Torsion bars and lower control arm set-up
You only have to worry about doing the final torque to spec on the LCA pivot nuts at ride height if you've got the OE style rubber LCA bushings. If you have poly or delrin LCA bushings it doesn't matter at all, you can torque the LCA pivot nuts to spec at any location or setting. And note, if you're using the OE rubber LCA bushings you still want the LCA pivot nuts snug before you put the car on the ground, just don't fully torque them to spec. You don't want the LCA's flopping around when you set the ride height, so snug them up but don't tighten them. If that makes sense.
Also, another interesting note, the OE rubber bushings are not bonded to the inner or outer shells. I'd always heard that the rubber was somehow bonded to the shells and that's what was damaged if you didn't torque the pivot nuts at ride height, but in fact the bushings and shells are just held in place by compression and friction. I took apart the bushings in the QA1 tubular arms I bought to upgrade them to Delrin before I installed them. Everything came apart smoothly in the press, you can see how the size of the bushing causes a compressive force that holds everything in place.
QA1 tubular LCA as supplied with OE style rubber bushings. Not sure why fancy tubular LCA's come with rubber bushings, but they do. And yes, I did some TIG welding on brand new tubular LCA's to add gussets.
LCA pin pressed out, bushing still intact
Inner shell pressed out, you can see how the bushing has already deformed and shrunk to be smaller when the inner shell isn't forced into it
Fully disassembled. Notice the shape of the bushing with the outer diameter now larger than the outer shell and inner diameter smaller than the inner shell, and perfectly clean shells.
Anyway, doesn't matter, when the OE rubber bushings are fully assembled you can tear the bushing if you don't torque it at ride height because the compression and surface friction forces will keep the shells from turning and the rubber of the bushing can tear because nothing will move on the surfaces. So the procedure is the same. It's just not because anything was bonded together first.
You only have to worry about doing the final torque to spec on the LCA pivot nuts at ride height if you've got the OE style rubber LCA bushings. If you have poly or delrin LCA bushings it doesn't matter at all, you can torque the LCA pivot nuts to spec at any location or setting. And note, if you're using the OE rubber LCA bushings you still want the LCA pivot nuts snug before you put the car on the ground, just don't fully torque them to spec. You don't want the LCA's flopping around when you set the ride height, so snug them up but don't tighten them. If that makes sense.
Also, another interesting note, the OE rubber bushings are not bonded to the inner or outer shells. I'd always heard that the rubber was somehow bonded to the shells and that's what was damaged if you didn't torque the pivot nuts at ride height, but in fact the bushings and shells are just held in place by compression and friction. I took apart the bushings in the QA1 tubular arms I bought to upgrade them to Delrin before I installed them. Everything came apart smoothly in the press, you can see how the size of the bushing causes a compressive force that holds everything in place.
QA1 tubular LCA as supplied with OE style rubber bushings. Not sure why fancy tubular LCA's come with rubber bushings, but they do. And yes, I did some TIG welding on brand new tubular LCA's to add gussets.
LCA pin pressed out, bushing still intact
Inner shell pressed out, you can see how the bushing has already deformed and shrunk to be smaller when the inner shell isn't forced into it
Fully disassembled. Notice the shape of the bushing with the outer diameter now larger than the outer shell and inner diameter smaller than the inner shell, and perfectly clean shells.
Anyway, doesn't matter, when the OE rubber bushings are fully assembled you can tear the bushing if you don't torque it at ride height because the compression and surface friction forces will keep the shells from turning and the rubber of the bushing can tear because nothing will move on the surfaces. So the procedure is the same. It's just not because anything was bonded together first.
