Cobra4B

Taking out my tow hitch one of the forward bolts come off of the claw I was using and rolled forward in the right frame rail to the point I can't get it.

My felxible magnet was too weak to get it, if I was even close to it.

Driving the car tonight I can hear it... when I jab the gas then let off I hear it clink as it rolls back forward. It sounds like it's over my right shoulder so I don't think it rolled much forward.

I figure there's a baffle of some kind in there that it's hitting when I let of the gas. If it was fully open it should roll all the way forward when I hit the brakes.

I think tomorrow I'll put the rear on ramps, jack up the front as high as it'll go, then get a extendable pen magnet (they have much stronger magnets), buend it and keep on fishing through the frame jig hole.

Any tips/clues/ideas?

Jason

Get a more powerful magnet and place it against the frame where the bolt is and drag it back to the hole.

Cobra4B

^ Where do I get a magnet like that?

Jason

I know I've seen some at Harbor Freight or probably any such tool store.

CHJ In Virginia

I had the same problem, took the path of least resistance. It rattled for about three days and then lodged somewhere forward after a quick stop. Have not heard it since in 2 years of driving.

Oyishdog

Brian - did you get a trailer???

Cobra4B

Not yet... but I will eventually. I'll probably borrow or rent for the rest of this year. Only planning on 2 events this season.

After doing some reasearch this Canyon will tow the Corvette just fine and it makes one hell of a daily... it's the "right" size and gets 24 mpg. Plus, it has the 4L60E trans out of the 1500 silverado, tahoe, and suburban, but only weights 3500 lbs.

Mods to the truck:
*Air Lift air helper springs (not doing the onboard compressor and controller like you)
*Auxillary liquid/air trans cooler (to help out the factory liquid/liquid one)
*7-pin harness upgrade w/ trailer brake controller

Misc Mods:
*Tint
*Rhino Liner
*Tool box
*Stereo (have to have tunes in my DD)

The GMC Sonoma (which the Canyon replaced) was rated to tow 6000 lbs w/ less horsepower and a weaker frame. GM realized that most people towing over 4000 lbs did so in a fullsize. So, they softened up the rear suspension in interest of ride comfort. The truck is mechanically fine to tow the weight... just needs a little help

Oh... and it looks freaking cool

Cobra4B

If I can't get it out w/o much trouble I'll give up and hope that it finds a new home.

Oyishdog

Good deal!

which two events are you doing?

Cobra4B

Either Mazdadrivers Grand this summer or the Chin event, then I'll do the fall fling.

I put my Borlas back on, sold the Corsas, allready got my tire trailer sold to a local guy w/ a 350Z.

Got OEM GS 17x11s w/ 315 V710s on all four So right now I've got 3 sets of wheels and 4 sets of tires

jtkeller

I was replacing my mufflers once and lost the bolts inside the frame rails that hold the rubber mount to the rear crossmember. I thought I'd never get them back out, but with the help of a magnet and sheer luck, I finally got them out. I said to myself the same thing as you - the noise it will make bouncing back and forth will drive me nuts!

I even contemplated removing the rear bumper and everything else just to get it out...

JRD77VET

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...seBVCookie=Yes

Here's a $9.99 extendable magnet at Sears. I have a similar one and it's very powerful.




Jeff

Cobra4B

I got a much stronger flexible magnet tool tonight at advanced... I'll give it a go.

Cobra4B

No luck... jacked front of car as high as I could w/ my floor jack... heard nothing roll. Fished around in the frame rail throug the jig hole w/ the new tool to no avail.

Tomorrow night I'm going to put the magnet thing all the way in the rail, tape the handle in place, then do for a drive and see if I can "catch" the bolt.

Cobra4B

No luck tonight... can't hear it moving but when I removed the magnet wand it didn't have any bolts on it.

Jason

Something like this should drag it back down the frame:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=36903

Cobra4B

Hmmm good idea.... I may try that.

SouthernSon

Use some SS safety wire to fish it out. In the future, always wrap the head or threads of bolt with the safety wire, depending on which way it is oriented for the task at hand, to position or subsequently remove the bolt. I found this helpful for installing my trailer hitch on the Z06 as well as installing step bars on my GMC.

Cobra4B

^ I know... I was trying to take a shortcut and use my flexible grabber claw thing. I thought it had a good grip on the bolt. It did... until I pushed the bolt into the top of the frame rail when trying to get the plate out... it hit the top of the inside of the rail and popped out of the claw.

For the other side I went and got my fishing line and did it "right".

Falcon

As a last resort, and the rattle is driving you crazy, you could always spray some of that expanding foam insulation in the hole and hope it catches the bolt. Any hope of retreiving the bolt is gone when you try this method.