Just picked up this 91 Camaro from a coworker. The torque arm is broken where it connects to the back to the transmission. Looks like the bolt broke off in the trans. Anyways, is it safe to drive this back to my place with it broke. The previous owner took hose clamps and secured it to the transmission but still a little worried.

 

Um i probably would but would it be safe..not really. The torque arm is the only thing that is keeping the axle from twisting upwards when you put your foot on the gas. If its not attached well it will twist on you and might do some damage to either the driveshaft, universal joints, or the panhard bar. Or all the above. I said i would probably drive it if its not far though. Just do NOT get on it at all and feather the gas from a dead stop. Im talking grandma driving style here.

Do i understand correctly that there is still one of the two bolts holding the torque arm on? If thats the case then it might not be as bad.

 

No I believe they are both broken off. I got the car from a coworker and its sitting at work right now. Its a tire shop I work at so I can lift it up and snap a couple pictures tomorrow.

 

If its at a tire shop throw it up on the lift and put a two bolts in it. That would be your best bet for driving it home. As i said i might chance it but if they are both gone then there is nothing to stop the rear from rotating upwards.

 

DO NOT DRIVE IT IF THE TORQUE ARM IS LOOSE!!! NOT EVEN GRANDMA STYLE!!

It's good both of your are thinking of how the torque arm moves, but you aren't thinking clearly... Not only do you have to worry about twisting the panhard bar and what not like what has been said, but you also have to worry about denting the trans tunnel or even ripping a hole in it. If it truly is loose (as in not connected at all) it will be smacking the floor boards really hard no matter the gear ratio that's in the rear end. Because the torque arm is so long on our cars, the end by the tranny tends to want to move a lot quicker and with a lot more force then where the torque arm attaches to the rear end (I would post numbers but it's late, I'm tired, and I need sleep). This is what also makes it so effective. The HUGE thing the two of you aren't thinking of is braking. The torque arm will rotate upwards under acceleration, but it will also rotate downwards under braking. When you put on the brakes, the torque arm will rotate down into the pavement and pole vault the car. This may tear off suspension mounts, bend the rear end, ruin suspension components, warp the chassis... not good no matter how you look at it. Honestly, I would even be skeptical of driving it more then 2 or 3 mph.

If you have access to a lift where the car is, just push it onto the lift and swap the bolts. Spohn, UMI, and BMR all offer direct replacement bolts. They are all board sponsors so finding a link to their websites shouldn't be a problem. In fact, I believe BMR is even having a 15% off sale at the moment.

Post some pictures if you can so we can get an idea of how bad this really is.

Mike

 

But I can't believe the bolts would break. Maybe they are just loose?
People mention breaking the TA mount off the transmission, but I have never heard of the bolts failing. They are much stronger than the material they are secureing the TA mount to.

 

Hello
Like mentioned above! I highly wouldn't recommend driving the vehicle with a broken torque arm. I would also suggest getting under the vehicle and making sure that the tail shaft casing is still in good shape, most of the time when the clam shell (were the arm mounts) breaks they break the tail shaft as well. Just a few other options to think about. I would suggest looking into a relocation cross member we are offering 15% off all of our products. Below is a link,

http://www.umiperformance.com/catalo...=index&cPath=6

Thanks
Brad