RE: [DML] Re: Torsion Bars

["Chris Parnham" <chrisparnham@xxxx>]

On the Subject of torsion bars, Earlier this week I had a long conversation
with a recently retired Lotus employee who was deeply involved with the
DeLorean project. His name is Brian R....
He spent many months travelling between Belfast / Lotus factory / Germany,
where the early door design was done.
He tells me that the first design was for a door using the torsion bar
only...which indeed worked well in practice.......until some people worried
about what would happen if the torsion bar suddenly broke.
People could loose a hand/or foot if the door suddenly came crashing down!
This is when they came up with the idea of the torsion bar and a gas strut
sharing the load.
It looks as if some of the fears were well founded!

Chris P DOC UK

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. Especially when adjusting the bars they can move
around and touch the hinge. This is how one broke on me. Fortunatly
the door was closed at the time and it was a right side bar. Never go
near the torsion bar with anything metallic except at the end to
adjust it.