Just finished doing this tutorial myself, saw a few comments about the suspension numbers changing after driving. From what I’ve been told and have seen myself, torsion bars act just like springs in the sense that they “settle” after lowering the truck back on the ground. After leveling the truck a handful of times, the front would consistently drop ~ 3/4” after driving a few miles. Just my .2
For those with torsion bar questions (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter Gunney
- Start date
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Are the TB splines supposed to protrude this much on the passenger side??
I'm worried my TB isn't fully seated in compared to the driver side:
I had reindexed the passenger side when I couldn't crank any further to get to my desired lift of ~1.5". This was about 6 months ago/a couple thousand miles (highway and off-road ). I guess I didn't pay close attention to it back then. I only barely just noticed after going back down under the truck just now to do an oil change. The suspension and steering feels fine otherwise.
I'm worried my TB isn't fully seated in compared to the driver side:
I had reindexed the passenger side when I couldn't crank any further to get to my desired lift of ~1.5". This was about 6 months ago/a couple thousand miles (highway and off-road ). I guess I didn't pay close attention to it back then. I only barely just noticed after going back down under the truck just now to do an oil change. The suspension and steering feels fine otherwise.
NVM, I had a chance to go down again and loosen everything up. I'll post here because I don't recall seeing it mentioned or maybe I skipped over it:
When reindexing your torsion bars, make sure to seat them in an equally distributed distance between the front torque arm and the back anchor arm. The anchor arm is pretty deep and so my torsion bar was pushed all the way back in there leaving a lot of the front splines expose out of the front torque arm.
Hi all,
OP - incredibly helpful, thank you!
I was able to get an extra 5(ish) worth of teeth on the reindex. Mine still has AHC, so I'm making the adjustments in efforts to lower front pressures. I've cranked at the bolt for a while and have a long ways to go but before I went any further I wanted to ask: With this adjustment is there any possibility that I could snap or damage the hardware as I torgue the bolt up? Probably a ridiclious question but wanted to check before I get back to it.
Thanks all!
OP - incredibly helpful, thank you!
I was able to get an extra 5(ish) worth of teeth on the reindex. Mine still has AHC, so I'm making the adjustments in efforts to lower front pressures. I've cranked at the bolt for a while and have a long ways to go but before I went any further I wanted to ask: With this adjustment is there any possibility that I could snap or damage the hardware as I torgue the bolt up? Probably a ridiclious question but wanted to check before I get back to it.
Thanks all!
If the hardware wasn’t corroded when you took it apart there should be no problem. The AHC bars have a lot less tension than the Land Cruiser bars.
I have a 2002 Landcruiser and need to raise the front by about 0.75 inch because of a heavy ARB bumper and winch. Both sides are currently ~19.0 inches from the middle of the hub to the fender, and I have read the factory height should be 19.75 inches.
The rig is completely rusted everywhere, and I have tried every trick on this forum to move the torsion bar adjustment bolt to no avail:
Thanks all,
The rig is completely rusted everywhere, and I have tried every trick on this forum to move the torsion bar adjustment bolt to no avail:
- Both front tires off the ground
- Tons of PB blaster
- Torch heat
- Impact wrench
- 24 inch breaker bar
- Torsion adjustment bolt: 90101-18010
- Crescent bolt: 48169-60010
- Seat, anchor arm adjuster: 48173-60010
- if I use a Sawsall to start cutting at the arrow shown in the picture below, what happens when I get all the way through?
- Is there so much tension on the “anchor arm” that it’ll snap down and is it dangerous to do this?
- Is this the right way and place to cut the bolt?
- When I replace with new hardware, is it as simple as just screwing the bolt into the new bolt until I achieve the proper tension and height?
Thanks all,
I don't have many answers to your questions but I wanted to cast a vote for considering to just keep the current ride height and not mess with the rusty stuff but I guess it depends on how much time / tools you have...Is it currently riding bad with the additional weight at 19"?
( your block of wood under frame looks suspect, be careful)
( your block of wood under frame looks suspect, be careful)
- if I use a Sawsall to start cutting at the arrow shown in the picture below, what happens when I get all the way through?
If the truck is jacked up you should have no to very little tension on the bars.
- Is there so much tension on the “anchor arm” that it’ll snap down and is it dangerous to do this?
Probably not. Need to have the truck jacked up to have pressure off the bars. Go slow. It shouldn't "explode" and shoot anything across the room.
- Is this the right way and place to cut the bolt?
That would work if you can actually get a saw in there.
- When I replace with new hardware, is it as simple as just screwing the bolt into the new bolt until I achieve the proper tension and height?
Screwing the bolt into the new bolt does not compute. Just replace all the new stuff the way the old stuff is in there. Reindex and tighten. If you turn the bar too far your adjusting bolt will hang below the yoke and can get buggered on rocks.
