Would you replace these torsion bars?
 

Front torsion bars from my '86 Carrera. I think they probably should be replaced but thought I would get some opinions. If I do replace them, with what? Specs on the car: Running stock Carrera rear torsion bars. Bilstein HD's front and rear. Go with stock front torsion bars?

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1105307752.jpg

If you do the fronts....ya goota do the rears. MY SC uses 22 and 28s....

That one looks like a good candidate to be ground off and used as a pry bar....

Mike, why do I have to do the rears? When I had the rears out they were in excellent condition.

Only if you go bigger....if you just replace the fronts with same size you don't have to...

Kurt,

I agree with Mike the fronts are toast. Note the notch in the bar. That is from contact with something inside the A-arm. Find and fix that. That degree of corrosion is surely to cause a failure sooner than later. When a torsion bar fails the suspension drops to only being supported by the rubber bump stop in the shock and, to a lesser degree, by the sway bar transferring load to the other side. All of a sudden that end of the car looses grip.

Use this as an excuse to bring the spring rate stiffer. Your choice as to how much. Your 911 handles very well but the wonderful roads between your house and office beg for more responsive suspension. Since you don’t track your 911, there isn’t any reason to go to 24/31 mm. An intermediate set-up would work well.

When you install new torsion bars, thoroughly clean and oil the splines with heavy oil. Coat the torsion bars with heavy grease. These are service items that need to be lubed periodically for rust prevention. As you can see, the steel alloy used for torsion bars is very susceptible to corrosion.

If your rears are in good condition, I’m sure there are some Pelicans that will buy them.

Just don’t scare me too much between your house and Jefferson City.

Best,
Grady

(For others, It isn’t Kurt’s driving that scares me. It is the fear of the oncoming F-150 crossing the center line on these really cool roads.)

If your in Love with those torsion bars, have them bead blasted and crack checked. If they pass crack check, have them shot peened. Otherwise, use this as an excuse to upgrade:)

Chris

If you have a wife, this is probably the best thing that could happen to you.

"For SAFETY'S sake, I have to get new front torsion bars, and I have to do the rears to match the fronts," and so on. You could get a motor rebuild out of this!

Yes, replace them. You can find nice used stock ones all over the place for cheap. Looks like you might need new bushings (they sag and cause wear as Grady was discussing. If you do upgrade (fronts and rears) 21mm and 27mm would be a good combo for street and occassional AutoX etc. IMO

BTW, I have 21 and 26's in my car. I think the rear could be stiffer. I don't think I would want 22's up front, though. Might be too rough. And that's coming from a guy who had a (gasp!) lowered Honda Accord! Hehehe

I have 22 front and 28 rear, they are on a lighter car than yours and they are fine for street driving and AX. I really don't notice much of a difference most of the time except for the occasional rough road. Much flatter for spirited driving though.
I vote upgrade.

Thanks for the replys! The notch in the bar was definitely from rubbing. The bushing rubber had flowed from one side to the other. Will be replacing the bushings with Elephant bushings.