TRACKMAN2

was cleaning the break dust of the suspention and stuff on the front left and saw a crack in the part that the steering control arm end bolts into what caused this..over tightening ??? or what ??? thje bolt wasnt that tight .. it was the same side the bearing failed on..the o2 zo6

wallyman424

dang, thats crazy. you mean the ear on the spindle that the steering tie rod attaches to?

i doubt you could overtighten that enough to crack the spindle.

TRACKMAN2

yes!!!

wallyman424

well, luckily vette parts arent too pricey. just grab a new one and pretend like this never happened.

gkmccready

Geez. Enough force to break that and you have to wonder how the steering rack felt...

TRACKMAN2

ssssssssshhhhhhhhh.

Bill Dearborn

Can you provide a picture showing where it cracked? Could be a specific spot we need to add to our pre event checklists??

Bill

TRACKMAN2

my pic technology is down it cracked from top to botom if 12 oclock is facing forward it broke at 10:30

C66 Racing

Never had that happen to me, but obviously will add it to the things I look at frequently...

sothpaw2

Wally,

Can you post a pic of what he's talking about? I'm unfamiliar with the intricate details of the suspension.

wallyman424

right to the left of the rotor you can see the tie rod. there are two metal portions in the joint, the bottom connects to the tie rod and the steering rack. the top is the front ear of the spindle. From what I gather, trackman has a crack in the spindle ear.

heres another view



heres a nice picture without the rotor

Cobra4B

Never ever seen that crack, but with enough force anything can crack/break.

jasonberkeley

On C5's that race in T1, we have seen spindles crack (though generally not by the tie rod ear), after cars have had some off-road excursions. Generally they crack from the center (by the hub-bearing assembly) outwards.

You should always perform regular visual inspections of all suspension components if you regularly track your car!

Bill Hetzel

I'd expect that an offroad's more likely the cause than overtightening. That's a fairly beefy part. Was King Kong turning the wrench?

I know a lot of guys at the track that always overtorque bolts. They usually have a couple of failures per year.

I use a torquewrench on all suspension and critical bolts on the cars I work on.

I've seen check sheets from some pro crews that are used before every race for critical nuts and bolts, all are checked with a torquewrench and checked off.

TRACKMAN2

more of a jakazz than king kong at the wrench .. i noticed it as i was going ti tighten it . the car had only ben off for a second at wgi.. more of an over the grass than a run off..the breaks pooped goin into the chicane.. when i torque the new one what should i shoot for.. ill probibly drill and saftey wire it ... ala the old superbike days

gkmccready

http://www.davidfarmerstuff.com/C5torque.pdf

"Steering linkage outer tie rod end stud nut" 16lb-ft, 160deg, 33ft-lb.

96GS#007

Check the FSM. C4s are different than C5s IIRC. When I did my tie rod ends, 35 lb/ft sticks in my mind as the spec.

TRACKMAN2

sweeeeet page,,,, beats guessing

TRACKMAN2

thanks fellow c4 er .. this time it broke on the z .. the c4 is at the chassis shop for a new full cage and power plant #6 is allmost complete ill post some picks as things get done!!

jasonberkeley

Kurt from Phoenix saw this thread and said to me that he will see this on occasion, and that it usually is the result of one of two things:

1) Over Torquing

2) Beating on the rod-end with a hammer to seperate it from the spindle.

David Farmer put the torque spec up- follow it! And don't beat on it with a hammer!