I might agree with you if it was an LX, but I had a corroded bolt fail when I was trying to tighten the TBs when my truck was on the lift, and it was quite violent.
I guess it depends on how tight it is at first. When I adjusted mine they were pretty loose when lifted off the ground. I guess it depends on its current position. You can feel the tension on the adjuster if you just reach up and try to twist the whole adjuster.
Are you running aftermarket TBs? I can imagine thicker bars would have less tension when unloaded. I still have the original TBs.
OME. I concur with your thinking. I guess they could be pretty tight.
There is not a lot of room in there to work.
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I finally was able to get the torsion bar adjustment bolts out and install new ones, but it was quite an ordeal. After days of Kroil, torching, breaker bars, and impact wrenches, I was still only able to move the bolts a little bit on each side. There was just far too much corrosion on threads once it all got pulled into the crescent nut to move any more.
On the passenger side, I was able to remove all the tension before resorting to the Saws-all. On the driver's side, I moved the bolt a few turns, but then would not budge. I was reluctant to use the torch more on that side because the gas lines run right behind the adjustment bolt. For anyone else attempting this, there is DEFINITELY TENSION IN THE BOLT. But the torsion arm only releases an inch. The head of the bolt with shoot down and towards the outside of the vehicle, so stay way clear of that projected path when sawing. I attempted to show this in the pictures below.
In the process of all the pounding, I noticed that the mounts holding all of the torsion adjustment pieces was really starting to rust out and I became worried the entire mount on both sides might completely break free. So I took it up to a local shop in Danbury, CT and they did an incredible job in only 2 hours with fabbing out new supports and shoring up the frame around it. For anyone in the northeast area and in need of anything like this, these guys are incredible and i highly recommend - talk to the owner Ed at Danbury Auto Springs and Welding. Pictures are below.
I've also shown pictures of the 3 replacement Part #'s (1 set needed for each side) and it is definitely worth the cost given how easy it is now to adjust everything as I fine tune the front height after installing new OME 2860 springs in the rear.
While I was in the mood of blowing up tons of saw blades, I figured I'd change the front sway bar links, which were also rusted beyond any hope. And the new ones have made a huge difference in the ride I would not have expected.
Thanks everyone for the help.
On the passenger side, I was able to remove all the tension before resorting to the Saws-all. On the driver's side, I moved the bolt a few turns, but then would not budge. I was reluctant to use the torch more on that side because the gas lines run right behind the adjustment bolt. For anyone else attempting this, there is DEFINITELY TENSION IN THE BOLT. But the torsion arm only releases an inch. The head of the bolt with shoot down and towards the outside of the vehicle, so stay way clear of that projected path when sawing. I attempted to show this in the pictures below.
In the process of all the pounding, I noticed that the mounts holding all of the torsion adjustment pieces was really starting to rust out and I became worried the entire mount on both sides might completely break free. So I took it up to a local shop in Danbury, CT and they did an incredible job in only 2 hours with fabbing out new supports and shoring up the frame around it. For anyone in the northeast area and in need of anything like this, these guys are incredible and i highly recommend - talk to the owner Ed at Danbury Auto Springs and Welding. Pictures are below.
I've also shown pictures of the 3 replacement Part #'s (1 set needed for each side) and it is definitely worth the cost given how easy it is now to adjust everything as I fine tune the front height after installing new OME 2860 springs in the rear.
While I was in the mood of blowing up tons of saw blades, I figured I'd change the front sway bar links, which were also rusted beyond any hope. And the new ones have made a huge difference in the ride I would not have expected.
Thanks everyone for the help.
Good tech dude. Glad you got them out. Helpful pics as well. I would not have expected so much tension.
Wow that sounds like a miserable project but nice work getting it all done...I used to live in Danbury, glad to hear that shop is still operational....I miss having access to good mechanics in my area....I do not miss the salty roads in CT though lol
Tough job!! Great write-up with fantastic pictures and explanatory labels!! I am flagging your story -- and the early explanations in this whole thread from the start -- to @westaussielx470, although his vehicle has a clean rustfree underbody.
I need to reindex just the drivers side TB. For some reason, the previous owner seems to have only reindexed the passenger side when they installed new TBs. I’m bottomed out on my drivers side, and it sits ~1” lower than my passengers side, which still has plenty of rooms for adjustment.
How bad will the alignment be out when I do the reindexing? Will I be able to drive it 10-15 miles, or does the alignment need to happen in conjunction with the reindexing?
How bad will the alignment be out when I do the reindexing? Will I be able to drive it 10-15 miles, or does the alignment need to happen in conjunction with the reindexing?
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It won't be too bad. You can drive it.
