control arm bushings

I think OEMs are tack welded to the A arm......so if you just push the inside out, you reuse the shell??

 

I'll have to defer to someone else, I just crank the steering wheel right or left and step on the Loud Pedal.....

 

I've done it both ways, using the Energy Suspension bushings. Basically, I'd recommend just reusing the old shells. It is much easier, cheaper, faster. The Energy Suspension bushings can be disassembled, so it makes the replacement a snap to do. Stock shells are the same size as the new ones. I've got pictures of the process, if you are interested.

I think other brands of bushings cannot be disassembled, but the ES ones can.

If you do use new shells, be sure to disassemble the bushings prior to welding the shells into the A-arms. Welding makes a mess of the inner plastic sleeve. I didn't use the supplied grease, as it was more like superglue. I just lubricated the bushing parts with Vaseline. I've had no problems with squeaking in the suspension since.

Replacing the bushings and ball joints is one of the best things you can do for an old 308. Makes it handle like a new car. I was amazed at the difference, and it is a fairly easy do it yourself job.

Bob
'78 308GTS
'01 Corvette Z06

 

Thanks, Bob...that's what I was wondering, as the heat of the tack welding process would be considerable on the new inner sleeve....

Totally agree about the uprated material, I'll slide under there, one of these days soon!

 

Funny,

I was in fact planning on using the grease that was supposed to be supplied with the bushings, but found that it wasn't..

Good to hear that vaseline works too!

Bushings are waiting to be replaced, as soon as I find some time...

Hans

 

Well, I thought I had the pictures, but I guess I erased them from the camera.

Yes, if you re-use the shells, no welding is required.

The bushings come apart into four pieces. An inner metal tube, a plastic bushing, an outer metal tube, and a plastic donut that fits on one end. Just discard the outer shell, push the plastic bushing into the old sleeve, then push in the inner metal tube and cap the opposite end with the donut. Hardest part is disemboweling the old bushing. I had to use a hacksaw to cut off one end of the metal inner sleeve, then press out the inside portion of the bushing. It came out fairly cleanly, but then I had to clean off the inner surfaces of the old sleeve to accept the new plastic bushing.

Note: the ES bushings are a full floating design, so the outer sleeve is fixed to the A-arm, the inner tube is fixed to the frame (via tightening down the A-arm bolt). The two parts rotate with respect to one another, with the plastic bushing providing the bearing surface.

 

One slight difference I noticed when helping a fellow chatter do it the easy way (leaving old sleeves in control arms) is there was a slight step in the existing sleeve on one end . .. pretty easy to dremel out and could probably be ignored but it's there . . . just something I noticed on this guy's factory control arm bushings which may not be on all of 'em.

Bowserrh I know you . . . come up I15 a bit and excercise your cars with me some time . . . PM me . . we met at an Flist get together in La Jolla in like '97 ish at TGIF I think it was.

Good to see you still got your rig.

Cheers,

Sean

 

Just curious, has anyone found poly bushings for the anti-roll bars?

Also, how is the rack connected to the frame? Solid mount or rubber bushings?

 

Superformance has the anti-roll bushings in rubber,not poly (http://www.superformance.co.uk/a-308/suspension.htm)

I believe the rack is mounted using rubber bushings. I seem to recall that Jim Shadow found out the hard way that using anything other than stock here is an excercise in knuckle scraping and invites the technique of shouting parts into place...

 

Thanks. Has anyone found a set that will work? Fiat, Lancia, etc?

Does anyone make aluminum mounts? Or, has anyone here made aluminum mounts? (Verell?) Just wondered because I replaced the rubber mounts in my TR6 a decade ago with the aluminum ones and man did that make a HUGE difference in steering response!

 

Seeing the control arm bushes seem to have originated from a Fiat 125...or was it 132? Might be on the right track!

 

For what it's worth, I removed the guts of my original bushings and used the ES inserts ... no tack welding required. As noted by others, the hardest part of the job (and it's not really that hard) was removing the guts of the old bushings. Do a search, and I think you'll find that Birdman has an illustrated step-by-step.

 

Birdman's guide is excellent, however, do not lube the outside of the bushing when you press them in. I checked with the MFR on this. Also, when I did my car, I found that several of the original shells had cracked welds. I had to re-weld them before inserting the new bushings. All in all, it took about 16 hours to do the job start to finish, not including the realignment. Do not re-torque until the wheels are being aligned.

PS. while some say you can do the job without a press, that was not the case with my car.