I ordered a poly bushing set today and was wondering how difficult it would be to install. Has anyone here done this and do you have any pointers of hints that I should know about. Thanks, Bob

 

Buy extra grease, trust me, you'll need it.

 

Have plenty of grease on hand. Grease all parts.

I made a press from an old drill press. I took a 2"x2" piece of band iron and welded a nut to the middle. Then put the nut in the chuck. Covered the base with another piece of band iron. It worked. I think the reason it worked was because the drill pres was about 50 years old and was very heavy duty.

 

I havent done the front suspension yet, but I re did my rear end bushings and etc.

GM Bushings are all one piece pressed in with a inner metal sleeve..I ended uprilling a few holes around the inner sleeve through the rubber pieces.
Sometimes the drill will catch and go around in circles in there..thats fine, it will lossen the bushing a little as well...use a strong bit, I broke a few weak thin ones.

After drilling some holes around the sleeve,Using a large gear Puller, I locked one end of the puller on my bench vise and used that to hold one one end of the suspension part and turned the puller screw to push the sleeve out and they popped out.I was able to hold the suspension parts by hand while turning the puller screw with a wrench..they weigh almost nothing when you have them off the car.

The trailing arms and camber rods were easy to do on the work bench without a press using the drill then puller steps.

The rear end carrier bushings, I drilled them out on the garage floor while it sat there...it was heavy and didnt move around much when I drilled throughthe bushings to make it loose around their inner sleeves.

The GM bushing is pressed in with a metal sleeve on the outside as well.

After I drilled the GM bushing around the sleeve then popped it out,there was still a metal sleeve in the carrier holes that were stuck in there.

I used a sawz all and cut very carefully though this thin metal outer sleeve stuck in there and then once I made a thin line cut, I used screw driver and carefully pry the sleeve up until it came loose and popped out.

Then I was easily able to press the new 2 peice bushings in there by hand, with some force.
(Lotsa marine grease too)

My new urethane Bushings would not fit with that outer sleeve in there, but Ive heard some people had left the sleeve in and took the carrier cover to a shop to get the new bushings pressed in place.

Pro Thane said to cut the sleeve out and not press urethane ones in there.
No problems for me doing it that way.

Get ALOT of latex gloves to keep the grease off your hands..it makes a mess and everything you touch will need lacquer thinner to clean up.
Have plenty of shop rags as well.

Try and have a dremel tool and a light sanding roll..or something with a wire brush for after you get the old bushings out.
Theres sometimes alot of aluminum oxide corrosion powder that needs to be cleaned out of there.

I had alot of them and it ate up the outer edges of the supension parts alittle bit like rust atacks metal.

I think I spent more time cleaning my suspension parts, sanding out the bushing bores
and etc more then anything else.
It came out real nice.