Torsion Bars vs. Coil Springs
- Thread starter rklein383
- Start date
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Ben Drinkin
Hey bartender!
I agree. Easier/safer to deal with. Infinitely adjustable. And just a cooler design..
They are the same thing really, in a different package. Each with its own advantages and disadvantages.
rklein383
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I think torsion bars are way easier to disassemble and put back together. Maybe I am missing something, but reinstalling those coil springs is a two man job, and you can set the preload on torsion bars to establish your preferred ride height.
It so is not a two man job. You just gotta be smart about it. A pair of jack stands and a floor jack is pretty much all I use. There are exceptions of course, but it really is no more involved than a T-bar, just different. Like RRR said, they both have their pluses and minuses.
rklein383
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I would like to see one person do it on my suburban. I have been working on cars for 35 years pretty by myself and I know almost every trick in the book to do things by myself. To get the coil spring started, I had to give a good push with my foot on the bottom of the spring to get it in the back of the lower control arm receiving cup and I had my son starting jacking away.
I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you are not saying I am stupid..
I can show YOU how to swap springs in that thing in under an hour.
Since I cannot show you in person, here's how you do it.
1. Jack one side up and support it under the frame with a large jack stand.
2.Remove the tire & wheel.
3. Remove the cotter pin and nut from the outer tie rod and separate the toe rod from the spindle.
4. Position the floor jack under the outer lip of the lower control arm, close to the lower ball joint. Give the jack a few pumps to relieve tension from the shock.
5. Remove the shock.
6. Remove the cotter pin from the lower ball joint and separate the ball joint from the spindle.
7. Make sure the spindle is free from the low control arm. Be mindful of the brake backing plate.
8. Lower the floor jack and watch the coil spring fall on the ground. *Sometimes* the lower control arm needs a little push at the bottom of it's stroke for the spring to fall out, but it will.
9. Installation is an exact reversal.
Just because YOU don't know how to do something, doesn't mean it cannot be done.
Cuda68Scott
Well-Known Member
My brand x Suburban has torsion bars. 2001 model. Maybe brand x saw the light!
Oh dear lord, I would never call you stupid, dumba$$.
Rusty is pretty on with it. I usually pull the rotor and backing plate on the Chevy trucks so I can get directly under the lower ball joint and make sure the floor jack is straight with the motion of the control arm. (90 degrees to the vehicle). I also have a couple of big prybars to help wrangle them suckers into the pocket.
Or, you can use a 5/8 piece of allthread, some washers, nuts and some flat steel plate with a hole in it. Completely drop the lower arm, drop the allthread through the shock hole with a washer and double nuts on top. Install the spring, the lower arm, the steel plate, a washer and a nut. Keep some lube on the allthread, hold the top double nuts and tighten the lower nut. Takes some time, but will spin that arm and spring right up into place.
??WHAAZT? Another ..........
Laugh My *** Off,
Rip all that sheit out and Bag it---
Laugh My *** Off,
moparmat2000
Well-Known Member
Just an FYI, Chevy 4x4 pickups starting with 1988 model redesign went to torsion bars. 2wd models retained upper and lower A arms and coil springs.
ramenth
Gratis persona
Oh dear lord, I would never call you stupid, dumba$$.
Rusty is pretty on with it. I usually pull the rotor and backing plate on the Chevy trucks so I can get directly under the lower ball joint and make sure the floor jack is straight with the motion of the control arm. (90 degrees to the vehicle). I also have a couple of big prybars to help wrangle them suckers into the pocket.
Or, you can use a 5/8 piece of allthread, some washers, nuts and some flat steel plate with a hole in it. Completely drop the lower arm, drop the allthread through the shock hole with a washer and double nuts on top. Install the spring, the lower arm, the steel plate, a washer and a nut. Keep some lube on the allthread, hold the top double nuts and tighten the lower nut. Takes some time, but will spin that arm and spring right up into place.
Or...
You could be lucky enough to have a floor with pulling pots in it.
Changing the ride height does not change the preload. It changes the angle of the LCA with respect to the hex end of the torsion bar, which changes the ride height. Changing the ride height does change the available suspension travel, which can make it seem like the pre-load changes because of the amount of time you spend on the bump stops, but the preload is in fact the same. It is the weight of the car.
rklein383
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Oh dear lord, I would never call you stupid, dumba$$.
Rusty is pretty on with it. I usually pull the rotor and backing plate on the Chevy trucks so I can get directly under the lower ball joint and make sure the floor jack is straight with the motion of the control arm. (90 degrees to the vehicle). I also have a couple of big prybars to help wrangle them suckers into the pocket.
Or, you can use a 5/8 piece of allthread, some washers, nuts and some flat steel plate with a hole in it. Completely drop the lower arm, drop the allthread through the shock hole with a washer and double nuts on top. Install the spring, the lower arm, the steel plate, a washer and a nut. Keep some lube on the allthread, hold the top double nuts and tighten the lower nut. Takes some time, but will spin that arm and spring right up into place.
Now that is funny!
Honestly, I would use a good prybar or two instead of a foot. Coil springs can pack a fair amount of potential energy and if it gets loose and goes kinetic, it is easier to replace a prybar. Not like I haven't got smacked in the face with a prybar......
Back on topic,
6. Remove the cotter pin from the lower ball joint and separate the ball joint from the spindle.
Read remove cotter pin, loosen balljoint nut 3 turns, wheels right for left joint & converse for right side, BFH applied to upper or lower spindle until joint 'pops'...
Jack 'up', remove nut, lower control arm with jack until spring unloads,
CAUTION! CAUTION! CAUTION!!!,
If the ball joint stud gets cocked in the spindle --- DO NOT REMOVE THE JACK ---
Put the nut back on & use a prybar to free the bind...
Then lower the LCA,
CAUTION! CAUTION! CAUTION!!!,
'Unloaded Springs' are NOT !!!!
Go SLOW !!!
The spring 'arch' will move more toward lineal as compression is released.
Picture it this way, 2 or 3 'arched ' coils have the retained energy of 1/3 of
the total spring energy, I will not bore You Honored Posters with the math...
Go Slow, Be Careful, If in doubt, rewind & seek help!!!
6. Remove the cotter pin from the lower ball joint and separate the ball joint from the spindle.
Read remove cotter pin, loosen balljoint nut 3 turns, wheels right for left joint & converse for right side, BFH applied to upper or lower spindle until joint 'pops'...
Jack 'up', remove nut, lower control arm with jack until spring unloads,
CAUTION! CAUTION! CAUTION!!!,
If the ball joint stud gets cocked in the spindle --- DO NOT REMOVE THE JACK ---
Put the nut back on & use a prybar to free the bind...
Then lower the LCA,
CAUTION! CAUTION! CAUTION!!!,
'Unloaded Springs' are NOT !!!!
Go SLOW !!!
The spring 'arch' will move more toward lineal as compression is released.
Picture it this way, 2 or 3 'arched ' coils have the retained energy of 1/3 of
the total spring energy, I will not bore You Honored Posters with the math...
Go Slow, Be Careful, If in doubt, rewind & seek help!!!
Yes. A hole in your face is easily accomplished.
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