sperkins

Please educate me. Both sides - on the front only.

Stock 2003 ZO6.

dvandentop

looks like the one slipped over to the side some?

0Randy@DRM

It appears you have too much load going into the bushing. So it pushes out of its "groove". At this point you have three options. First replace with a stock bushing and go slower. Second, get some good aftermarket poly bushing (which I sell ) and drive as hard as you have been. Third spend some more cash and be pretty trick with monoballs (which I sell ) and go faster then before!!!

Randy

Bill Dearborn

This happened on my 97. It looks like you caught it early. The control arms will continue to push back on the bushings until they come in contact with the cradle. You can prevent the metal to metal contact by putting in some large washers but your wheel alignment will be off. They found the problem on my 97 when I had the dealer do a wheel alignment and they couldn't get the caster setting. Requires new control arms or replacing the bushings with poly bushings.

Bill

sperkins

Aw hell. I guess I need to retire for the season after Road ATL next weekend. Never heard of a monoball . I'll be in touch soon.

Thanks Bill for the advice too. Think it will be OK for 4 more track days?

sperkins

Meant to ask. What exactly is causing this -hard braking? Is this a common issue with these cars?

0Randy@DRM

That one looks like a heavy braking, bushing puller. But if it didn't happen to that bushing, it would have done a different one. Yes it is a pretty common problem.

Monoball suspension are the cream of the crop. Real racecar stuff. I don't know if you are this level yet. Maybe I was trying for a late night plug



Randy

sperkins

Yeah I think the poly's are more my speed at this point.

PM sent.

1stZ

FYI, I'm already running poly-urethane bushings and it's still happening to me. Please note that my poly urethane bushings are not DRM's brand. I'm considering moving up to the hardcore monoball stuff but I'm hesitant because although not often, I still occassionaly like to drive my car on the street on corvette gatherings. Any suggestions Randy?

rustyguns

nice! can you buys these and install them yourself? or do you need to buy them installed in the a arm already?

i bet you could get away with just doing the front lower bushings to save $ or not?

meldog21

I have an extra set of front and rear lower control arms with poly bushings installed. $350 plus shipping and paypal if you want them.

Dog

varkwso

I use VBP bushings in the white FRC - solved the problem....

RAFTRACER

VBP bushings cannot do this period the way they are designed. Sperkins, this is a common stock lower bushing issue. Autocross cars seem to do this earlier than roadcourse cars.

You can run the rest of the season ike this if you would like. You may have the car realigned. When the bushings do this you are losing caster and the front toe is changing.

If your car is a mid-03 or later (12/02 production date or later) your car has the later updated bushings that will still "creep", but they will finally settle.....still not ideal, but better than previous. Previous to the 12/02 production date they will creep all the way until the lower control arm front bore galls into your subfame.

It looks like you still have some time before this happens....Fix it over the winter. Oh...your in Georgia, you dont have a winter....Fix it during your off season.

varkwso

we do not have an off season either - at some point my cash well does run dry though....

0Randy@DRM

1stZ,
You can still drive them on the street, but they are kinda loud and don't give a nice ride. But a little here and there shouldn't be bad.

rustyguns, The front and rear lowers are the biggest improvements. Yes you can just do some of them for a savings. I think I heard you say about a week ago. "it's only money" We have to install them here at our shop. The stock holes are all over the place if you start measuring. We can either install them in new control arms or yours.

Thanks Danny, I didn't know when the cut off was. I knew they made a change for the better at some point.

Randy

RAFTRACER

.

Randy , to the best of my knowledge this is when the bushing update occurred. It was somewhere around 11-12/02 production. I use the 12/02 production as I know for sure since my '03 Z06 that I autox has that production date...

Unfortunealty this also also when they went to the FFS fuel system, which I could have done without..........

MungoZ06

Danny ... I've got a 12/02 build '03 with FFS ... can I assume I have the *improved* bushings?

Gordy M

Is it possible to use a press and pop them out and reverse them. That way the big edge is protecting you from the metal?

RAFTRACER

I guess that it is possible, I sometimes band-aid the forward bushing by removing the small washer from the rear side and replace it with a larger one so that the control arm can only "creep" to the washer. This prevents the control arm from galling into the subframe. Problem is with these bushings that the whole bushing including the washers is installed into the control arm as a complete unit, therefore one washer has to be smaller than the bore in the control arm. I have large supplies of control arms and washers (from all of the crept bushings and poly installs) so I have alot of the larger sized washers to do this with....

The real fix is replacing with poly or monoballs. The SCCA Super Stock guys are not allowed this mod though.

RAFTRACER

Yes you can assume that.....The easiest way to tell is the rear most bushing has a steel washer bonded into the rearmost part of the bushing. it is not visible, but you can feel it if you press on it with a finder or implement....

This does not prevent the lower bushings from "creeping", and resultant alignment change, but it will "creep" and settle without galling into the subframe typically...

The forward bushing was not changed at all only the rears....You should still keep an eye on them..