Here are a few photos of the procedure. This is DMC Joe's son, Allen (Alan?) http://home.att.net/~whalt/095torsionbaradjustment1.jpg http://home.att.net/~whalt/096torsionbaradjustment2.jpg These photos are of Rob Grady & Marc Levy doing adjustments using a wood fixture made for the job. http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/DMCForum/lst ...then click "Memphis 2002" and look at photo Memphis022. Then click the "technical" folder and look at photos Memphis021 & Memphis023. Many people have the opinion of, "If you have to ask, you shouldn't try it." It is really very simple, but one wrong move and you break the rear window or worse. Before you start, use a marker to draw a line across the rear of the torsion bar and plate so that you know where the adjustment was before you started. The previous guy may have already done this. 1) Keep the door open. This takes a lot of pressure off of the torsion bar. Have someone stand there and hold it or prop the door open with a plank or stick. It is safer to put the prop on the door sill rather than on the ground. Then if the car shifts on the suspension, the prop moves with the car instead of falling out. 2) You need a 3/8 inch hex (allen wrench) built into a socket. Be sure this is fit all the way into the end of the torsion bar or it might crack/spread the end of the bar. For leverage I use a breaker bar (it's a ratchet handle that doesn't ratchet). Then fit a piece of pipe over that for more leverage. (I use the handle from my floor jack just like DMCJoe does.) 3) From here it is a 2 person job. One guy holds the tension on the bar while the other guy removes the two bolts from the torsion bar plate (spline bracket). You have to tell the guy holding the tension to either slightly tighten or loosen the torsion so that the plate doesn't destroy the threads while you take the bolts out. Shifting up & down and back & forth is also necessary. If it doesn't come out with minimal effort, you are probably jamming the threads. 4) With the bolts out, the plate should slide off and over your 3/8" allen socket. Just in case, have some small pry-bars & screwdrivers handy for in case the previous guy screwed something up and it won't come off easily. The guy holding the tension on the bar will be stuck there until you get it apart. 5) Now you can release the tension on the bar, but be sure that the plate is off and spinning free or it will break the rear window. 6) To get the bar out, you need to "break it free". Do this by using the lever to turn the bar in the opposite direction (loosening the tension). You should hear a pop when the bar has pulled loose from the socket in the front hinge. Then be careful pulling it out so that you don't scratch it in the rear sub-panel. While you have the torsion bars out, consider putting screws through the back of the sub-panel and into the fiberglass underbody to keep it from raising up. The sub-panel was only held on with epoxy from the factory, and this often comes loose with age. I have some photos of that procedure around here somewhere if you want to see what it looks like. When putting things back together check to make sure there is clearance between the torsion bar and rear hinge. If there is not enough or if it was rubbing before (and screwing the sub-panel down didn't fix it) then consider adding a washer or fender spacer underneath the torsion bar plate on the outer bolt. This will straighten the bar up a bit so that it doesn't flex against the hinge & rub. Walt To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: DMCForum-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
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