BaySheet
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BaySheet
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2008 Ford Escape
Step-by-step front sway bar end link replacement for the 2008 Ford Escape, with tools, safety notes, and torque cited from 1A Auto.
Difficulty, time, and cost are estimates when this guide gives them. Torque is a cited figure, or it is left off.
Main source: How to Replace Front Sway Bar Link 2005-12 Ford Escape (opens in a new tab), 1A Auto, published 2019-04-18, read 2026-10-15.
Numbers on this page come from the cited source. Match the engine before you use a capacity or a torque. Do not work under a vehicle held only by a jack.
15 mm wrench and 15 mm socket
The link nuts are 15 mm. A wrench starts them; a 15 mm socket on a torque wrench finishes the upper nut.
17 mm wrench
Holds the stud so the nut can turn. Used on the lower nut, and also shown as a hold on the back of the upper stud.
5 mm and 4 mm Allen keys
The original upper stud takes a 5 mm Allen. The new stud in this video takes a 4 mm Allen. Bring both.
Torque wrench
Needs to read foot-pounds and accept the 15 mm socket. The lower nut is awkward to reach with one.
Rust penetrant
Spray the nuts and let it soak before you break them loose.
Jack and jack stands
The wheel has to come off. Support the vehicle on stands, not on the jack alone. Use the lift points in the owner's manual.
Each figure stays with the source named in the last column. If a sequence is a figure in that source and the order is not printed in the text, this page does not invent the order.
| Fastener | Torque | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Upper 15 mm nut, link to strut | 46 ft-lb | 1A Auto narration and written steps |
| Lower 15 mm nut, link to sway bar | 46 ft-lb | 1A Auto narration. A torque wrench is hard to fit on this nut. |
| Lug nuts | 100 ft-lb | 1A Auto written steps, after the vehicle is on the ground |
Park on level ground, set the parking brake, and chock a wheel that will stay down. Crack the lug nuts loose while the tire is still on the ground, raise that corner, and set a jack stand at a lift point from the owner's manual. Take the wheel off. The 1A Auto tool list names the wrenches; the jack and stands are what make the wheel removal safe. Do not get under a vehicle held only by a jack.
Spray rust penetrant on the upper and lower link nuts and let it sit. In the video, Andy does this before he breaks the upper nut loose.
The upper nut is 15 mm. Hold the stud so it cannot spin. The written steps say to hold it with a 5 mm Allen; the narration also shows a 17 mm wrench on the flats at the back of the stud. Use the hold that fits. The nut should turn and the stud should not. Take the nut off.
The lower nut sits very close to the control arm. With the bar still attached on the opposite side, a wrench barely fits. Disconnect the upper link on the opposite side the same way, then rotate the sway bar until the lower end swings out to where you can reach it.
Hold the stud with a 17 mm wrench and turn the 15 mm nut off. Slide the link out of the bar and the strut.
The replacement in the video comes with new nuts, and the end of the stud has an Allen. That new stud takes a 4 mm Allen, not the 5 mm that fit the old upper stud. The link body may look different from the original and still be the correct part. Seat the link in the sway bar, start the 15 mm nut, and hold the stud with the 4 mm Allen while you tighten. The narration puts this nut at 46 ft-lb if you can get a torque wrench in, and says the wrench is hard to fit here.
If both links are being replaced, install the other lower end now, before either upper nut is final. The access method already left the opposite upper end loose.
Rotate the bar forward until the stud lines up with the strut mount. You may have to slide the stud in the link to meet the hole. Thread the 15 mm nut on while holding the stud with the 4 mm Allen. Torque that nut with a 15 mm socket to 46 ft-lb. That figure is in the narration and in the written steps.
Repeat the upper connection on the other side. Put the wheel on, lower the vehicle onto the ground, and torque the lug nuts to 100 ft-lb. A star pattern is general practice for lug nuts; the 100 ft-lb figure is the number 1A Auto publishes.
The cited video is titled for the 2005–2012 Ford Escape and the page lists the 2008 model year. The car on camera is a 2012. The same page also lists overlapping years of the Mercury Mariner and the Mazda Tribute. This sheet is only the 2008 Escape.
The nut will spin the stud instead of loosening if you do not hold it. On the way off, the original upper stud takes a 5 mm Allen, and a 17 mm wrench can hold the flats. On the way on, the new stud takes a 4 mm Allen. The two Allens are not interchangeable. Bring both.
Plan on loosening the upper link on the side you are not replacing yet. That is how the bar rotates far enough to clear the control arm. The parts kit cited here is a driver-and-passenger pair. You can put the original link back on one side, but you will still have had that upper nut off.
Penetrant and a hold on the stud are the method in the video. If the Allen rounds or the nut will not break free, cutting the link body is a last-resort field method. It is not a 1A Auto step.
If you cut, the vehicle stays on stands. Wear eye protection. Let the penetrant flash off first; it is flammable around a saw or a cutoff wheel. Cut the link, not the sway bar, the strut, a brake hose, or a wheel-speed wire. This sheet does not specify a blade.
A front-subframe procedure indexed for the 2008 Ford Escape 2WD V6-3.0L, as reproduced on CHARM (opens in a new tab), says to tighten the lower stabilizer bar link nuts to 55 Nm (41 lb-ft) and to hold the stud with the hex while doing it. That excerpt does not give the upper nut.
The 1A Auto video this sheet follows says 46 ft-lb for the lower nut and 46 ft-lb for the upper nut. Those are different numbers. The steps above use the video, because that is the procedure for this job. The 41 ft-lb figure is recorded so you know it is out there. Factory service information for your engine and drivetrain outranks both the video and the subframe excerpt.
This sheet does not cover sway-bar bushing bolts, the rear links, or an alignment spec. Those were not in the cited video.
Outbound links only. BaySheet does not sell parts. Confirm fitment on the retailer page. Amazon links are searches for the part name plus this vehicle. They are not a part number.
Part
Front sway bar link set, driver and passenger
TRQ PSA55625, a two-piece set. The 1A Auto product page lists it for the 2005–2012 Ford Escape, which includes 2008, and the video's links include new nuts. Confirm fitment on that page for your engine and drivetrain before you buy. Price changes; it is not repeated here.
TRQ PSA55625 at 1A Auto (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
Part
2005–2008 Escape sway bar links and bushings
Category page if you want to compare kits. This sheet does not pick among the other SKUs listed there.
1A Auto category for 2005–2008 Escape (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
Tool
15 mm wrench and 15 mm socket
The link nuts are 15 mm. A wrench starts them; a 15 mm socket on a torque wrench finishes the upper nut.
Tekton combination wrenches (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
Tool
17 mm wrench
Holds the stud so the nut can turn. Used on the lower nut, and also shown as a hold on the back of the upper stud.
Tekton combination wrenches (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
Tool
5 mm and 4 mm Allen keys
The original upper stud takes a 5 mm Allen. The new stud in this video takes a 4 mm Allen. Bring both.
Tekton metric hex keys (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
Tool
Torque wrench
Needs to read foot-pounds and accept the 15 mm socket. The lower nut is awkward to reach with one.
Tekton torque wrenches (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
Tool
Rust penetrant
Spray the nuts and let it soak before you break them loose.
Liquid Wrench (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
Tool
Jack and jack stands
The wheel has to come off. Support the vehicle on stands, not on the jack alone. Use the lift points in the owner's manual.
McMaster-Carr jack stands (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)
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