William Atkins

I have an 07 Z06 that I am using mainly for track events. I am running stock springs and Phadt adjustabale shocks. I started running Hoosier R6s with good results and looking to upgrade to poly bushings. I cannot afford spherical or monoball. Are they that much better than rubber for all the trouble of installation? Who makes the best poly kit now that Phadt is out of business? Is this a DIY job? Thanks for any response or experience you may have.

mgarfias

Its easily DIY. I would save the $ for the sphericals. Never been all that happy with my polys

rfn026

I would skip the poly bushings. They're not worth the trouble. In some cases they degrade the handling of the car. GM spent millions of dollars refining the bushings in your Corvette. Now you're going to replace them with something designed in an industrial park on the edge of town? Really?

After a couple of years all of my poly bushing fell apart. Energy Suspension sent me replacements with higher quality poly. Vette Brakes never returned my phone call. They didn't even respond to my email.

I'm voting a big NO on poly bushings.

Richard Newton
The R9G Corvette

1991Z07

I've had the same poly bushings in mine since 1997. My OEM rubber ones were shot, and high-durometer Z07 versions were not available anymore...unless you were willing to spend $400/ea for lower control arms.

How you can say that less deflection under load is a bad thing with as much track experience you have is baffling. Less deflection means the suspension stays closer to your original settings...on track that means a lot to the confidence you as a driver have in what the car will do.

And what the manufacturer uses for a street purposes has zero to do with anything. Think they use those OEM bushings in the C5.R, C6.R or C7.R?

No...they don't.

SouthernSon

Have had polys on my track car for a few years. I like them. You have to be sure to lubricate with the correct 'sticky' lube and follow installation instructions to the letter for complete satisfaction. I had trouble with the OEM rubber shifting way out of kilter. I also like the fact that the suspension settings stay more in spec since the polys don't deflect as much as the softer rubber. However, when you drive on the street the ride will be much harsher and noisier. I don't drive my Z on the street.

yakisoba

We put poly on my car and my wife's car for track use. They are very good, especially when you start running sticky tires and lots of camber. The Corvette can't get enough negative camber with stock bushings and sticky tires. With poly, you can run enough to even out your tire temps and wear. Of course, spherical bushings are better, but wear faster and require great care to install. Poly bushings are easier to do, and have lasted well for me. I used Pfadt bushings in both cars. Not sure what I'll do when they wear out.

CHJ In Virginia

IMHO poly bushings were one of the best "Handling" mods I made to my C5 track car. Properly installed and lubed they will last trouble free for many years of use. I used the Pfadt kit. The bushings add another level of preciceness to your handling and steering inputs. Greatly reduced compression when compared to the stock rubber bushings = consistent handling. Not sure who I would use now that Pfadt is gone.

charger21

Check with VanSteel. I went with their delrin bushings. Better than poly and less money than the mono-*****.

spdislife

I run the the VB and Parts Poly and like them. Next time I'll probably switch to Delrin.

marolf101x

We at Ridetech designed a set of Delrin replacement bushings for the front suspension as many people are using C5/C6 parts on old Muscle Cars.

You can read about them in this post:
http://www.pro-touring.com/threads/1...l-Arm-Bushings

Current price for the front kit is $500.00.
These use Delrin with PTFE impregnated, so they are self lubricating and do not need to be greased or lubed (we've been injection molding Delrin with PTFE bushings for our Muscle Cars for years with great success!).
These are currently CNC machined.
Should we have enough interest we would invest in tooling so we could injection mold the parts.

Also, with enough interest we would design and manufacture the rear bushings as well.

I do not like "normal" Delrin in these control arms as you need to lubricate them, which means you need to put a grease zerk in the arm and I'm just not comfortable drilling into the OE aluminum arm.

Let me know what you all think and if this is another product you'd like us to pursue.

parsonsj

Delrin here. Joe at Phoenix did the work. Van Steel and Ridetech are recommended too.

If you are going poly, I've got a complete, never used, Pfadt poly kit for a C6 Z06. I've opened the box only to inspect the contents.

SouthernSon

I am always open to newer and improved.

froggy47

Very happy with my Pfadt poly, lube once every yr or so, I've had mine 4 years no serious wear. Must have been made with very high quality material. You really can't compare good poly with some of the (red?) junk poly that's being sold. Apples/oranges.

sperkins

Poly is an excellent upgrade from stock for track use and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

0Anthony @ LGMotorsports

Of course bearings are the best way to go for all out performance...but understandably not everyone wants to go that route be it interior noise, or cost of the kit.

Polys are a good substitute for those not wanting to go full bearing but they don't come without some compromise as well. They do require some care over the years and need to be greased from time to time. They do transmit more noise inside the car, and will ride a bit harsher than rubber bushings...but again you are doing this for track performance not comfort going to the store on Saturday mornings.

rfn026

I like the concept. I just don't like the material. The true solution is spherical rod ends. They really work. I even have an article in this month's Vintage Motorsport magazine about spherical rod ends.

I also like Delrin. That works. I've usually had the Delrin bushings custom machined because you need really close tolerances with Delrin.

Actually poly works also - for a while. You need to replace the poly bushings on a regular basis. Poly will not rebound like a rubber bushing. After a while the bushing actually becomes ovalized. At that point you have to replace it. It's never coming back to a round configuration.

If you leave it in place (as I did) the bushing will actually break up. I noticed it when my left rear would not hold a camber setting over the weekend.

The other problem is that no one actually tells you how stiff the bushing is. I once checked out the bushings from three different companies with a durometer. The range was incredible. When Energy Suspension found out that I was actually checking this stuff they made me a special set of rear bushings in a really hard material. Not as stiff as Delrin - but close.

Before you buy from any of these companies ask them what the Durometer reading is. If they can't answer that question move on to the next company.

Richard Newton

rfn026

Here's the rear of my C4.

Here's another discussion of this topic. We've been talking about this for years now.

Here's an earlier rant of mine. Unfortunately the images aren't coming up.

Richard Newton

Bad_AX

Britt,

For the Corvette community, a set of bushings for the front AND rear is mandatory.

I do think there is a market for a quality, self lubricating Delrin bushing set for Corvettes. The products currently available are custom fit jobs and the prices reflect this. Do the current and proposed Ridetech bushings require individual fitting? If these can be injection molded and user installed, this could result in a much more favorable price. How long does it take to tool up for injection molding? I will be changing my bushings out this fall/winter after my last track weekend, so I have some decisions to make!

lefrog

Do you still have the names and the results?

el es tu

Vansteel does delrin installed with brand new balljoints for roughly 1200.

Between the cost of poly kits at around 300 and the install being around 800 (and youre not getting new balljoints), it doesnt really make much sense to go poly