Torsion bar anchor mount bolts

Hi guys, new member here.

I have an issue with what I think is a snapped bolt on the passenger side of the torsion bar anchor. Where it bolts to the upper control arm.

I was removing the mount and realised there was still pressure on this point so I stopped and tightened them both back up. The one closest to the wheel keeps turning and not tightening, the other closest to the centre tightened back up fine.

Does anyone have any advice as to removing the whole upper control arm to find out if I have snapped the bolt.

I was attempting to lower the front of the van via torsion bar and my mechanic told me to make sure the front suspension assembly had been disconnected before doing it.  
I think after hours of reading this can be achieved at the torsion adjustment rather than messing around with any of the suspension assembly.



Thanks in advance

Hi, yeah you could've just lowered it by adjusting the torsion bar, but thats no use now. (and it will lower the suspension strengt as well, so that is maybe why the mechanic told you to do it by changing the arm)
Can't you feel with your hands/fingers behind it to see if you can feel a nut that is loose? Even though I think it just bolts into the arm directly.

And if you remove that bolt (if it is safe to do so!!!) is the bolt thread damaged? perhaps you can look into the hole and see if the thread is damaged there?
But I'm not sure if is safe to remove the bolt in the current situation. Or did you already have it removed?

I guess that it is the upper control arm, but it looks different from what I have. Which type of Hiace do you have? and what year?

It is a nut and bolt. I guess that it is a locking type nut so when wound on it tightens and then just turns the whole thing?
There is a plate in the way for the bump stop, you may have to remove the hub to get a better view.

I would try and pinch the threaded part while doing up the nut, jacking up the hub may be enough as this will wind the torsion bar up and provide downward force to the bracket,

Best of luck

Thanks for the replies.

Yes the bolt in question goes straight into the arm so you cannot access it from inside the arm itself.

When I had the wheel off yesterday I had tried putting my jack in under the hub to move it up and it didn't appear to make any difference.

Yes that is the upper control arm (the picture has uploaded sideways for some reason)

The van is a 94 hiace KZH100 (3l turbo diesel)

its either cross threaded or snapped.

Could not remove bolt as theres too much pressure coming from the torsion bar itself.

I have done a little bit of driving and there is no movement on the anchor so I assume it wont move in a hurry but I would like to fix the problem this weekend.

So I am assuming my best bet is to remove the torsion bar from the adjustment end, taking pressure off the anchor this way and then fixing the issue?

Anyone have any tips on the easiest way to remove the torsion bar?

Thanks in advance

From
http://jp-carparts.com/toyota/partlist.php?maker=toyota&type=711140&cartype=136&fig=4802

we have



and the spring:



if that helps. Part # 41867 ?

* If it's broken it would come out.
* If it's cross threaded it would be stiff

It does look like the bolt is being pushed up by the attachment (torsion bar lever?), so taking that pressure off is not as simple as jacking that point from the road.

If you can get the bolt out all will be revealed, and you can re-tap the hole for a helicoil or bigger bolt.

Part number 48167.

Thanks for the diagrams.

The bolt is very firm so must be cross threaded.

Do you know how to remove pressure on the torsion bar?

Many thanks

48173A in the top-right corner of diagram 2 looks likely as the adjuster for height, that looks like the diagram for the opposite side perhaps though.

If you do find it and it is the adjuster, keep count in writing of the turns so you can restore it back. Perhaps also use tippex. I suspect you'll need to jack the side and then adjust to release the torsion pressure, other people will know more then I however.

The bolt will be firm with any sideways pressure TBH, relieve the pressure and you'll be able to see really how tight it is.

Removed torsion bar adjustment bolts, removed torsion bar and anchor.
Bolt was cross threaded, and has stripped bolt and stripped the thread inside control arm.

I don't have enough skill to attempt tapping a new thread and putting a bigger bolt back through (and also drilling the bolt hole on the torsion bar anchor to allow for a bigger bolt)

I got it sitting at the right hight and left the bolt in place and tightened everything back up. So I will book it into a workshop next week and sort the problem.

