How Long To Change A Rear Trailing Arm

[evojay71 0]

I'm doing a road rally on saturday night and I'm considering changing the bent rear trailing arm before but after putting in a new motor,gearbox and a pile of other mods to the car time is getting pretty tight. How long does the arm take to change?? I've never done one before and can I undo everything from the side with the bent arm and just remove it??

If it comes to it then I'll have to use it as is or I am considering heating it up and bending it back somewhere near for saturday night.

[Tom Fenton 1,536]

Depends if you can get the torsion bars out easily or not. If the bars come out easily, then you should be able to do it in about an hour if you are handy with the spanners.

[zebedy101 0]

With the amount of time you have before your r/r day it could be in your favour to wait, you may well be opening a whole new tin of worms that could und up rather expensive. My trailing arms are siezed solid as a rock instead of butchering it I'm just fitting a new beam much easier in the long term.

[shalmaneser 26]

would heating it up and bending it back really work?!

 

It's a bloody big bit of metal...

[zebedy101 0]

I would have thought it would weaken it somewhat? I could be wrong though.

[evojay71 0]

I would have thought it would weaken it somewhat? I could be wrong though.

 

Not really,if left to cool naturally I'm a welder/fabricator by trade and have done this to straighten far bigger things than a trailing arm

[evojay71 0]

would heating it up and bending it back really work?!

 

It's a bloody big bit of metal...

 

Oxy acetylene torch would heat that with no problems

[welshpug 1,645]

but its cast, I wouldn't risk trying to bend anything that's cast.

[evojay71 0]

but its cast, I wouldn't risk trying to bend anything that's cast.

 

Cast steel arnt they???

[matthewm 1]

Last year I discovered my trailing arm bearings had collapsed the Wednesday before an event, as at the time I hadn't worked on the rear beam myself much instead of opening a potential can of worms and landing myself in the sh*t I got hold of another beam, which took about hour and half to change.

[Alastairh 47]

Personally, if you don't know the history of the beam, i wouldn't get too involved under a tight time frame. But it should be fairly easy to do if you can get the car up reasonably high enough. 205 tb's don't tend to take much grief pressing out unlike some, so you should be able to knock it out.

 

Personally i wouldn't heat it up and try repairing it if you have a known good one lying around anyway.

 

Al

[evojay71 0]

Thanks for the replys,I do have a 16 and a 19 beam here although I need to take them off,that may even be a better option which will give more time to rebuild the damaged beam. Am I right in believing that the 16 beam is the same as the 19 except for the stub axle pins for the rear disc set up???

[welshpug 1,645]

yup exactly the same bar the brakes and stub axles.

 

 

off topic...

 

don't know anyone good at bodywork and welding round here do you?

[evojay71 0]

yup exactly the same bar the brakes and stub axles.

 

 

off topic...

 

don't know anyone good at bodywork and welding round here do you?

 

What do you need welded??

[welshpug 1,645]

my 205

[matthewm 1]

Len Giles at LG Motors, Abercarn industrial estate, welding and bodywork are his game

[evojay71 0]

Well just a quick update,went for the safe option and changed the rear beam and that wasn't without it's problems,after all the hours I've put in over the last two weeks I'll be absolutely gutted if we retire on Saturday night

[evojay71 0]

Well just a quick update,went for the safe option and changed the rear beam and that wasn't without it's problems,after all the hours I've put in over the last two weeks I'll be absolutely gutted if we retire on Saturday night