Torsion bar cover

[Anil]

Hi All,

I've got a bit of an issue with my rear torsion bar covers. These are the parts which fit over the torsion bar and are attached onto the spring plate with 4 bolts.
The part number for the part is 901 333 153 00.

Mine are severely corroded, and during its MOT, the tester pointed out that he could see the spring plate bushes on both side through the rust holes.

My question is, has anyone else had to replace these covers, and if so, could you describe what the job entails? If it going to be a pain, then I'll entrust it to a garage.

Many Thanks

Anil

 

[Guest]

Happy to comfirm that this is pretty easy.

Jack up and support with appropriate wheelstands. NB you cannot use the ends of the torsion bars for this. If in doubt as to where to put the axle stands then use a couple of 6x2s to spread the load.

Next step is simply to undo the four bolts, remove the old covers and bolt on the new ones. Pulling old covers off may require a small pry bar as the rubber bushings are a tight fit. Similarly, attaching the new ones can require a small amount of perseverence as the studs are not overly long and it is not always possible to get all 4 nuts started at once.

The new covers are nice shiny plated hardware, so you should get some new nuts to match. Somebody else will probably let you know the required torque settings. I have guessed it in the past and it should be pretty tight.

The only problem I can imagine is if the rust is more extensive than you think and you discover rust in/around the torsion tube - but that is a different can of worms altogether.

If you feel like making an upgrade at the same time, you could replace the old bushs with new rubber Neatrix bushes. These are firmer than OE but will not squeak like plastic. The problem with the old bushes is that they deform over time to a point where it is impossible to get the rear suspension to hold an alignment setting. the deformation will be clearly visible when you pull of the covers.

All 10+ year old 911s will suffer from this malady, but unfortunately it is not easy to replace the bushings. First you have to remove the spring plate. Secondly you have to cut the old bushings off as they are vulcanised to the spring plate (horrid, difficult, time consuming job - I have , in the past resorted to throwing the whole spring plate in a bonfire to burn them off). Third, you have to reindex the torsion bars unless you are very careful to attach everything in the exact same positions as you started with. Fourth, you have to realign the rear end. Altogether not cheap (unless you do it yourself).

If you decide to pay someone else to just replace the covers, this should be a quick and cheap job.

HTH

Richard

 

[ClubSport 911]

Anil

Richard is right. The "Can of Worms" alarm should be ringing hard when considering spring plate covers and what might lurk beneath . I have had new bushes and spring plates on my car and it transformed the handling.

Depsite the low mileage they were very severly perished. Not an MOT failure but ropey nonetheless. Interestingly, the covers were fine and were blasted, re-powder coated, dipped in waxoyl and re-fitted.

You may have the tools to do the complete suspension job, but I wanted it doing by someone who does this for a living and knows the set up of 911's like you know the back of your hand.

Worth considering.

Steve

 

[Guest]

The easy thing is to pay someone else to rebuild your suspension, however, if you are so inclined this is not a difficult job. I did it while I was studying for my professional exams about 10 years ago. I just pulled it apart and put it back together again - I had no books or expert advice - just curiosity. I also had the non-adjustable springplates that come with a 1972 car. I had to pull it apart and reset the heights once but otherwise it was fine. I guessed the alignment until it looked right and then drove it to a tyre shop for proper alignment. I even got plastic bushes to fit without squeeking - unlike the London specialist who fitted mine to the current car.

If you have the time and a garage it is quite possible to do this yourself. Nowadays though, like Steve D, I pay the experts to do it for me!

Richard

 

[Anil]

Richard, Steve

Many thanks for the replies.

I've ordered new torsion bar covers/bolts and will attempt to fit them myself. The torsion bar tube itself (which sticks out into the wheel well) looks in very good condition of what I can see of it.

Hopefully, I won't find anything disturbing once the covers are off!

Money's a bit tight this month otherwise I would have considered replacing the springplate bushes as well. I particularly like the bronze spring plate bushes manufactured by Elephant Racing.

Cheers again

Anil

 

[Guest]

Hi Anil,

The Elephant Racing bushings do look like a great engineering solution, but, they are a solution to a problem that not alot of us have. Unless your car is a serious racecar, it is highly unlikely that you would notice the difference between these and the hard rubber Neatrix bushings - which are one third of the price.

I have run plastic springplate bushings for a couple of years and it is does give you a very tight rear end with great camber control, but I am now sick and tired of the sqeaking that the bushings produce and will be replacing with Neatrix - I just can't justify the expense of the Elephant Racing bushings. The Neatrix are harder rubber than OE and I think will be fine for my use - which includes quite a few track days.

HTH

Richard

 

[Guest]

You should take a look at this thread on Pelican for some pics to help you with the process: http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=136886

RB

 

[Guest]

Anil,
If you decide to replace the bushes, use Chuck Morelands advice here. I used this technique on a spare set of springplates and it worked a treat. Cleaned them up and they're ready for the platers now.

BTW How's your interior project coming along?