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One of the Camry's biggest weaknesses is a wallowy ride with excessive roll. Coilovers and stiffer springs help, but a key element adopted by enthusiasts in FWD vehicles is rear sway/anti-roll bars.
The Camry is no exception, and TRD as well as Ultra Racing produce very strong anti-roll bars which can substantially improve the vehicles' handling.
Unfortunately on the 5th and 6th-gen Camrys, the OEM brackets that the sway bars bolt to (a sort of middle-man between the bar and the chassis) are notoriously weak. They are engineered only to withstand the forces of the stock "noodle" sway bar and there are numerous reports of these brackets failing, particularly after enjoying some spirited driving on the Ultra Racing 23mm and 19mm bars.
So what happens exactly?
![]()
BlackCamSe's photo of the intact vs. failed bracket.
![]()
Martindt's failed bracket.
Some have tried welding gussets, only to have the bracket fail elsewhere.
![]()
Iconman's 5th-gen had similar issues with his brackets (which are slightly different than the 6th-gen), and found a solution by having two welded together, effectively multiplying the strength of the bracket.
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The 6th-gen brackets are unfortunately not easily stackable and this solution isn't likely to work. I will instead look to fabricate a new, stronger bracket, that I can hopefully make out of inexpensive materials.
Yesterday I headed over to the junkyard and got two pairs of OEM brackets off of an 07 Avalon and an 07 Camry.
![]()
These brackets are mirror images of each other, and look to be made of square mild steel rods and stamped sheetplate. The rectangular prism welds to the base don't even have 100% coverage where they meet.
![]()
Using a micrometer I found that all the steel is 2.38mm thick, which is approximately 13-gauge on US standards. Using the micrometer and some very fine measuring, I was able to create a CAD model.
The following model features 2-dimensional surfaces in which I can mock up varying thicknesses of steel easily. This is down to 0.5mm precision, which should be sufficient for these purposes.
The bracket at its widest is 92mm thick. At its tallest is 52mm tall. The base features a 22-degree bend which conforms to the shape of the chassis just behind the rear wheel.
![]()
![]()
After some online and in-person shopping I found that Lowes carries easily-weldable 1/4" thick mild steel plating that should be sufficient for the base. I will need to find a shop to perform the bend with a brake, and from then, this square tubing on eBay
![]()
Could be cut to create the structure that the sway bar itself bolts to. This will require drilling and welding of captive nuts not unlike the OEM brackets.
After doing hours of measurements I mocked up what could be done with the aforementioned materials:
![]()
Following some input from a couple of mechanical engineer friends of mine, they concluded this would most likely be more than strong enough for the thicker sway bars, due to sheer mass and size. The square tubing features 3/16" or 4.7625mm-thick steel, which is about twice as thick as the OEM brackets.
I plan to cut these with a saw I have in house, and use some clamps to keep them in place and send it to a welder friend of mine once these are cut. Will it work? We'll see, but I'm pretty confident. And if it breaks? Well, as you can see I have two pairs of these brackets that I can blow through. :laugh:
The Camry is no exception, and TRD as well as Ultra Racing produce very strong anti-roll bars which can substantially improve the vehicles' handling.
Unfortunately on the 5th and 6th-gen Camrys, the OEM brackets that the sway bars bolt to (a sort of middle-man between the bar and the chassis) are notoriously weak. They are engineered only to withstand the forces of the stock "noodle" sway bar and there are numerous reports of these brackets failing, particularly after enjoying some spirited driving on the Ultra Racing 23mm and 19mm bars.
So what happens exactly?
BlackCamSe's photo of the intact vs. failed bracket.
Martindt's failed bracket.
Some have tried welding gussets, only to have the bracket fail elsewhere.
Iconman's 5th-gen had similar issues with his brackets (which are slightly different than the 6th-gen), and found a solution by having two welded together, effectively multiplying the strength of the bracket.
-----
The 6th-gen brackets are unfortunately not easily stackable and this solution isn't likely to work. I will instead look to fabricate a new, stronger bracket, that I can hopefully make out of inexpensive materials.
Yesterday I headed over to the junkyard and got two pairs of OEM brackets off of an 07 Avalon and an 07 Camry.
These brackets are mirror images of each other, and look to be made of square mild steel rods and stamped sheetplate. The rectangular prism welds to the base don't even have 100% coverage where they meet.
Using a micrometer I found that all the steel is 2.38mm thick, which is approximately 13-gauge on US standards. Using the micrometer and some very fine measuring, I was able to create a CAD model.
The following model features 2-dimensional surfaces in which I can mock up varying thicknesses of steel easily. This is down to 0.5mm precision, which should be sufficient for these purposes.
The bracket at its widest is 92mm thick. At its tallest is 52mm tall. The base features a 22-degree bend which conforms to the shape of the chassis just behind the rear wheel.
After some online and in-person shopping I found that Lowes carries easily-weldable 1/4" thick mild steel plating that should be sufficient for the base. I will need to find a shop to perform the bend with a brake, and from then, this square tubing on eBay
Could be cut to create the structure that the sway bar itself bolts to. This will require drilling and welding of captive nuts not unlike the OEM brackets.
After doing hours of measurements I mocked up what could be done with the aforementioned materials:
Following some input from a couple of mechanical engineer friends of mine, they concluded this would most likely be more than strong enough for the thicker sway bars, due to sheer mass and size. The square tubing features 3/16" or 4.7625mm-thick steel, which is about twice as thick as the OEM brackets.
I plan to cut these with a saw I have in house, and use some clamps to keep them in place and send it to a welder friend of mine once these are cut. Will it work? We'll see, but I'm pretty confident. And if it breaks? Well, as you can see I have two pairs of these brackets that I can blow through. :laugh:
