many sites and most literature state that the 03 maxima has front & rear stabilizer bars. How does that differ from an anti-sway bar? If they're the same, why do we install aftermarket RSB's. ...or does the max really come with these stock?

 

 

 

stabilizer bar = anti-sway bar = sway bar

the rear beam suspension is considered a sway bar by design. people add rsbs to the max to reduce the roll the stock sway doesn't.

probably confused you even more

 

No factory RSB, only front. You need the aftermarket one.

 

OoOooO...interesting.

 

the rear beam on the maxima, by design is inherently an anti-sway bar. that is why nissan can claim that the car comes with front and rear sway bars.

the aftermarket rsb is used in parallel with the beam to couple the 2 rsbs together; thus further reducing body roll in the rear.

 

thanks for the explanation, guys.

 

There is actually a stock RSB.
If you look under the rear beam you will see it. It is inside the rear beam.

 

Ok, not to be a "KNOW IT ALL"......

....but I asked this same question one year ago when I bought MY '02 new.

If you look at the Sticker on your Max, it does indeed tout a REAR STABILIZER BAR as part of the SE pkg.

I know what you're thinking: IT IS the rear torsion beam.

BZZZZZZZTTTT!!

Sorry, that answer is INcoRrect- BOB!

Crawl under the beam whilst you are installing your REAL aftermarket stabilizer bar, and you WILL notice that running BENEATH the torsion bar that spans the width of your rear wheelbase, is IN FACT a weak- flimsy excuse for a stabilizer bar.

ineffectual? yes.
misleading? naturally.
PURE Nissan? Shift_driven!

Don't shoot the messenger -- !

gr

 

There was an incredibly long debate about this 6 - 8 months ago, and if I recall correctly (and it's possible I don't) the resolution was:

The beam inside the multi-link setup is NOT a sway bar - it doesn't attach to the trailing arms. Also, I haven't seen Nissan advertise a REAR sway bar with the Max, only a FRONT (and it's supposedly beefier with the SE).

Regardless, installing an aftermarket RSB made a huge difference in my car. Although amazingly, while my car was being painted I drove my wife's Mazda Millenia S, which is no kind of sporty car. And it felt like it KILLED my Max in corners - at the same speed in long cloverleafs, the Millenia doesn't even seem like it's trying, while the Max is straining... Could be that I was driving a little slower without realizing it, but don't think so.

 

there is a RSB actually

it's under the rear beam suspension. next time when you go under your car, look straight under the rear beam. you'll see it.

 

GR is correct. My 2003 GLE window sticker does list "Front and Rear Stabilizer Bars" under the Mechanical & Performance section.

But what ever they consider a rear stabilizer bar, whether it is the inherent movement of the multi-link suspension or the tube nestled within the axle beam, it certainly is ineffective as most have experienced such an improvement with the addition of a more traditional stabilizer bar.

I miss my 3rd gen SE. From a handling perspective, that was truly a 4-door sports car, especially considering it was front drive. And to top it off, it was engineered in the 80's! I'm glad to see they brought a similar setup back to the 6th gen.

 

Exactly--it's not a rear anti-sway bar----it's what Nissan wants you to believe is an anti-sway bar. What they call a "stabilizer bar" may have similar functionality (though not very effective.) So, the car does not have a factory RSB.