Torsion Bar Adjuster Kevlar Failure after 6months/5,000 miles

[V8BoatBuilder]

KTorsion Bar Adjuster kevlar Failure: Cause Found-Lower Control Arm Bushings

This spring, I had an intermittant banging and clanking coming from the front end and floorboard area. With the help of this thread:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums...did=25873&highlight=Replace+Your+Torsion+Bars
I narrowed it down to the torsion bar adjusters. Sure enough, the kevlar was worn down to the metal. I ordered new adjusters from www.fordpartsnetwork.com and the banging went away.

During my offroading in NH last month, an awful metal-on-metal clanking began. It's become progessivly worse, happening whenever the suspension flexes over the slightest bump. There was no obvious damage to any components of the suspention. On a hunch I removed the skid plates from the torsion bar adjusters and found the kevlar patches "destroyed." The kevlar is pushed out from the main contact point, leaving metal-on-metal.

What could have caused the kevlar to wear in under 5,000 miles and less than 6 months? Do other people have this problem?

Driver's side Torsion Bar Adjuster: Failed Kevlar Patch

 

[Ray Lobato]

Unfortunately this is normal if you wheel alot. I just got tired of replacing them and now just put up with the klunk. They don't last very long. Someone once told me that you could glue a piece of Teflon on the bracket instead of putting it on the dog bone, and that would help, but I have never tried it myself.

 

[V8BoatBuilder]

Besides being annoying, and your friends asking if the truck is falling apart, will the absense of the kevlar, and subsequent mental-on-metal contact damage anything?

I don't mind replacing them, but the cost is prohibitive at 30 bucks a side.

 

[V8BoatBuilder]

Suspected Cause of failure

I think I found the cause of the failure.

Upon further inspection, my lower control arm bushings were fairly well worn. Large gaps between the bushing and the control arm mount. My guess is that the worn bushings allowed the arm to move in other directions besides an up/down arc. This in tern caused excess flex of the torsion bar, wearing the kevlar faster.

I placed an order for 2 sets of MOOG #K8705 (19.65 VIP Auto Parts) and we'll see how that helps.

The upper bushings aren't as bad, and their wear shouldn't effect the lower arm.