Many thanks for everyones help and advice, you guys have helped.

Jako21 wrote:

Removed torsion bar adjustment bolts, removed torsion bar and anchor.
Bolt was cross threaded, and has stripped bolt and stripped the thread inside control arm.

:

I got it sitting at the right hight and left the bolt in place and tightened everything back up. So I will book it into a workshop next week and sort the problem.

Glad that we know what's going on now!

I was thinking that a smarter way to fix it would be for a mechanic to remove the 48167 bolted to the arm, then lay some weld in the old thread and drill and re-tap the hole in the arm to the same as original. That would be a far better repair than my original idea, because the bolts would stay the same sizes and the repair should be undetectable.

Glad to help, there are so few Hiace's around, but there has been a jump in the numbers to the UK this year and it's great to be able to learn more about this famous van and how to keep them going on!

My suspension has been lowered, I may want to add 1/2" to the ride height at some stage - it sounded like you just needed to locate adjuster and wind it round with a spanner - is that right?

Yeah you can wind up the torsion bar (or wind it down). By doing that you will adjust ride height but also suspension strength / comfort. But 1/2" shouldn't be a problem.

My front is raised approxamitely 1,5" this way. Or 1 1/2" or however you should write it in this imperial system

I noticed that these upper arms are different than what I have. Perhaps it is the difference between 2wd and 4wd? Anyway, would be nice if they would be exchangable. Because the upper arms that I see here would allow for a ball joint lift. But I guess, if you would replace the arms you can device at what angle to insert the torsion bar.

Hiace4wd wrote:

Yeah you can wind up the torsion bar (or wind it down). By doing that you will adjust ride height but also suspension strength / comfort. But 1/2" shouldn't be a problem.

Excellent! The diagrams are from the 2WD, I'd expect some differences with the 4WD.

I think the spring rate will be the same - we're not cutting or lengthening them - merely adjusting the anchor point - the same as winding a coil-over spring adjustment collar. I.e. it's still the same spring - just at a different position.

Good to know I can tweak it to suit. Hopefully someone fitted coilovers on the back, but I suspect not LOL.

GPW wrote:

The diagrams are from the 2WD, I'd expect some differences with the 4WD.

It's almost the same (except for the driveshafts of course), but this arm is different. Since they pretty much have the same dimensions I would not expect them to make different parts. Perhaps the 4wd version can take more beating, but to be honest, this 2wd version might look even stronger.

I noticed it because on my 4wd version I can't just use a ball joint raiser, a typical trick on Hilux and 4runners.

Quote :

I think the spring rate will be the same - we're not cutting or lengthening them - merely adjusting the anchor point - the same as winding a coil-over spring adjustment collar. I.e. it's still the same spring - just at a different position.

Well you can extra the torsion bar and put it in under a different angle to have the 1/2" raise that you want with the same spring rate.
But that is a lot of work, and totally not worth it for only 1/2" difference, thats really small.

You can also just tighten the big bolts at the torsion bar anchor point to raise it 1/2" by which you will only increase the spring rate a little bit.
The difference in spring rate will be small, maybe barely noticeable.
Or it could be noticeable in a positive way. Our van drove much better when raised, because of the higher spring rate. The front end didn't dip in so much any more, which made it more stable while braking or cornering.

Hiace4wd wrote:

You can also just tighten the big bolts at the torsion bar anchor point to raise it 1/2"

This sounds like the mod for me .

The ball joint lifters sound rather cunning, maybe some extra coil spring seat pads might do the back too . Failing that there seem to be all sorts of assisters but that will make the springs stiffer which isn't what I really want.

I'll drive it a bit first to get a feel for the clearance/rates. Currently I'm taking out the headlining for cleaning, fog-lamp and backup camera wiring and sunroof servicing so it may be a little while