Bent torsion bar adjustment bolt

[theluke19]

Well this is bizarre, and I'm not sure how it happened:

Went to twist up the torsion bar adjustment bolts on my Sport trac last night, and had a rough time with the Driver side---

Noticed that it looks like the bolt is bent.... Any ideas on extraction? Should I just go with impact and hope it 'bends' it's way back out? Is there a way I can take the load off of it to maybe manually bend it back, or would that be just putting the frame on jack stands, with all weight off the tires?

another weird part is that in one picture it looks like the bolt is bent one way, but from another angle, it looks like it's bent the other way..

 

[swshawaii]

If this is the first time adjusting the torsion bolts, you are fighting heat activated thread lock compound applied from the factory. Ford tends to overuse it, and heavily coats the threads with the blue stuff that behaves like the red we know. Another example are the body mount bolts. Heat the bolt head with propane torch or similar for about 20 seconds to soften, and they "should" turn easily without an impact. If the bolt is bent replace with a pre-coated factory bolt. Always measure the bolt threads and fender to ground height prior to adjustment, and check alignment after the front settles.

NOTE- BOLTS CONTAIN LOCTITE AND MAY REQUIRE 350 LB.-FT. TO REMOVE

See note in TSB step #4 below:
http://www.revbase.com/BBBMotor/TSb/DownloadPdf?id=114372

 

[swshawaii]

Forgot to address your most important question. ALWAYS unload the suspension FIRST before adjusting the bolts. Sounds like a PITA to repeatedly lower and jounce the front by driving over large bumps to dial in the front height, but it's the preferred way to do it. Also very important to use a standard length SIX POINT metric socket to prevent rounding the small bolt heads. Read a few horror stories about stripped or broken bolts in the threaded bar and removal sounds challenging. Camber kits "may" be also needed for proper alignment.

EDIT- Difficult to see looking at the pics, but appears the rounded "dog point" torsion bolt tip slipped out of the dimple in the torsion key. Remove the cover held by four bolts and see if you can get more pics.

See middle pic:
torsion bar removal

 

[Turdle]

That bolt actually looks broken, seems like the broken part is being held in place by the torsion key tension.

 

[swshawaii]

^ Good eye. Thought it looked really short for a 63.5 mm length (M12x1.75) bolt. I'm disoriented looking at those pics.

OP's bolt is DEFINITELY broken. Only actual ST torsion bolt pic I found on the internet shown below. (N811015-S101)

 

[theluke19]

Bought a couple of these (except the full threaded version) yesterday to replace the factory bolts:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-M12-1-75-x-70-mm-Zinc-Plated-Hex-Bolt-39848/202209701

Would I be a fool to use those instead of the OEM? Looks like a lot of people are using similar finds from Fastenal, but grinding the tip to make the nipple that helps it seat properly.

 

[swshawaii]

Grade 8.8 should be fine but you'll need to tap the threads or use fully threaded bolts instead.

Rounding the tips is smart, you don't want slipping, and Ford dimples the keys for this reason.

 

[Turdle]

That will end up doing the same thing as above, just sooner. You should consider using a grade 8 bolt. If it helps, the factory exhaust manifold to downpipe bolts are very close.

Torsion adjuster part number is
N811015-S100

https://www.fordpartsgiant.com/parts/ford-bolt-hex-head_-n811015-s100.html

Using google search of that number, you will find a lot more information

 

[theluke19]

Got a couple on order at the local dealership - will be picking them up today, and depending on my motivation, I'll be replacing them today.

thanks for all the thoughts and help!

 

[swshawaii]

^ Smart. Sometimes it's worth buying OEM without needing to modify. Torch may help remove the remaining bolt, Loctite is strong.

Not sure if the broken bolt piece can be removed without a puller. If needed to unload the bar, use the steps listed in this thread. GL

How-To: Torsion Adjuster Flip | Ford Explorer and Ford Ranger Forums - Serious Explorations

 

[theluke19]

Thanks for the second and third set of eyes!!!

Hit the nail on the head with the broken bolt.

The bolts I bought @ home depot seemed to be different head size, and a tiny bit longer- but the thread size was the same. Per the bolt heads it looks like they were same class as the OEM part:

Picked up the factory bolts yesterday, per the model number SWS provided:

In case you were curious, here's a picture of the old bolts:

THanks for both of your help and insight, Turdle, and SWS!!

ExplorerForum does the trick for me again- and wouldn't you know it was from the help of two of the best posters on here!