Torsion Bar Key

[SolidusJ]

After meeting ReconH3 and talking to him about my leaving he got my gear turning in my head. My torsion bolts are maxed out and I hit them with with an airgun at my do it yourself shop with the front end up in the air and after 6 months I'm still sitting at 22". He told me that out the factory my torsion bar keys could have been installed wrong and that's why I can't get my front end where it should be with everyone else. So I ask the guys that have swap their torsion bar for the Alpha in the I5 how hard was it to do the and time to pull them out and install them. If its something I can pull off myself I'll knock it out this weekend and hope to make it to 23.5". Also what would I have to do to rotate the keys in the direction I need to rise my front end up? Just one more thing and I'm done, it's a pain in the ass to measure from the center of the wheel hub and lower fender, can someone with an leaved front end measure from the rocker panel to the ground? Thanks for any info you guys can give me.:thumbs:

 

[4speedfunk]

Recon is right...its very possible that your torsion bars are not properly "indexed" into the keys. They have a male hexagon shape that plugs into the lower A-arm (at the front) and into the keys (at the rear). You might try loosening them completely...remove the keys...rotate them one click...then re-install them. You will need to get your front suspension up high in the air and let it droop all the way to the stop (take the front wheels off and have somebody stand on the A-arms). The keys should be "clocked" so the long adjusting bolt barely reaches the threads. This will give you the maximum amount of adjustability. In some cases...the bolts might be a tad too short to get the threads started. If this is the case...use a large C-clamp (or a T-bar key clamp) to crank the key down into its pocket so you can get the bolt started in the threads. This is actually how its supposed to be done but, most guys just use the bolt itself. Either way will work but, using the bolt puts a bunch of stress (and heat) on the threads...so be careful and use lots of WD-40/PB-blaster to keep the friction to a minimum. Also, you can try swapping the bars left-to-right and end-to-end, to see if the "hex" shape locates the key to the desired position. Alpha bars have the same "hex" as the L5 bars...so you may still have the same problem.

T-bar work is almost as easy as an oil change....15 min. or so. Do it yourself. Always adjust them with the front wheels off the ground...this is easier on the threads. When done...go for a drive to settle the suspension, park in the same exact spot, and then re-check everything. Once you're satisfied...get it aligned.

Use the hub-to-fender measurement. I know its a PITA but, it the most accurate because it takes tire size/pressure and road surface variables out of the equation. 23.5" is about the maximum you should shoot for.

 

[alrock]

What he said:agree:

 

[SolidusJ]

Recon is right...its very possible that your torsion bars are not properly "indexed" into the keys. They have a male hexagon shape that plugs into the lower A-arm (at the front) and into the keys (at the rear). You might try loosening them completely...remove the keys...rotate them one click...then re-install them. You will need to get your front suspension up high in the air and let it droop all the way to the stop (take the front wheels off and have somebody stand on the A-arms). The keys should be "clocked" so the long adjusting bolt barely reaches the threads. This will give you the maximum amount of adjustability. In some cases...the bolts might be a tad too short to get the threads started. If this is the case...use a large C-clamp (or a T-bar key clamp) to crank the key down into its pocket so you can get the bolt started in the threads. This is actually how its supposed to be done but, most guys just use the bolt itself. Either way will work but, using the bolt puts a bunch of stress (and heat) on the threads...so be careful and use lots of WD-40/PB-blaster to keep the friction to a minimum. Also, you can try swapping the bars left-to-right and end-to-end, to see if the "hex" shape locates the key to the desired position. Alpha bars have the same "hex" as the L5 bars...so you may still have the same problem.

T-bar work is almost as easy as an oil change....15 min. or so. Do it yourself. Always adjust them with the front wheels off the ground...this is easier on the threads. When done...go for a drive to settle the suspension, park in the same exact spot, and then re-check everything. Once you're satisfied...get it aligned.

Use the hub-to-fender measurement. I know its a PITA but, it the most accurate because it takes tire size/pressure and road surface variables out of the equation. 23.5" is about the maximum you should shoot for.

THANK YOU FOR THE GREAT INFO!!!!!! Anywhere I can find a step by step so I can look at pictures to make sure I'm doing it right?

 

[SolidusJ]

Just found this on hummer X forum

[h=3]Re: Installing Torsion Keys and Add a Leaf[/h] by hbh3 » Thu Dec 16, 2010 4:10 am
WOW!! I hate to tell you this, but I've done the keys and it does not take more than 10 minutes on the H3. Unlike other trucks you do no need to remove all that crap nor you need the special key. All you had to do was lift the front by the frame to release the front load and unscrew the Tbar screw, that simple... At least you got to know your truck better...


now wait "unscrew the Tbar screw"????? I thought you had to tighten them to get the front end higher???????


http://www.hummerxclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=13273

 

[SolidusJ]

This might help me http://www.autotrucktoys.com/pdf/TMCL224.pdf

 

[Dennis]

Rather than start another thread on this, I'll tag on this one.

