doing so since I installed the XT6 bar. (Why it did not make any clunking noises is beyond me.) Thankfully, I had a spare steering rack so I was able to replace the kinked line. It still made contact with the sway bar, there was no clearance whatsoever. So I smacked the pipe enough so there's about a penny's distance between the sway bar and the pipe. I do not have any pics yet, but I will do so when I return home.

Ok, I fixed it. I ended up just bending the line out of the sway bar's way. Here's a few before pics I took with the front on jackstands:

 

IMG_8788 by subynut, on Flickr

 

IMG_8801 by subynut, on Flickr

 

IMG_8804 by subynut, on Flickr

 

Once I get the car on ramps, I'll take some more pics to show where the bar sits with the suspension loaded.

 

I also switched to the RX front bar to help reduce the lifting of the inside front tire while diving through corners. The front of the car feels better planted now.

Ok, looks like things are clear now. I will be sticking with the RX bar for now and see how it handles on the RallyX.

Here's a few pics with it on the ramps:

IMG_8811 by subynut, on Flickr

 

IMG_8816 by subynut, on Flickr

 

Much better:

IMG_8808 by subynut, on Flickr

 

Still close, but at least it's not resting on the pipe any more.

IMG_8813 by subynut, on Flickr