Spherical bushings
Instructor
Joined: Jan 2025
Posts: 135
Likes: 78
From: North Carolina
Intermediate
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 25
Likes: 22
I wouldn’t recommend replacing them unless it’s going to be a dedicated track car. Spherical bushings (often called monoballs) on the C8 Corvette replace the factory rubber suspension bushings. They completely eliminate bushing flex, providing razor-sharp steering response and highly predictable suspension geometry under heavy cornering loads. However, they significantly increase road noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) in the cabin.
The change in NVH is not necessarily that bad and I actually like the feel in my ZL1 1LE track car, but they may get noisy from dirt and then you have to get under the car and clean them, apply white lithium etc. and also you will need to replace them every 4-5 years and this gets expensive--even the highest quality ones wear out (develop play).
I will not be doing this in my Z06, as the stock control arms are very rigid and high quality cast/forged aluminum and the feel is already great there.
Racer
Joined: Mar 2024
Posts: 405
Likes: 89
From: Charlotte, NC
Just had them done on my Z51 track car and they don’t feel too bad on the street but you definitely feel the difference! You will feel all the bumps. But I also have a full Ohlins shock package as well and full aero so that does not help much either. lol.
Racer
Joined: Mar 2024
Posts: 405
Likes: 89
From: Charlotte, NC
——
If you're searching for the elusive "go-kart" handling characteristics for your race car, spherical bearings are perhaps the first suspension upgrade you should consider. The factory rubber bushings are extremely gushy in order to reduce noise, vibration, and harshness from a street car. They also cost almost nothing to produce and to install. Factory rubber bushings are more than adequate for 99% of cars that live their lives on the street. However they "numb" the driver from feeling the track. The soft rubber dulls every movement of the suspension and turn of the steering wheel. The rubber deteriorates over time and on a serious track car will start to extrude itself from the control arms. This will destroy your alignment and your tires in a matter of minutes on track.
Spherical bearings eliminate all of the shortcomings of rubber on a track-focused vehicle. The car will feel razor sharp on the track as the car will react immediately to your driving inputs. The car no longer has to wait for the stock rubber to compress while changing direction. Tires last longer and perform better with proper alignment settings since the camber value does not change due to deflection of rubber bushings. The trade off for all the increased performance of spherical bearings is of course cost and harshness. You will feel every surface imperfection in the track, which means you will feel every pothole and frost heave on the street. Good shocks will smooth out some harshness on the street, but this is not a modification we recommend for a street-only car. Some people love having spherical bearings on their commuter car, but it's not something that we at AMT would enjoy.
Last edited by Bossman2024; Yesterday at 08:05 AM.
