ulrichd

Peter, sorry to address you directly but I am stuck.

Car: 78SC, 6 months old refresh of shocks, balljoints, tie-rods, etc. Otherwise stock suspension w/ 24.1 mm rear bars.

Project: Re-indexing of all torsion bars, replacement of rear spring plate bushings to Neatrix. Setting of ride height.

I have done this before (ride height) with good results so I am not a total beginner.

Upon reinstallation of the passenger side rear spring plate I noticed only partial penetration (about 1/2" in from flush) of the torsion bar into the spring plate. On the opposite side I got flush penetration. Both spring plates are parrallel with the body, cover plates are not torqued, everything looks fine.

I did a test drop with tires and noticed that my track on the driver's side (opposite the partial penetration) has pushed out noticably. I pulled everything apart and re-installed with identical results.

Here is my question: Do the torsion bars interact with each other within the tube. In other words, can one stuck bar push out the other. My current plan is to get a "new" used spring plate and bar for the passenger side. I assume the splines are damaged.

Your opinion and guidance would be greatly appreciated. Obviously I'd be happy to hear from anybody else who can shed some light on this.

Peter Zimmermann

Hi Ulrich: I'm not quite sure what you're asking, but I don't think that it's possible to damage a T-bar be pulling it out, rotating it, and re-insertion. If the splines are clean & greased, and go back in... You can also visually inspect the T-bar receptacle part of each spring plate to see if blockage exists. If the T-bars are "pushing" at each other inside the T-bar tube I think the you should take the side without a problem back apart. I guess that it's possible that something inside that spring plate is "pushing" that T-bar too far into the tube. I also don't understand how the track could change, because that is strictly a function of the hub, unless the tire hits the spring plate...? More info would be helpful.
Pete

ulrichd

Pete, sorry for the late response. Below are pics of the problem. The reason I have no caps on the tubes is that I had to tap the torsion bars out of the spring plates the first time I did this a year ago.

The first pic is the driver's side bar which was flush with the end of tube until I started on the other side and then gradually was pushed out as I tightened the cover plate on the passenger side.

Prior to install I measured the amount that the bars protruded out of the hole (equal) and both bars inserted without problems into the spring plates manually (so no spline problem). I can't see any problem in the torsion bar tube with my flash light.

Is it just the missing spring plate caps? Thanks in advance for your input.

Peter Zimmermann

First, you've got to replace your parts with ones that have end caps. I'm thinking that you've put too much grease on the T-bars, which might have formed a lock of sorts inside the tube, which won't allow the inner ends of the T-bars to get close to each other. There is also the possibility that the outer end of the right T-bar stops on the splines. If you can take the right radius arm back off, pull that T-bar out far enough, and hang the radius arm from it to be sure that it's not getting stuck on the outer splines, and fix that, we would be in much better shape. I have a hunch that as soon as your right T-bar is able to come further into the outboard splines your problem will be fixed - but get that end cap situation fixed!
Pete

ulrichd

Thanks Peter, the end cap situation will be fixed by the weekend. And yes, I always thought the more grease the better - I will wipe off some of the excess.