Bushing Upgrade Advice
03-02-2011, 05:18 PM
#1
Pro
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Bushing Upgrade Advice
I'm ready for a suspension and sway bar bushing upgrade to polyurethane. What is the consenses of opinion of those of you who have done this? I'm interested in brands and sources.
Thanks for your imput.
Roger T : )
Thanks for your imput.
Roger T : )
03-02-2011, 06:28 PM
#2
Team Owner
Vette Brakes Products. They work great and it gives the car a very nice tracking feel on the banking and corners. Bit of work involved to do them all. about a day.
03-02-2011, 06:58 PM
#3
Team Owner
I used Energy Suspension poly bushing for the swaybars on my 87. Got them from Summit Racing. Summit has kits for the entire car or just the sway bars.
Get the black colored bushings; these are impregnated with graphite so you don't have to keep re-greasing them like the red ones.
Suspension bushings will take some work to do as it does require dismantling the suspension. Be careful with the springs as they are under tension even with the wheels off the ground. You will need an alignment once you are finished. You will need access to a press to make things easier when installing the new bushings, Also get a couple extra tubes of the grease for the bushings. Doesn't hurt to freely use the grease.
Get the black colored bushings; these are impregnated with graphite so you don't have to keep re-greasing them like the red ones.
Suspension bushings will take some work to do as it does require dismantling the suspension. Be careful with the springs as they are under tension even with the wheels off the ground. You will need an alignment once you are finished. You will need access to a press to make things easier when installing the new bushings, Also get a couple extra tubes of the grease for the bushings. Doesn't hurt to freely use the grease.
03-02-2011, 07:49 PM
#5
Team Owner
03-02-2011, 08:38 PM
#6
Safety Car
I would never put polys on a street car as they stiffen up the ride and they all eventually creak. Even with the right tools (a large press) it's a bunch of work to do it all.
Takes me a good 9-11 hours of work overall assuming I don't hit any major snags like fighting an older car that's never been apart. Most shops charge $800+ install time and they're probably undercutting themselves a bit.
03-02-2011, 09:11 PM
#9
Drifting
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03-02-2011, 10:08 PM
#10
Racer
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do the bushing really change the feel of the car noticibly? I just dropped my car at Phoenix and they make their own Delrin busings. I am curious what this change will really "feel" like.
03-02-2011, 11:15 PM
#11
Former Vendor
Edited to make it more to the point.
Poly bushings are a great upgrade but take the time to install Zerts at the same time, it might take another hour or two but then you can lube them in minutes instead of hours.
My bushings started squeaking badly at just 1k miles. At least 8 hours of my very valuable time was spent pulling them back apart, cleaning that goo out they come with, installing the zerts, lubing it up and fixing the issue.
I drilled through the bushing and used a dremel to cut a grove into the bushing so when I lube them it can flow all around the inserts.
------------------
When I unbolted the upper front control arms I had to put a screwdriver into the insert to have enough leverage to turn them and they were very hard to remove. There was evidence of what appeared to be a friction caused breakdown of the surface of the bushing, just starting but there.
Once I cleaned them up, prelubed with the marine grade grease, slid them in practically by hand, I could turn them with with just my finger and thumb.
---------------------
While at it I also added them to the sway bars and rechecked to ensure just the right amount of spacers so they were not being pinched by the bushings, then need to move very freely to work right. I also added them to the lower rear coilover bushings.
----------
No more noise, rides better, certainly will handle better and I can lube them all in minutes instead of hours of hard labor.
So far Marine grade grease seems to be doing very well
----------
I also recommend the DRM steering rack bushing, a bit of effort to install but well worth it.
Rick
Poly bushings are a great upgrade but take the time to install Zerts at the same time, it might take another hour or two but then you can lube them in minutes instead of hours.
My bushings started squeaking badly at just 1k miles. At least 8 hours of my very valuable time was spent pulling them back apart, cleaning that goo out they come with, installing the zerts, lubing it up and fixing the issue.
I drilled through the bushing and used a dremel to cut a grove into the bushing so when I lube them it can flow all around the inserts.
------------------
When I unbolted the upper front control arms I had to put a screwdriver into the insert to have enough leverage to turn them and they were very hard to remove. There was evidence of what appeared to be a friction caused breakdown of the surface of the bushing, just starting but there.
Once I cleaned them up, prelubed with the marine grade grease, slid them in practically by hand, I could turn them with with just my finger and thumb.
---------------------
While at it I also added them to the sway bars and rechecked to ensure just the right amount of spacers so they were not being pinched by the bushings, then need to move very freely to work right. I also added them to the lower rear coilover bushings.
----------
No more noise, rides better, certainly will handle better and I can lube them all in minutes instead of hours of hard labor.
So far Marine grade grease seems to be doing very well
----------
I also recommend the DRM steering rack bushing, a bit of effort to install but well worth it.
Rick
Last edited by RAAMaudio; 03-03-2011 at 09:55 AM.
03-02-2011, 11:29 PM
#12
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St. Jude Donor '06
johnny
03-02-2011, 11:34 PM
#13
Former Vendor
Delrin would be much better than Poly but more harshness possibly transmitted into the chassis, could be significant, maybe somebody had done this to a street/track car and can chime in???
Mono ball is best but more of a race only application, might not be to much fun on the street but again, anyone want to post their findings?
Rick
Mono ball is best but more of a race only application, might not be to much fun on the street but again, anyone want to post their findings?
Rick
03-03-2011, 01:04 AM
#15
Drifting
03-03-2011, 11:24 AM
#16
These bushings take a while to install, but are well worth the effort. A little less compliance in the system really does inspire more confidence while trying to hit your apex, or launching the car hard. While there is a small increase in Noise/Vibration/Harshness because you've effectively firmed up those mounting points, we've specifically chosen a material that will not squeek or become a maintenance item in the future. Provided with the kit is a lubricant that will reduce friction within the bearing, prevents squeeks, and working in conjunction with the polyurethane allows the suspension to move more freely than the stock rubber bushings. One thing that sets the Pfadt kit apart from poly kits for other vehicles is we really researched which lubricant will eliminate squeeks which will eventually drive a street driver mad.
If you've got any questions please feel free to contact us!
If you've got any questions please feel free to contact us!
03-03-2011, 05:13 PM
#17
Drifting
