Torsion bar adjustment trouble

[Daniel Dugas]

Hey guys so I went to lower the ride height of my car by releasing some tension off the torsion bars. As I lowered the front end evenly I found that when I had the bolts backed out evenly, the car sat uneven, and when the car sat even, the bolts were way uneven. I took the bolts completely out to realize that when I did that the arm in the lca that the bolt goes into in order to adjust the height, the drivers side was pivoted up more, where I get about 1/3 of the bolt started before it starts to add tension, whereas on the passenger side as soon as the bolt starts threading it takes the front end up. Anyone have any experience with this or any idea how to fix it? Anyone have help would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!

 

[junkyardhero]

how uneven was "way uneven" on the bolts to start with? 1/2", 2 or 3"?

 

[Syleng1]

Is it possible your hex on the torsion bar is off one flat either at the adjuster or at the back? Not that your bar is made wrong but you slid (or some one) it into the hex while the left was lower then when the right (or vice a versa) went back together?

 

[RustyRatRod]

Perfectly normal. Adjust the ride height where you want it and drive.

 

[Dana67Dart]

Your rear springs can have an effect on that too

 

[72bluNblu]

Some information would be good.

Are we talking about factory parts here? Factory torsion bars, K frame, lower control arms, rear leaf springs?

Are those factory parts original? As in, are these new or 50 year old parts?

If these are factory spec parts, it’s pretty much impossible to mis clock the control arms.

If these are all 50 year old parts, it would be more strange if the adjusters were actually the same side to side.

Even with new parts, these cars aren’t loaded symmetrically, so the adjusters won’t likely be even side to side. If they’re way off it can indicate an issue, but a few turns different isn’t uncommon.

 

[Cuda Al]

Pop the bars out, reset lobes to about 3/6 o-clock, run adjusters in.
Always make adjustments with the wheels off the ground.
Drive around the block before accessing the change.


Alan

 

[Daniel Dugas]

how uneven was "way uneven" on the bolts to start with? 1/2", 2 or 3"?

Around 1.5”-2”

 

[Daniel Dugas]

Some information would be good.

Are we talking about factory parts here? Factory torsion bars, K frame, lower control arms, rear leaf springs?

Are those factory parts original? As in, are these new or 50 year old parts?

If these are factory spec parts, it’s pretty much impossible to mis clock the control arms.

If these are all 50 year old parts, it would be more strange if the adjusters were actually the same side to side.

Even with new parts, these cars aren’t loaded symmetrically, so the adjusters won’t likely be even side to side. If they’re way off it can indicate an issue, but a few turns different isn’t uncommon.

These are all original k frame torsion bars and control arms, with super stock springs in the rear.

 

[SixPaksRule]

Excuse me...the lower control arm bolts are required to be loose when adjusting the t bars. Currently the op is twisting the heck out of the lca bushings and will most likely tear then up. Consult the FSM. In addition removing the front shocks is very beneficial as the car can be jounced and bounced when adjusting....

 

[Snake]

Perfectly normal. Adjust the ride height where you want it and drive.

What I was thinking too,remember driver,engine is to the ĺeft side,no way the bars are going to have the same thread count.

 

[72bluNblu]

Excuse me...the lower control arm bolts are required to be loose when adjusting the t bars. Currently the op is twisting the heck out of the lca bushings and will most likely tear then up. Consult the FSM. In addition removing the front shocks is very beneficial as the car can be jounced and bounced when adjusting....

This isn't completely true. Adjusting the torsion bar adjusters doesn't twist the torsion bars or apply load to the bushings during the adjustment. All it does is change the angle of the control arm with respect to the pivot. The pivot doesn't move.

After the adjustment, depending on how much the adjustment was changed, you may want to unload and re-torque the pivot nuts. The reason for that being that if you changed the ride height substantially you will want the bushing to be neutral at the new ride height, so the rubber isn't overextended with it's new range of travel.

But you don't need the pivot nuts loose when you're making the ride height adjustment, that adjustment by itself doesn't twist anything at all.

Jouncing the car does absolutely nothing unless you have the car on slip plates. If you don't have the car on slip plates, you need to roll the wheels to let the suspension fully settle between adjustments. The shocks don't need to be removed, as the shocks aren't capable of supporting the weight of the car by themselves. Unless you have air shocks and they're pressurized to raise the car. Which is a bad idea ALL the time, but would effect the ride height adjustment process.

Sway bar end links, if a sway bar is present, should be removed or very loose as the sway bar could affect how the car settles during/after the adjustment.

 

[Dana67Dart]

super stock springs in the rear.

Are they the same spring on each side or one part number on one side and another on the other?

If they are different pn, one side of the rear sits higher than the other. That will effect your front aswell

 

[72bluNblu]

Are they the same spring on each side or one part number on one side and another on the other?

If they are different pn, one side of the rear sits higher than the other. That will effect your front aswell

Exactly!

The Super Stock springs have a higher arch on one side to react to the additional torque effect on launch. They push the opposite front corner down because they cross load the chassis at rest.

 

[RustyRatRod]

What I was thinking too,remember driver,engine is to the ĺeft side,no way the bars are going to have the same thread count.

Exactly. The driver is in the car more than anyone through the years. The driver's side tirsion bar will certainly need more adjustment to level the car after 50 plus years. It's normal, normal, normal! Level the car and DRIVE IT!!!!!