Some of you may recall from years ago, that I was never a big fan with the idea of altering the factory settings on the Torsion bars..Changing the geometry and stiffness in the front seemed to me, a little risky..Well, I'm here to say that has changed in my point of view:shifty:..I Cranked my Torsion bars up a few and am pleased with the results....I did 4 full turns and tweeked it to make both sides match in heigth..It is now almost 1.75" lifted over factory on the front, which made the stink bug look less obvious..I like the look a lot now..I have the 285 tires, so it looks pretty cool with them..

I go tomorrow to get a 4 wheel alignment.

 

[Bigunit]

Rather than start another thread on this, I'll tag on this one.

Some of you may recall from years ago, that I was never a big fan with the idea of altering the factory settings on the Torsion bars..Changing the geometry and stiffness in the front seemd to me, risky..Well, I'm here to say that has changed in my point of view:shifty:..I Cranked my Torsion bars up a few and am pleased with the results....I did 4 full turns and tweeked it to make both side match in heigth..I have now a 1.5" lift over factory on the front, which made the stink bug look less obvious..I like the look a lot now..I have the 285 tires, so it looks pretty cool with them..

I go tomorrow to get a 4 wheel alignment.

ics:

 

[cgalpha08]

You could always just do a coil over conversion

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[SolidusJ]

Rather than start another thread on this, I'll tag on this one.Some of you may recall from years ago, that I was never a big fan with the idea of altering the factory settings on the Torsion bars..Changing the geometry and stiffness in the front seemd to me, risky..Well, I'm here to say that has changed in my point of view:shifty:..I Cranked my Torsion bars up a few and am pleased with the results....I did 4 full turns and tweeked it to make both side match in heigth..I have now a 1.5" lift over factory on the front, which made the stink bug look less obvious..I like the look a lot now..I have the 285 tires, so it looks pretty cool with them..I go tomorrow to get a 4 wheel alignment.

You trun the clockwise or counterclockwise?

 

[Dennis]

Clockwise while looking up..like, Righty tighty

Like I said..the result is pleasing and just enough lift to make it all look level, even though the rear is still a little higher:thumbs:

 

[SolidusJ]

Something just hit me like a sack of bricks when I pulled up home, if my keys are put in wrong and clockwise is doing nothing for me maybe I should try counterclockwise and she where it puts me?

 

[ReconH3]

Nothing wrong with trying. Just remember how many rotations you do so it's easier to return if it doesn't work. Otherwise you'll have to measure and go out and retry till you get it right. Mark the bolt and a fixed point before starting.




"Ex Umbris Venimus"

Sent from my iPhone

 

[cgalpha08]

Since we are on the subject, can you do this while the truck is on the ground? or does it have to be jacked up in the front? and what size is the bolt?

 

[Hans3T]

The bolt is 9/16". I believe it can be done with all four wheels on the pavement.

 

[cgalpha08]

Ok cool, because i still havent gotten around to it, and i dont have access to a jack. Ill prob just find a flat place and do it

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[SolidusJ]

Ya the counterclockwise thing didn't do much but just lower front end. FML

 

[Dennis]

The bolt is 9/16". I believe it can be done with all four wheels on the pavement.

I maybe confused as to what you are trying to say..

But for me, I had to raise the front end up enough so that Both Front tires were off the ground and then the Torsion Key bolt required a 1-1/16" socket.

 

[SolidusJ]

[/IMG]

This is how I'm looking down under.

 

[4speedfunk]

The bolt is 9/16". I believe it can be done with all four wheels on the pavement.

Much larger than 9/16".

No...you gotta do it with the front jacked-up and un-sprung. That could be why the bars are not currently indexed correctly. You need to have the A-arms in the fully drooped position, when you insert the end of em into the keys.

 

[cgalpha08]

Well then i will find a jack

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[Hunner]

In that picture it looks like the adjustment bolt is run almost all the way up. I tried it on mine one time just to see and it will go up almost touching the floor and his looks that high!
I forgot how many turns that was but it was a lot. I came back down and I ran 24.5 for a day and decided that was a mistake!
Those are good clear pictures by the way.

 

[SolidusJ]

In that picture it looks like the adjustment bolt is run almost all the way up. I tried it on mine one time just to see and it will go up almost touching the floor and his looks that high!
I forgot how many turns that was but it was a lot. I came back down and I ran 24.5 for a day and decided that was a mistake!
Those are good clear pictures by the way.

Sad part is as high as the bolts are I'm just sitting at 22", I still trying to find a step by step on the removing the bar and rotating the key with pictures.

 

[Dennis]

As far as the adjustment, this video is a little crude, but pretty much it explains how to do it...

[video=youtube;FRIsmboMwDs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRIsmboMwDs[/video]

 

[4speedfunk]

Yeah...you need to rotate the keys one click. Your A-arms are sitting way too flat for the bolts to be bottomed-out like that. This is probably the result of someone installing the bars & keys with the truck sitting on the ground. Its an easy fix but, you do need a jack. Take the keys completely out, and let the front suspension fall to full droop...then re-install them. This time however, rotate the keys one "flat" (on the hex of the torsion bar) from where they are now, so you can take advantage of the full length of the bolt. You should barely be able to get the bolt started...and you might even have to take the shocks loose to get enough droop to get em in.

Then do the leveling procedure. Piece o cake....Ten minutes.

BTW...thats one of the cleanest bellies I've ever seen on an H3.