aggie_corvette

I need new suspension bushing, Mine have walked themselves out from under the control arm and the metal is about to start rubbing.

I know about the VB&P bushing and was going to get those but i know they will eventually squeak.
http://www.vbandp.com/detail.aspx?ID=770

My car still does allot of street driving so i was looking for an alternative and came across these.
http://prostores.exotica-motorsports...cat=106&page=1

They are supposed to be quite yet still poly.

What is the difference between the two???

ibjamin

I've got a question. What's the difference between these kits that cost $300 and this one that costs $75?

http://www.pfadtracing.com/t_popup_i...m Bushings.jpg

The $75 one only includes the poly bushings, not any steel washers, shafts, etc. You just re-use the stock ones. Why pay the extra $$ if there isn't any difference?

George

Aaron Pfadt

Good question George. The answer is that it is easily $225 worth of work (3 hours @ $xxx/hr) to clean up the old steel parts. It is really a convenience thing. I have personally installed these kits and the burning to get the old bushings out is bad enough, The last thing you want to have to do is wire wheel all the gooey little bits to clean them up.

That is why we put together the sleeve kit. Additionally the sleeves are aluminum and provide a very nice bearing surface for the poly to ride on. That is unlike the stock sleeves which are meant to be bonded to the rubber.

In terms of noise, it all comes down to a good lube. Poly will squeak. The reason it will squeak it that there is relative motion between the poly and the sleeve (unlike the factory rubber parts that are bonded to the control arm and sleeve and rely on the flexibility of the rubber to allow movement). That friction can cause noise. We provide a specially formulated lube to eliminate squeaks. I have never had any noise on our cars when they are assembled with our lube. That said, some people swear that eventually poly bushings will start to squeak. One of the reasons our lube is special is that it is very thick. That keeps it from migrating out of the bearing surface. You can always re-lube.

One other thing I'd like to address is the graphite impregnation of the poly. It is sort of a red herring I'm afraid. Most black bushings have graphite in them and ours do also. However I have been assured that it is more a marketing ploy by the poly manufacturers than it is an actual anti-friction device. Can it hurt, probably not, does it stop squeaks, probably not.

Hope this helps.

-Aaron

Jason

I wish I'd have done more research before I bought the kit without the sleeves and had to do all the burning/cutting/wire wheel part chucking into my nuts. Really added a lot of time and frustration to the whole project.

varkwso

I just installed a set of VBP bushings - easily worth the extra money than a poly only kit. Getting the front uppers apart and then reassembled - life is too short....

The poly alone are not that bad for squeaking - I have had them in many cars. Put in a few heim joints to cover the noise if it bothers you.

Last C5

It looks like the VBP and Exotica sets may be the same. How is the ride after these are installed. I put a set in an old 80 that I used to own and it was like driving a go kart and I don't mean that in a good way. Very noisy and transmitted every single pebble in the road right though the rest of the car. Has anybody got a set of these in and can give me a description/comparison of the ride vs the stock rubber bushings?

Jason

I installed them the same time I switched to T1 bars, so kinda hard to say. Definitely worth it to me.

Aaron Pfadt

Hey, I was just looking at my own website and realized that we don't have the kit with sleeves up there. It is new for us, in the past we have only sold the kit with the poly alone.

In my opinion, like I state above, the kit with the sleeves is well worth it.

So for now you can buy it either way from us, but my recommendation is to get the kit with the sleeves.

link to Pfadt Poly Bushing Kit with Sleeves

-Aaron

varkwso

The ride is stiffer and road input is precise - but it is not and never will be like the stock bushings. It not too bad - but I like a stiff car...

vms4evr

Is it just the upper that is a pain? I figured upper and lower would be just as bad? Did you cut or burn the old rubber bushings out?

I'm assuming when you did them some amount of cut, burn, swear, drinking, and Jake were involved Not necessarily in that order of course

Looks like I have a winter project lined up.

varkwso

I used my vise, 20 ton shop press, a ball joint press and my two sons to pushout/in all the bushings - no swearing or drinking needed. You need to use a sawzall to cut the top one off on the upper fronts. The VBP instructions are excellent and it is one of the easier jobs I have done - of course I also put in a new trans, new rad, added an oil cooler, new bars, new springs, new water pump, new torque tube bushings, new belts, new cat back exhaust, and new plug wires all at the same time....