torsion bar

grampatom · Post by **grampatom** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 1:04 am

The steel link that fastens the end of the torsion bar to the front suspension, driver's side, snapped off. My question is, since I can't see any way to slide that part of, with its rubber isolator, off the torsion bar, is it necessary to replace the torsion bar and the links as an assembly? Or is it possible to slide the rubber isolator over the expanded end of the torsion bar? The repair manual is silent on this issue.

gramp

libbybapa · Post by **libbybapa** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 10:06 am

There were not any diesels vanagons that had torsion bar suspensions. You might want to go to www.thesamba.com and discuss it in the "Bay window" forum.

Andrew

grampatom · Post by **grampatom** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 10:16 pm

Right, my vanagon, and I presume all of them, has coil springs all around. It also has a thick torsion bar across the front that ties the right and left sides together, to damp vertical motion. When I was a kid we called them sway bars or anti-sway bars, Bentley calls it a torsion bar...whatever you call it, I did figure out how to get the broken link off the end of it. Generous squirts of lithium grease spray and a gear puller. Nothing to it. Putting the new one back on was only a little harder.

I do remember the torsion bar suspension of the old bugs, and of old Chrysler products, too.

Thanks,

gramp

libbybapa · Post by **libbybapa** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 10:57 pm

Ah, yes, I would call it an anti-sway bar as well. Thought you had a bus. Sorry.

Andrew

stopping · Post by **stopping** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 9:52 am

Hey Gramps,

I just got an old one and re-enforced the disks/ washers with thinker stainless ones. My friend had luck drilling out and tapping the sway bar "link" and replacing it with a good quality bolt (m10 er so and a high pressure one too).

I have never been lucky enough to have one I could not remove with greese and wiggling.

Good luck

grampatom · Post by **grampatom** » Thu Jun 29, 2006 11:54 pm

Thanks, Stopping.

I retrieved a link off a junker and installed it. Amazing the difference in handling and steering with that bar moored at both ends. There's also a bushing at the base of that link that rusts away. Will need to get a better replacement for that also.

stopping · Post by **stopping** » Sun Jul 02, 2006 2:36 pm

Gramps.... just a word about the forum here.

It helps folks if they know what vehicule your talking about without having to reread all that was writen. So what we do is put the vehicule in question in our signatures at the bottom of every post.

Talk to you soon

Former VWDieselParts.com Forum

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