[Walt Fricke]

Bob
My PCA GT4 car (base tub a '68 Targa) came to me as a roller with the "hole" area already modified. The inside, up to about the level of the cross piece, had been cut out, sheet metal welded in the across the car direction on both sides, with a piece of thicker steel on the inside reclosing it - something like that.

It had the steel bananas, and they had the shock mount moved. When I switched to aluminum pieces nothing special needed to be done for the shock mounts.

This car has been in coilover configuration for a long time, and any issues with the tub and mount at the outsides of the torsion tube have been minor despite there being no reinforcing there, knock on wood. Had I known the RSR had a reinforcement I might have done that, but I didn't, and since there have been no issues beyond maybe rewelding one of the nut inserts/standoffs, I don't think I'll add that to my list. And I use only three of the four bolts - the lower rear isn't used for clearance.

If you had anticipated this problem (but how could you), you could have had the bolt which holds the Heim to the front of the spring plate moved forward. I had two holes drilled and tapped into the slug welded into the ends of my tube - one in the center, and one above it. I wish I had had the upper one installed at the absolute upper limit, as there are advantages to moving that pivot up. Some cars are modified to where the pivot is actually a bit above the top of the tube.

If you cut the spring plate rear slots out some more in the forward direction, that would give you more toe in. I elongated mine, though I think I did so rearward, because we may not have hit the optimum length just right with this one off system instead of the manufactured one you have. Looks like you have the same clever adjustment (forward threaded heim in a reverse threaded larger bolt, or vice versa) my machinist came up with.

If you disassemble your toe adjusting Heim/bolts/nuts, you could mill off some of the face of the head of the large bolt. That should allow the Heim part to get farther in. You don't need much width on the bolt head - just enough to hold it while you tighten the lock nuts (which also could be thinned.

I know that these sort of kludes are not as satisfying as kn0wing how this problem arose, but they all sound like they are a better use of time and money than replacing the whole torsion tube.

But if your inner mounts are a bit forward, that would move the toe out. Are those stock? Or are they sphericals? If the mounts on the torsion tube are bent inward some, that too would move the toe outward.

If you convert to adjustable camber boxes in there, along with reinforcement, you can move the pivots aft a bit - not as far as the Turbos (and RSRs?) - but enough to get you your range of toe adjustment back.

If you do replace the torsion tube, that would be the time to do something fancy with the center. There a large slug of metal (maybe two) inside that tube toward the center - to hold the ends of the torsion bars. Just dead weight in the rear with coilovers. Some cut out the center of the tube and notch it upward - or join the two halves with a short I beam or something, all to allow the transmission to be mounted a bit higher without the shift linkage bumping into the tube (helps axle/CV angularity with lowering, especially with taller rims). I've seen and saved pictures of how several clever shops have done this. That would go with adding the RSR style inner adjustable mounts. Turns out you still want to adjust camber the old way with the eccentrics, as the inner mount adjustment is used to deal with a different suspension parameter (roll center), but they are nifty to have.