So, I've read about as much as I can find online about refurbishing the front suspension and made a start yesterday.
Everything was coming apart nicely until I got to the torsion bar. It doesn't appear to have the circlip in the rear mount. The pic shows the rear mount. Is this where the clip should be? Is so, and it is missing, what's holding it in?
20180126_150456_001.jpg (162.85 KiB) Viewed 2008 times
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20180126_150522_001.jpg (156.5 KiB) Viewed 2008 times
It is being held in with the load on it imparted by the Control Arm.
In reality you need a Torsion bar removal tool to do it properly, but if you are lucky you can use a pry bar on the Lower control arm to get things moving.
If you look carefully you will see there is a groove for the Circlip at the back of the housing on the Gearbox Cross member.
I found a tip when I was doing mine where you take a bit of weight off the k member with a trolley jack and it takes almost all the tension out of the torsion bar.
Mine then came out with a few taps on the end with a piece of wood.
Yup. Circlip missing - but it aint going anywhere.
I got mine out by making a long clamp which held about 8" of the bar without marking it. Take the weight of the arm so nothing is in torsion, quick tap and it pops right out. Its not as scary as it seems - 10 min job if you get lucky
I have the car on axle stands at the sill jack points and there was a disconcerting amount of flex as I lowered the jack off the k frame. So the jack went straight back up to take the weight of the front end! I'll try raising or lowering the k frame to see if I can relieve any residual torsion.
I've seen the removal tools but was hoping I could manage without one as I am removing the lca's.
Wind the adjusters so the bar isn’t under tension. Jack up front under k frame. You can then use clamp tool or the split handlebar Head stock off a BMX around the bar as something to hit with a masons hammer. They come out the back
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freighdog wrote: ↑Sat Jan 27, 18 12:34 am
I have the car on axle stands at the sill jack points and there was a disconcerting amount of flex as I lowered the jack off the k frame.
Yeah. Mine does that - feels like the car is bending in half. Freaked me out the first time. I too tend to take some of the weight there as I dont like the flex
Lovely job.
Next time you take the torsion bars out it will be easy. I had to take the new ones out to do a starter motor recently and once I took the tension out they slid out by hand. Keep the pics coming
So the jack went straight back up to take the weight of the front end! I'll try raising or lowering the k frame to see if I can relieve any residual torsion.
