Got the drivers side out but the passengers side is a bear. Not much rust or gunk, the retainer ring wasn't in it (or didn't loo like it was). Tried the Vice grip, rag and BFH method and no go.

Any thoughts? I'm thinking part of the ring in broken off, but for the life of me I can't see it. (trouble light helped big time).

Note: I am trashing these and putting in new ones.

Cut it.

Squirt the anchor and receiver socket on the LCA with some BrakeKleen or PB blaster to get the gunk out of there... if you also have the nut off the LCA stud that goes through the K-Frame, you can give that a quick rap with a BFH or rubber mallet and force the LCa and torsion bar forward, usually that will jar it loose...

T-Bars are not too easy to cut, last time I did it, I used a Oxy-Acet set and it still took a bit of time...

-D.idiot
[/quote]

[/quote]

Yeah, I've done the soaking thing. The LCA idea I thought of last night as well so thanks for confirming that. I' guess I'll put the castle nut back on so I don't mess up the treads and just go to town with the BFH

Use a cable clamp, available from your local hardware store. Clamp that to the T-bar and then brace a bottle jack between the cable clamp and crossmember. That'll force the most stubborn torsion bars right out!

_________________
"Mad Scientist" Matt Cramer
'66 Dart - turbocharged 225
My blog - Mad Scientist Matt's Lair

I took two 2" x 4" x 12"s and bolted them together with four long bolts in a 3" square pattern so they made a 4"x 4" and then drilled a hole a little smaller than the torsion bar in the seam between the two boards so half the hole was on one board and half on the other. basicly make a wood clamp. Then I clamped it ot the bar and hit it about three time with a 8 pound sledge and it can right out. I figured this out on the second day. The first day I tried what was in the chiltons manual (vise grips with rag) it didn't work. Seems like things always wirk better if you sleep on it.

i had this prob, almost made a clamp, but went out and bought the beefy metal one with the huge tabe to hammer on. came right out... love that tool

I had to resort to some pretty backyard, redneck ingenuity. I got an old handlebar gooseneck from a bike, used the thing just like the tool made for it. Worked so well I've saved that thing for 7yrs. My wife still doesn't understand why I keep some of the junk I do.

_________________
ifyoubegintothinkyou'relosingcontrol...it'salreadygone

LOL I'm the same way

All of these methods work, but here is the simplest one in my book:

Remove the clip at the rear, release all of the tension on the adjuster nut on the LCA, loosen the front nut on the LCA enough to protect the threads on the LCA, then hit the nut with about a 4 pounds sledge, driving all back wards. It takes very little to make it all pop out. Once the rear hex gets out of the cross member socket, it all just kind of falls apart. This requires no extra tools. You need two sockets, a ratchet, and a hammer. The most time consuming part of the job is releasing the tension on the height adjuster. It takes maybe ten minutes per side, at the most.

I have rebuilt at least a dozen Mopar front ends this way.

Sam

_________________

Make it Twenty if the adjusters have never been 'undone', add some WD-40 or PB Blaster to lube up the adjuster bolt... and you may want a 1/2" socketed version of a Breaker Bar to get it started (been there and done that enough times...)...

Pretty much like Sam said, once it's done that way it just pops back and falls apart...

-D.Idiot

The drivers side just popped out like NOW with the vise grip/rag/BFH method.

I haven't had a chance to go back to this, but I will today. I'm thinking the clip is broken off in the socket, because it's an AZ car (rust?? what's that?), and everything looks super clean

If so dig around with a scratch awl or a smaller flat head screwdriver edge... you should be able to dig it out and pop it loose...


-D.Idiot

Tried that before buttttttttttttttt........

GAve it another shot yesterday after work (been real busy). Still won't come out. Dug around the groove in the T-Bar socket to see if there was a portion of the retaining clip in there. Doesn't look like it. (Shop light and looked as best I could).

It looks like maybe someone hit a curb really hard with the front passenger tire/wheel as the K Member has some deformation where the strut rod bolts in. But it's not THAT bad. Also the hex of the T-bar seems a bit to one side of the socket in the subframe, but again it doesn't look bad. I don't see any deformation in the subframe.

Could the LCA and assembly be changing the angle the T-bar goes into the socket that much?

I'll try it again tonight I guess.

Like I said before it's an AZ car (very clean underneath and the other one popped right out.

Oh well.