vinnie mack
06-07-2009, 07:35 PM
So i caught Gearz this morning with Stacy David and got inspired. I was going to do this before but it got me more motivated. After the F1 race I went outside, jacked up the MSP and started at it.
Just a quick note, if you have access to a good welder, some steel and some basic fab skills you should be ok with this 'mild' guide.
Removal
First off obviously we need to remove the trailing arm from the car. 2 bolts hold it on (both 17mm) to the chassis and the spindle. The one on the spindle is easy, if you have air.. use your impact gun. The one on the chassis is too close to stuff so you will need an open end or boxed end wrench. It may be hard to get out so put the wrench on and use a good hammer to smack the bolt loose.
There will be one (12mm i think) bolt holding the e-brake cable to the trailing arm.. remove that and let the cable hang loose.
Take out the arm!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/vincea/photo3.jpg
Remove the dumb plastic piece at the one end as well, we won't be needing it.
The problem
In regards to why we are doing this, it is simple. A C channel is weak especially in this size and gauge metal it has the ability to flex and rotate. Obviously we aren't running a RWD setup so the stress on these arms aren't that immense. However, if you plan on tracking your car those rear trailing arms will come under bucket loads of stress.
With the arms boxed in, we remove any ability for the arm to flex laterally and twist.
On to the fun stuff!
Materials
Steel - Don't use sheet metal! You also don't need 1/4" thick plate either, try to match the thickness on the factory arm.
Clean/Cut/Weld/Smoothen
We will be doing it exactly as I listed above. Cut a section out of your metal approx. 23" long and 1 1/4" high (i think hah).
Clean the bar really well... I don't mean with soap either. Use an angle grinder and a sanding disc to remove any paint or rust where you will be welding. Later I just ended up stripping the whole bar anyways so you might do that first.
Get the piece you cut out that will act as the cover for the c channel. You will need to notch each end for the bushing portion at the end of the arm. Position it properly and clamp it if necessary. Tack in place once you are sure you have it properly placed.
Once you have it tacked, if it overlaps the C, trim it to the same size with your grinding disc.
Continue welding with a nice bead in different areas and let the arm cool for a minute between. We don't want the arm to bend or warp. Mine didn't but if you want to make a jig to be sure, go for it.
Anyways, I also welded up any extra holes on the arm. Once that was done I took my grinding disc and ground down all my welds nice and smooth as you can see below.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/vincea/photo2.jpg
Now on to paint!.
Any questions? I am being quick but will update the thread later when I have more time.
Just a quick note, if you have access to a good welder, some steel and some basic fab skills you should be ok with this 'mild' guide.
Removal
First off obviously we need to remove the trailing arm from the car. 2 bolts hold it on (both 17mm) to the chassis and the spindle. The one on the spindle is easy, if you have air.. use your impact gun. The one on the chassis is too close to stuff so you will need an open end or boxed end wrench. It may be hard to get out so put the wrench on and use a good hammer to smack the bolt loose.
There will be one (12mm i think) bolt holding the e-brake cable to the trailing arm.. remove that and let the cable hang loose.
Take out the arm!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/vincea/photo3.jpg
Remove the dumb plastic piece at the one end as well, we won't be needing it.
The problem
In regards to why we are doing this, it is simple. A C channel is weak especially in this size and gauge metal it has the ability to flex and rotate. Obviously we aren't running a RWD setup so the stress on these arms aren't that immense. However, if you plan on tracking your car those rear trailing arms will come under bucket loads of stress.
With the arms boxed in, we remove any ability for the arm to flex laterally and twist.
On to the fun stuff!
Materials
Steel - Don't use sheet metal! You also don't need 1/4" thick plate either, try to match the thickness on the factory arm.
Clean/Cut/Weld/Smoothen
We will be doing it exactly as I listed above. Cut a section out of your metal approx. 23" long and 1 1/4" high (i think hah).
Clean the bar really well... I don't mean with soap either. Use an angle grinder and a sanding disc to remove any paint or rust where you will be welding. Later I just ended up stripping the whole bar anyways so you might do that first.
Get the piece you cut out that will act as the cover for the c channel. You will need to notch each end for the bushing portion at the end of the arm. Position it properly and clamp it if necessary. Tack in place once you are sure you have it properly placed.
Once you have it tacked, if it overlaps the C, trim it to the same size with your grinding disc.
Continue welding with a nice bead in different areas and let the arm cool for a minute between. We don't want the arm to bend or warp. Mine didn't but if you want to make a jig to be sure, go for it.
Anyways, I also welded up any extra holes on the arm. Once that was done I took my grinding disc and ground down all my welds nice and smooth as you can see below.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v109/vincea/photo2.jpg
Now on to paint!.
Any questions? I am being quick but will update the thread later when I have more time.