Brian,

I had the front end rebuilt with a kit from Kanter when I first bought the car so I believe the front end is good. That should make the job easier.

I think I finally understand. Thanks for being patient! But that is good news that I don't have to unload the system or remove the torsion bars themselves. That should make the job a lot easier than I thought it would be.

Can you tell me how many bushings and which ones I should get? Max Merritt lists a bunch of bushings and I'm not sure which ones I really need for this job. Thanks!

I have to admit I'm having a hard time visualizing the unloading of the torsion system and the car is in the shop far away so I can't go take a look at it. Once the system is unloaded it seems pretty straight forward.

My shop has used a chain to hold the load arm to replace the pins to adjust the ride height but then there's still a load on the system. The shop manual shows a special tool that looks like it holds the control arm and then allows you to slowly ratchet down the load. How do you release the load without the special tool?

Riki,

OK, I'll bite. So, what are the torque settings?

I looked at the shop manual and it seems you have to unload the system to get the torsion bars out to change the bushings, which takes a special tool. If you don't have to unload the system that would certainly make it easier, but I'm not sure how or if you can do that. If that's the case please let me know how to do that.

Thanks!

Thanks for the advice guys, I guess I need to move bushings to my do now list. How difficult is the job of replacing the bushings? Can a good resto shop handle it?

The bushings are lubed however that doesn't mean they're not worn. I can definitely tell when it needs lubing as the system makes a creaking noise when it's dry. It gets lubed pretty regularly. Bushings are on my list of things to do.

I'm experiencing a torsion level problem with my 56 400 and I'm hoping someone can help.

My car does what I call "porpoising." As I'm driving, the torsion system will kick in and the front will go up as far as it can and then it will go back down and the rear end will go up as high as it can. It will do this two or three times before it settles at level. Another mile or two and it will start all over again. So the car is actually going down the road like a porpoise swims through the water - up and down.

It doesn't do this all the time. It seems to happen mostly on hilly roads and at higher speeds like on the interstate. If I turn off the system the car settles all the way down in the rear so I can't even drive it with the system off. It's really no fun to drive with this problem.

I replaced the control box with a solid state unit from Packards International. I've also replaced the limit switches with a rebuilt set from Max Merritt and I replaced the compensator with a NOS unit from Kanter. Nothing has changed the "porpoising." I also replaced the three-prong brake light switch with the two prong solid state unit from packards International about 10 years ago and it has worked great.

Does anyone have any experience with this problem? Any ideas? They would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Sorry I haven't posted any pictures yet. My car was in the shop last week for the chocolat coolant problem and I just got it back last night. I'll take some pictures today and post them.

Well, I took it to my local shop and they pulled the tranny cooler and pressure tested it. They found a hole on the inside of the cooler allowing the tranny fluid to get into the coolant system. I'm not sure why the coolant didn't get into the transmission but the fluid there was nice and clear.

The fix was to plug the holes for the transmission lines at the cooler and install an aftermarket transmission cooler in front of the radiator. I've alsways wanted to do this anyway so this was motivation to do it.

Actually, Max Merrit listed a stock replacement for $225 so I figured why pay the money for a stock cooler when I can put a new one on for less $$ and never have to worry about this problem again.

I had them flush the cooling system and drove her home last night. Seems to run great and so far the coolant is clear! Well, clear green. I'm not sure but maybe green + red does = brown. Actually, the coolant was a sickly tan color, almost like melted chocolat ice cream.

Considering the other problems this could have been, like a blown head gasket or cracked block, I feel blessed that it was an easily correctable problem. Thanks to everyone for their help in diagnosing this issue.

Jed

Craig,
It's actually about 3 or 4:1. We get that from the aftermarket pedal assembly. When I get some pictures posted it will be easier to see it than to try to understand my poor description. If the ABS system would work with 1:1 the installation would have been far simpler.
Jed