should of went deer hunting

505stang · #1 (**permalink**) 10-26-2014, 08:58 AM

Instead of going hunting this weekend i decided not to go since i got one last weekend, so i took my cobra out for a 60 plus mile cruise and everything was perfect, 190 water temp, 75 psi oil, 14 volts, car was running great until i returned to my street. With out any sign of trouble i here all kinds of nasty noises coming from behind me

turns out that the grade 8 bolt on my drivers side lower control arm broke. Rearend shifts and puts the left tire into the rear quarter and breaks the fiberglass, then tire hits sidepipe and pushes that forward so that it cracks the front wheelwell fiberglass, also flattened the sidepipe where the tire hit it. I did not plan on having to repaint the car with only couple hundred miles on it. Color is House of Kolors paint in Sunset Pearl and i don't know if i will be able to blend it, my neighbor was the painter and body man at the Chrsyler plant at Fenton for 33 years and says it is possible, well i guess i will find out.

RockBit · #2 (**permalink**) 10-26-2014, 10:02 AM

Wow! Very bad day. Sorry for your trouble.

Sawdust · #3 (**permalink**) 10-26-2014, 03:48 PM

"OMG" So sorry to hear about your issues. What a total "piss off"!!!

Young1 · #4 (**permalink**) 10-26-2014, 05:21 PM

Glad to hear it happen pulling into your neighborhood and not going 90 miles an hour around a curve.

Clois Harlan · #5 (**permalink**) 10-27-2014, 05:23 AM

NO kidding! Wow, all the glass can be fixed fairly easily. Honestly, I have never heard of a GR 8 bolt sheering off like that under normal driving conditions. Glad you're okay, it could have been much worse.

SKINNEDR · #6 (**permalink**) 10-27-2014, 06:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Young1

Glad to hear it happen pulling into your neighborhood and not going 90 miles an hour around a curve.

That is so true!
I have BDR #471, and have lost all confidence in it. You never know what is going to be next. Driving one is like rolling the dice, it is always a risk.
I know lots of you may disagree, but to me it is risky and that does not mean I'm about to get rid of mine. I waited 28 years to purchase one 7 years ago.
But, I have to admit, I'm scared at times..
I the past year, I have had two broken axel, and over heating problems.
Just never know what is going to be next..
Good to know you are ok..
Dex..

DanEC · #7 (**permalink**) 10-27-2014, 09:17 AM

So sorry for your troubles - I looked at your photos in your photo gallery and that is a spectactular paint job. But your OK.

That is odd on the grade 8 bolt - I suspect that either the bolt was a Chinese grade 8 or the bolt gets a lot of bending stress. Grade 8 bolts are a little more brittle that Grade 5 bolts although superior in tension and straight shear.

Good luck with the repairs.

505stang · #8 (**permalink**) 10-27-2014, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clois Harlan

NO kidding! Wow, all the glass can be fixed fairly easily. Honestly, I have never heard of a GR 8 bolt sheering off like that under normal driving conditions. Glad you're okay, it could have been much worse.

after looking at what happened it looks like the bracket itself fatigued around the bolt, then bolt hole got bigger then i think that is why the bolt broke because of the excess play. I did'nt see all that until i got under the car for a better look. Put the car back together Sunday with new hardware and some welding of a new bracket. Now all that is left is body repair.

505stang · #9 (**permalink**) 10-27-2014, 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanEC

So sorry for your troubles - I looked at your photos in your photo gallery and that is a spectactular paint job. But your OK.

That is odd on the grade 8 bolt - I suspect that either the bolt was a Chinese grade 8 or the bolt gets a lot of bending stress. Grade 8 bolts are a little more brittle that Grade 5 bolts although superior in tension and straight shear.

Good luck with the repairs.

Thanks for the complement on the paint, as for the bolt, after looking under the car it looks like a bracket fatigued around the bolt hole causing excessive play then the bolt failed because of the slack. Car is back together by Sunday night, all i have left is fix glass and paint.

RallySnake · #10 (**permalink**) 10-29-2014, 11:30 PM

I can relate to your problems. I have been working on mine for 33 years and there's always two or three problems that I need to fix. You just have to really like to work on cars if you own one of these beasts.

Tommy · #11 (**permalink**) 10-30-2014, 05:05 AM

I'm inspired mostly by SKINNEDR's post to offer these comments as food for thought.

Any time a part fails you need to discover the underlying reason and fix that too. Occasionally you will find a failed part that was simply not well constructed or not intended to take the forces applied to it; but if you replace it with one just like it, it will likely fail too. Of course replacing the failed part with a stronger one may lead to you discovering the next weakest link in the chain of parts that is a car.

For those who may not know, Grade 8 is not always better than Grade 5 for all applications. In simple terms, as forces build on a bolt, a Grade 5 may bend and deform before a Grade 8. But as the force build more, the Grade 8 may snap while the Grade 5 only deforms more. The question of which is better depends on the application. In some cases its better to have a bent bolt than risk having a snapped one.

Lastly, I used to take my car to the track, so I have seen lots of failed parts and systems. I look at each failure as an opportunity to make the car better than before. My goal is to fix each failure such that it will not happen again.

MOTORHEAD · #12 (**permalink**) 10-30-2014, 05:53 AM

I would remove wheel, shock, and spring, and check suspension for range of movement and binding.

Bernica · #13 (**permalink**) 10-30-2014, 09:25 AM

I use one of these paint markers on all critical bolts and connections at the running gear and suspension. It makes it easy to do an inspection and see if anything has moved.

http://www.diagraphmsp.com/inventoryd.asp?item_no=SCOLLECT28&CatId={2EE802DA-BEEB-4973-9693-BD9EA795D57E}

Maricopa · #14 (**permalink**) 10-30-2014, 10:25 AM

For those who may not know, Grade 8 is not always better than Grade 5 for all applications. In simple terms, as forces build on a bolt, a Grade 5 may bend and deform before a Grade 8. But as the force build more, the Grade 8 may snap while the Grade 5 only deforms more. The question of which is better depends on the application. In some cases its better to have a bent bolt than risk having a snapped one.

While 8s are technically more 'brittle' than 5s a grade 5 will bend and break before a grade 8 bends. Never use anything less than grade 8 on stressed suspension components.

RallySnake · #15 (**permalink**) 10-30-2014, 11:31 AM

If you drive your car often, you usually become aware of problems before they get serious. As you are driving, PAY ATTENTION to things that do not seem right. Especially in the steering and brakes. Stop and take care of it. There have been a couple of cases when my car almost killed me because I did not stop and check something that did not "Feel Right".

I believe in the 5, 50, 500 rule. After you make a change, drive the car for 5 miles then go home and check everything, then 50 and so on.

If you are loosing confidence in your ability as a car builder, think about GM, Ford and Toyota. After millions of dollars spent testing their products in every possible environment, they still have recalls for defects. Car building is not easy. It's good to be scared!