Rear Trailing Arm removal

[saddlesore1]

I am swapping out the rear trailing arms on my 73 for 1" longer and boxed. I wold like to know how difficult and dangerious it is. I plan to cut off the lower shelf and use staps to prevent topping out the shocks (I plan to use duals).
Querstion 1
If the plate stop is removed(Cut) will there no longer be preload and it will all come apart simple or do I need the chains, jack stands, and floor jock set up.
Question 2
Puting it pack together with preload is it the same simple operation just in reverse?
Querstion 3
If preload is set to the 30 degrees for 930 cv's or not, is it done with the car in the air without a load or after the load is set i.e. load of the car, roall cage and pasengers.

Regards,

Saddleasore

[iltis74]

You can pull the semi-trailing arm off without pulling the spring plate, just unbolt the two, but if you're pulling the plate anyways then-

1) Yes you could cut the stop off and not worry about the preload, and maybe that's the way it's done if you need to go that high, (I don't know, I always go the other way,) but it seems rather extreme to me. I would consider leaving it in place and notching the spring plate. It sounds to me as if you've read a book explaining the possibility of losing a hand when something slips and are looking to save limbs, when in truth it's not very difficult at all, just watch where you put your fingers of course. You'll wrap a chain completely around a floor jack and the shock tower, so that when you jack up the plate it comes off the stop instead of raising the car, and then with prybars or screwdrivers work it over the stop and lower the jack. It's been a while since I've messed with a stock setup, but I don't think the plate comes down even a full inch; it may not be as much as you are expecting. Also if you wanted to get away from the jack and chain there are people that sell a "torsion tool" or some such that work like a strut spring compressor which you could probably easily whip up yourself with 1/2" or 5/8" all-thread. I almost guarrantee there is one listed in the big parts adds in the back of Hot VWs.

2) Yes, and now is the perfect time to mention that before you took it off you should have marked the position of the plate and the bar with paint or a chisel so that you can get back to where you started, even if you have no intention of ever going back there. I've always preferred to have the cover back on before lowering the plate.

3) No idea what you are even asking on this one. If you are planning on changing the ride height then you need to figure out by how much beforehand, and figure out how many splines, inner and outer, (they are not the same, which allows for fine tuning,) beforehand, so that when everything is back together you are hopefully close to where you want to be, because unless you threw on adjustable spring plates you are going to have to pull them again to change the height. I don't know where 30* of preload comes from, but as I've said I'm always going the other way.

Are you going to larger torsions? Because if so then remember that the spring rate is greater and you will have to play with that a bit to get where you are wanting to go, (as far as height.) For example when I first threw 27mm bars on my old Beetle I placed them so that at "rest" they were just over the stop so that I did not have to deal with it, and the car still sat ridiculously high. Very stiff, who knew.

[TimGud]

Not sure if I'm getting what your saying but I would not cut the stop off.
I have always taken the spring plates off by jacking up the vw by the springplate, removing the spring plate cover, then use a pry bar to pry it just past the stop then lower the VW back onto the jack stand.

[saddlesore1]

Thanks for thew advice. The reason I plan to cut off the stops is to get the full travel I want with the Porsche 930 CV i.e. 30* drop from level. That puts the spring plate past the stops. Also with the stops in pace every time you unlaod the car there is a tremendious knock from the spring plate hitting the stop. I plan belt straps to be my new stops.

Regards,

Saddlesore

[Ian Epperson]

[mattt]

You can cut the torsion housing back if you are planning on running 930s, and setting the rear up for max travel. As you mentioned, limit straps are an important thing to add. Due to the fender configuration, you gain more travel in the droop direction vs. the up direction. My car is setup that way, and there isnt much tension on the spring plates at full droop. I would still be careful taking them off as they are spring loaded. On my car, I added a rear torsion adjuster also so I can back off most of the tension from the center of the bars. The center torsion adjuster is a pain to install but worth it down the road when your torsion bars dont sag equally.