Front Suspension Question

[911buff]

My '74 2.0 was lowered when I bought the car. The rear springs had been hacked off in an attempt to make lowering springs...epic fail! That issue is resolved. My question is about the front suspension. I attempted to adjust the suspension but the adjusters were totally seized and required attention. I had to replace the driver's side adjuster housing and bolt. Now, even though the adjuster is adjusted to max torsion rate, it is at the bottom of the suspension travel. Passenger side is too low also, although not as bad. Are the torsion bars shot? Or could I have assembled it wrong? Procedure seemed very straight forward and a no brainer. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

[Joe Ricard]

You are probably going to have to re-index the adjuster on the Torsion bar at least one maybe two splines.

Unload all weight off front tires. do both side the same or you really will go nuts.

unscrew the bolt in the adjuster and take out. then pull the adjuster off torsion bar. move it a spline and put it all back together. then adjust the bolt from there.

[911buff]

I attempted to readjust the front suspension (without really reading this completely) and it did no good. Now that I read it again, I have a question. Are the torsion bars the same as the rear torsion bars in a 911 or VW Beetle? Where the number of splines are different on each end? If that is the case, I understand how to adjust, if not, how do I re-index? Thanks.

[luskesq]

I don't believe that there is a difference in spline count (but could be wrong) but they should be marked "L" & "R" (left/right). As Joe mentioned, lift the front end and remove the adjustor after first removing the adjustor screw/bolt. If necesary use a lever to move your control arm to full droop. While in that position reinstall the adjustor so that it is as close to the adjustor screw stop as possible. Reinstall adjustor screw and do the procedure on the other side.

Keith

[djpateman]

No, the spline count is the same. The front suspension is nearly identical to a 911 but the torsion bars have different spline counts, so the A arms and torsion bars must be matched; 911 & 914/6 are the same parts.
Re-indexing is simply rotating the adjuster on the bar by a spline or two. To get room to move the adjuster enough, the A-arm may need to be rotated; (as previously stated: to full droop). This may require some effort, but it is the way it must be done.