Torsion Bar replacement

[Richard Williams]

I have to remove thr front and rear torsion bars on a GTL. The book says I need some special tools for this job. Is this true? ,and has anyone got the tools on a drawing to have one made up?

 

[malcolm]

I think someone else asked about the tool a while back but I don't think we got anywhere. Might be worth a forum search.

It should be reasonably simple to make. From memory the end of the front torsion bar is in the shape of an 8 sided nut. You need a strong half moon shaped spanner welded to a 3 foot bar for leverage. The car needs jacking up a long way so you can get about 90 degrees of rotation on the bar. There's a lot of torque in the torsion bar so I'd guess the spanner needs to be either 1/4 inch thick and hardened or otherwise a good 3/8 inch thick.

The Haynes manual mentiones a soft faced hammer for tapping out the rear torsion bars. Normally when they say that they really mean a great big sledgehammer. I've never removed a rear torsion bar as the whole rear susp;ension can come off and go back on in one lump.

 

[Liam4R4SPARES]

Be very careful ! as i have cut through torsion bars with a angle grinder when breaking up R4s and there is a hell of a lot of stored force there ready to be unleashed.
Why are you removing them ?

 

[Richard Williams]

Reason for removal

Thanks to all, I'm removeing them to prepare a chassis for welding, there's some rust in the foor pan where the front torsion bar is ,and at the rear, one of the rear suspension mounting brackects has some rust and will need replacement for the MOT. I'm very interested in the removal of it all in one lump though, how does that work?

 

[Liam4R4SPARES]

The rear axle can be removed in one whole unit without removing the torsion bars and its a straightforward job to do .Just carefully disconnect the rear shocks absorbers .Do you have or need a haynes manual to help you ?

 

[Richard Williams]

Yes, I have the Haynes book and one of those Pitmans "All in One" books. But I couldn't see a description of both rear suspension arms and torsion bars being removed in one unit. There is a description for the removal of the rea shock absorber of course.

 

[John Doe]

Somebody mentioned that tool and I've asked for instructions how to make one but he never replied

 

[angel]

Rear torsion bars are hard to remove alone,it is best to remove the complete "axle". Each suspension arm has 3 mounting bolts for the outer bush bracket and 3 for the inner bracket,which is also the anchorage for the opposite torsion bar. First,remove both shock absorbers,anti-roll bar (if fitted) and brake limiter valve link on the left suspension arm. Then remove the 3 bolts that hold the outer bracket. Then proceed to rempve the 3 inner bracket bolts...surprise! You will notice that one nut is between the fuel tank and the chassis rail,you will need to remove the tank,too. Then the whole axle is ready to fall down. Having reached this far,it is worth resetting rear ride height (you should have measured it first as stated on the Haynes manual). Or,if it is correct,to remove the bars (mark their position first) and clean and regrease their splines. Be careful not to mix left and right hand bars,and also try not to hit directly on the bar as it can become mushroomed at the end (use a bronze drift). The only special tool you will need is a length of M10 threaded rod with an eyebolt on the end,the procedure is stated clearly on the Haynes manual.
Front torsion bars are a different story...You will definitely need the special spanner. I had mine made at a Plasma CNC cutting machine,it was the cheapest way to go. The material was 20mm thick St-50 sheet steel. I have a drawing of this tool but it is a .dwg (AutoCad) file,if anyone is interested,I can send it. The tricky part is that the "nut" (torsion bar anchorage lever) is an octagon with tapered sides.I measured an "average" AF distance to be 35mm,then had the tool made to this dimension,then made the taper with a file trying the tool on a spare anchor lever...really a lot of work.If you have reached this point you should find a way to apply leverage to the bar. One way is what Clementine suggests,the other is to duplicate the Renault SUS-28 tool, which is what I have done. You can see the tools in action in the photos below.(sorry,I didn't have any better ones...). Anyway, removing the bar now is a matter of holding the tension and removing the 3 bolts under the front seat then carefully releasing the tool.Now the bar is free,how you remove it from the car is another story as it is often found stuck on the splines and removal of the lower suspension arm is often necessary. Again take care not to mix left and right bars and to mark clearly their position so as not to alter (or alter at will) the ride height. I do not recommend these procedures to anyone without a sufficient mechanical experience,they could even be dangerous at some points.

 

[Richard Williams]

Thanks for that very full answer, I would love to have those drawings, I'm sue I will find someone to open the files even if I can't. It is good to hear from someone who has clearly been through the process
rgfwilliams@btconnect.com

 

[John Doe]

I would appreciate if you would send me those drawings at vkaserATgmail.com
Thanks.

 

[Richard Williams]

I wonder where these tools are that must have been supplied to all Renault dealerships throughout the 60's and 70's. Gathering dust in some storage unit I suspect? might be worth us makeing some enquiries locally.

 

[malcolm]

I've knocked together an economy version of the front torsion bar removing tool. It's nowhere near as nice as Angel's version, but I reckon it should work. Haven't tried it out yet - still need to buy the nuts.

 

[djoptix]

I prefer Clementine's effort, it is kinder to those of us with puny 1024x768 screens

(those pics on page 1 were a little on the large side...)