Re: Poly Bushings

From: david.clement@verizon.net
Date: Fri Jul 09 2004 - 12:45:44 EDT


Well I rebuilt the front end on my 68 Barracuda last winter with polygraphite
bushings. Even with the graphite impregnating they started to squeak after a
couple of months. I had heard that that was an issue with the poly bushings but
I figured that the graphite would solve the problem.

I certainly haven't see enough of a handling improvement to make it worth the
aggravation of the squeaking. I also haven't seen a significant increase in the
harhness of the suspension that I have heard people comment on when making the
switch. I will likely rebuild the suspension with stock rubber bushings again
this winter.

Longevity was not a consideration when I made the choice but I can't see how
they would out live rubber. A rubber bushing has no moving parts, the inner and
outer shells are bonded to the rubber and they allow motion by the rubber
deflecting. Where as a poly bushing has the shells rotating on the poly
material. Any dirt and grit that gets in there is going to wear away the shell
and poly material.

FWIW, the motivation for making the change to poly bushings is to get rid of
the deflection and movement in the bushing pivot for more precise handling.

Dave Clement
99 SLT+ CC 4x4

In article <BAY17-F30DQjETNJ4ux00010a07@hotmail.com>, hopsdak@hotmail.com ("Hop
*") writes:
>
>
> Hey guys,
> I'm looking into replacing my stock bushings on my dak. They have 130k on
> them and are almost 8yrs old. I'm wanting to replace them with poly. All i
> can find is for the rear leafs. Does anyone know who makes them for the
> front a-arms? If possible i'd like to have everything replaced. From the
> shocks all the way to the frame. I'd also like to hear the pros and cons for
> doing this mod. Are poly really worth the money? And do they out last the
> rubber bushings? I've heard it stiffens up the ride but it's a 4x4.
> Any help on this would be appreciated.
> Thanks, Hop
> 97 CC 318 4X$ 3" rancho 3" pa B/L
> http://home.swbell.net/hopsdak/dak.html
>
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