Sway Bar endlinks constantly coming loose from hard driving, what can i do?

[CTSV]

these are DSE parts the fronts are C6 vette OEM styled links the rears are some other styled GM they both have nylock nuts 3/8/16 size
full DSE mustang conversion

now i live in the NYC area and our roads are beyond horrible it is shaking even my new modern cars apart. every time i take my car for a nice hard run i hear clunking and once again the sway bar endlinks are loose again. today the front passenger and rear passenger both came loose. the front was way loose the rear not so much.it takes me about 25 min of bumps and bad roads to get a smooth parkway and those bumpy roads are making things worse. i almost want to loctite red 271 the nuts but that might cause more headache if they come loose again

this is driving me nuts and i might try to pull these units off and try maybe a spherical rod end type or something else. can any of you guys suggest a solution to this? i almost feel like im driving a Harley and i need to retorque the entire car after a 1 hour drive which is ridiculous

[Schwartz Performance]

You finger tightening them??
Just kidding. Loctite will probably solve the issue. Id go blue before red and see how that holds up.. Have you replaced the nuts at all? Were they substantially loose or did it just take a quarter turn to fix it?

-Dale

[j-c-c]

Is it worth trying an all metal "stover" type lock nut before getting radical? However this problem seems like another issue is really causing this loosening, haven't a clue what that might be.

[CTSV]

Guys the torque for these is 40ftlbs and i am def exceeding this

Now my rears are coming half turn loose but my front was dangling loose even the splined end of the front sway bar was loose.

I have had this issue with alot of my cars using aftermarket suspensions. I had links on my ctsv i took them off because of the constant clunk noise i couldnt take it anymore

I need to get new nuts maybe from Mcmaster Carr and also use loctite. Nylock are pretty good but on my mustang they suck

[regal454]

Are there enough threads exposed on the end link to use a jam nut against the first nut?

[CTSV]

Nope cant use a jam nut i thought of that already.

Have any of you guys had this happen repeatedly ?

[Schwartz Performance]

We have splined bars and nyloc nuts on our heim joint links- haven't had any issues on our shop cars with them loosening up, nor heard any complaints. Perhaps they weren't tightened properly to begin with? If it was loose for a while it may have damaged the end link or sway bar arm too and made it sloppy which wouldn't help the case.

-Dale

[CTSV]

My front end link coming loose really struck me as odd and this has only happened once up front. When my car was being built i watched the tech torquing every single part down to exact spec.

My rear end links came loose about 6 times now and im wondering if the heat from my rear end and exhaust are causing the nylock nuts to become useless and break loose. The exhaust is very close to my rear swaybar end links. Just a thought i have.

I might try different style lock nuts without nylon something like the ones that are distorted thread or something and also il coat the threads with loctite i think this may be a permanent fix.

[Schwartz Performance]

Distorted thread nuts don't need Loctite. If you put it on them it may be really difficult to get the nuts off without having to cut the end link with a cutoff wheel.

[j-c-c]

When using grade 8+ hardware, I never had that issue. The nuts are not intended to be reused for proper holding.

[83hurstguy]

Nylocks are not considered reusable. After a few torque cycles they lose their resistance to backing off because the nylon wears. Use new nylocks or mechanical locking nuts. Make sure you hold the end link stud with an Allen key while tightening.

I fought a similar issue with rear shock studs. Part of the issue was that the studs I was using didn't have a flat for a wrench, so I never got adequate torque/preload on the stud.

[72BBSwinger]

Does DSE have a phone? That is where you start imo.

[CTSV]

just took a very hard amazing drive and within 20 min of bouncing around one the worst roads in NY the rear endlinks are clunking on a rough road on the highway they are fine its getting miniscule movements now, front is perfectly tight and the rear is maybe 1/4 loose on one end. Im very anal with noises on cars as this wouldn't bother most of my buddies as their cars are rattle boxes.

im ordering those lock nuts without the nylon tomorrow that have the distorted thread. i need to pull my entire rear exhaust off to do the job so i most likely wont get to it for one night this week and il report back to this thread with updates if this is the cure.

[j-c-c]

Additionally if it was my car, i would also use a hint of anti seize, which might be couterintuitive for the problem at hand, but by design the stover type lock nuts are pretty aggressive on the threads, and likely to corrode with any moisture exposure over time

[CTSV]

Additionally if it was my car, i would also use a hint of anti seize, which might be couterintuitive for the problem at hand, but by design the stover type lock nuts are pretty aggressive on the threads, and likely to corrode with any moisture exposure over time
Which lock nuts are more aggressive the split top stover style or the distorted thread top lock?

I took one off tonight to confirm thread and pitch they are 7-16/20. The nylon is practically gone on the nut from heat under there and the vibration constantly backing them out

[j-c-c]

I define the distorted style as a stover, which I prefer, but strictly for one use. I think you are also suggesting the castellated locking nut, which also is an all metal locking nut, and might have a longer reusable use life, but to answer your question, less aggressive. I have no specs/testing to back that up.

[Carl @ Chassisworks]

I'm not privy to the endlink configuration on your car, but you might check out these endlinks: https://www.cachassisworks.com/c-1324-endlinks.aspx

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2014/06/575299604-1.jpg

[CTSV]

special lock nuts arrive tomorrow morning so tonight il gut the exhaust and get it ready and il change then over. I am confident this will correct my issue once and for all.

[pitts64]

Grind the nuts down so you can double nut them or use a Castle nut with cotter pin... I had the same issues with my rear Bilstine shocks coming loose, Castle nuts and cotter pins did the trick....

[CTSV]

guys i came home early to do this and i am so sore and tired of busting my hands up.

look at the nylock they are totally shot and these never came off the end links just loose over and over

i laid on the floor, grabbed my sway bar as if i was going to bench press the car and i heard clicking once again before i removed the nylock nuts. they sucked thats for sure

the distorted thread military spec lock nuts are awesome and if these come loose i would be shocked. it was a total pain to get these on but its all done now. Il take a ride tonight when NY traffic clears.

[j-c-c]

And?

[CTSV]

Perfectly tight still