Cougar Rear Sway Bar 1998 Installation

The rear sway bar on a 1998 Mercury Cougar cuts down on body roll at the back of the car while driving, which improves traction and ride control. By retaining rigidity between the Cougar's suspension and frame, the sway bar helps keep the car's body level when cornering or making other deviations from a straight path. The sway bar ends can deform over time, reducing the bar's effectiveness and requiring replacement. If you have a solid grasp on auto repair, you can install a new rear sway bar on your 1998 Mercury Cougar in less than 40 minutes.

Things You'll Need

• Auto ramps (2)
• Wheel chocks (2)
• Socket set
• Jack stands (2)

Instructions

1. Back the Cougar's rear wheels onto a pair of auto ramps. Shift the Cougar into park and depress the parking brake pedal before exiting the car.

2. Shove two wheel chocks against the front and back of one of the Cougar's front wheels to hold the car in place.

3. Climb under the Cougar's rear end, between the ramps, with a socket set and two jack stands. Set the jack stands directly under the existing sway bar to hold it up once you unbolt it.

4. Remove the bolts holding the Cougar's sway bar links to the ends of the sway bar with the socket set. Extract the bolts from the sway bar brackets with the socket set. Remove the sway bar brackets and sway bar bushings and set them aside.

5. Slide the old sway bar off of the jack stands and out from under the Cougar. Set the new sway bar on the jack stands in position to bolt it in place.

6. Hold the sway bar brackets and bushings in place and bolt them to the Cougar's frame, one at a time, with the socket set. Bolt the ends of the new sway bar to the sway bar links with the socket set.

7. Remove the jack stands from under the Cougar. Take the wheel chocks away from the front wheel. Release the Cougar's parking brake and drive it off of the auto ramps.

References

• "Ford Thunderbird & Mercury Cougar 1989-1997: Haynes Manual"; Ken Freund; 1997