I have '98 F150 4x4 XLT with about 57,000 miles (bought it used with 25,000 miles a couple years ago). I was backing out of my garage the other day, and when the front end dropped off the garage floor onto the driveway surface (about an inch and a half or two inches), the driver side torsion bar snapped! I mean it actually broke with chunks laying on the ground. I never heard of such a thing happening. Anyone have any ideas why? I never abuse it or take it off roading. I baby that thing. Any thoughts are appreciated. reakin.

 

I have seen others on here mention broken torsion bars also.
My only guess is maybe that they were "cranked up" too much
and therefore too tight.
I have had no problems with mine but even with my lift I have made sure that the truck sits at factory specs with regard of how high the front end is compared to the rearend.
If you bought it used, it could be that the previous owner cranked them up too tight.

 

I have seen a couple of post relating to broken torsion bars. If I remember correctly, they were all on 98 trucks. Sounds like there must have been a problem with the bars that year.

 

The torsion bar (driver's side) on my 1998 F-150 broke earlier this week. I checked this forum for the express purpose of looking for others with the same problem. From the looks of mine, it had been hanging on by a thread for a while and a minor bump sent it over the edge and broke completely in two. There is some evidence of rust deep within the break. Does anyone know if there has been a TSB on it?

 

I believe there was a tsb about it, but have no idea what the number is. If search is up, just do a search for it, you should turn up something.

 

I was backing out of a parking spot at a hotel. My passenger side torsion bar broke. The dealer said that in his fifteen years at ford he had never seen it. Lucky it happened when it did, the day before I travelled 900 miles with furniture in the back. I 'm glad it didn't happen on the highway! My truck is a 98 4x4 ORP extended cab as well.

 

Well having your dealer say "in his 15 years....." really isnt very long, because Ford has only used torsion bars since 97. So he really should have said 5 years.

 

he still has never seen a torsion bar on a ford snap in 15 years....

 

Wonder why this site is going to hell? Everytime, someone posts, there has to be someone with a smartass comment to make.

 

i was just clarifying what the mechanic said

 

I guess I will keep my comments to myself. Sorry to get in the way. Just repeating what my service tech said. Once again sorry. I'll find another site w/out the smartasses.

 

how was i a smart ***? and i consider 15 years to be a very long time seeing how that is 75% of my life so far

 

Both my torsion bars broke within two weeks on my 1997 F150.
At the time, vehicle was a little over two years old with around 38,000 miles. Extreme cold (below zero) temps were involved. Bar #1 broke while truck was parked in garage. Dealer towed and replaced under warranty. Bar #2 went shortly thereafter while backing out of garage. Dealer also fixed. Said problem was associated with bad metal castings from supplier in Mexico. Suspension has been fine since.

 

funny that it happens when people back out of the driveway, and not when people jump curbs or offroad

 

Funny thing....when my buddy had my truck on the rack replacing the torsion bar, he took a good look at the passenger side bar. It had a Fed Ex sticker on it. Must have been replaced by the original owner at some point. I haven't had a service history check done on it. I wish there was a free Carfax type check you could do. I don't know if its worth $20 or whatever it costs to find out anything about it now. I've had it for two years and it has been a pretty solid truck. I hope to keep it for several more years. Thanks for everyone's input. Reakin.