Trailing arms

[Dougieboy1]

I have bought a 1972 S 'project'. It is currently fitted with aluminium trailing arms and i want to put it back to standard, i.e. steel.

So, before i launch into a purchase, I wanted to understand what are the differences, if any, between T, E and S trailing arms and also between 911 and 912 trailing arms. Would any 72/73 911 trailing arm do the job? Am interested by references i have seen to 'without the sway bar mounting stud' so i presume you can also get them with a sway bar stud. Did the S have the stud and the others not? Or did none of them have the stud? What do i need to know before buying? Any photos/advice of what to look for and what the sway bar mounting stud looks like would also be helpful.

Do i need special hubs to mount on the trailing arms or are hubs fungible and i will be able to reuse the ones fitted to the ali trailing arms?

If anyone has a set they don't want, alongside their collection of golden eggs, rocking horse pooh and hens teeth, am open to persuasion to part with cash.

All information welcome as i strive not to make an a**e of myself.

Thanks

[Uk911]

If / when you decide on a way ahead I have a pair of steel trailing arms that I've just taken off my 72, if your interested.
Regards
Mark.
72 Marmite Panzer.

[Dougieboy1]

sent you a pm

[hot66]

Depending on the year of the alloy arms, they are pretty desirable and an upgrade a lot of early car owners go for

From memory, if you're changing, you'll need the correct stub axles, bearing plates , lower shock bolts , possibly rear disc backing plates as they differ ( all this is from memory when I fitted alloy arms to mine) .

Of course, with an s you'll need the sway bar pins on the steels arms

[Gary71]

As James said unless really keen on originality I'd leave them. You can add rear brake hoses to the list above as well. I did mine several years back and wouldn't put steel arms back on.

I'm sure if you find someone with a standard '72 they might be prepared to swap!

[Dougieboy1]

Thanks for the opinions, i think for now i will stick with the alloys from the sound of it. Can always swap out later if necessary.

As a matter of interest, what difference to the driving experience do alloy arms make?

thanks

[hot66]

Lighter ( although I don't think by much ) , but stiffer

[Gary71]

Difficult to quantify as it's pretty much always done at the same time as new bushes/alignment etc so the actual effects may be masked. I felt turn in and steering feel improved but I don't have any data to back that up. And as anyone who knows me at work will understand I don't do statements without data!

Some data I do have is weight:

'72 Steel arm with wheel bearing and bushes: 7.4kg

'73 Aluminium arm with wheel bearing and bushes: 5.5kg

So a total saving of 3.8kg from the right end of the car, the majority of which is unsprung