Poly bushing ....... Any good ?

GrahamsZ · Post by **GrahamsZ** » Thu 08 Mar, 2012 21:49

I am thinking of replacing the notorious front lower control arm bushes with poly type on my old 98 2.8 Z .

Are they any good / improvement ?

Gazza · Post by **Gazza** » Thu 08 Mar, 2012 22:19

Some have changed.

Opinions vary, some saying the Poly bush is too tough.

Personally I would replace with OEM bushes.

Mike Fishwick · Post by **Mike Fishwick** » Fri 09 Mar, 2012 08:25

Poly bushes certainly cured my tramlining on bad French roads, as the originals were worn out and were the last thing needing replacement.

I have not noticed any additional harshness/noise etc. in either the Z3 or our Golf TDI. which has poly bushed throughout.

it's no wonder the front end wanders on bad roads when the OE bushes have big gaps in them, allowing the steering geometry to alter at will. The M type buch is solid and a lot better, but the poly bush is a lot easier to fit. I doubt if the OE or M bushes could be fitted with the wishbone in situ.

c_w · Post by **c_w** » Fri 09 Mar, 2012 12:10

Not used polybushes before on these but you can fit them in situ with a bit of effort, the hardest bit is remove the old bush but once this is off, you can fit the new bush on the bench then apply some washing up liquid to fit the new bushes. Once refitted drop the car back on the ground and move it forward and back to settle the suspension within a few hours before the wash liquid dries up so the wishbones are set at the right height.

Heath · Post by **Heath** » Fri 09 Mar, 2012 13:25

C_W is right the hard bit is removing the old bush. I unbolted mine from the body then used a stanley knife to cut through the rubber part to get it off the wishbone, this then leaves half of the bush on the wishbone & half on the carrier. I then used a 2 legged puller to remove the part off the wishbone & then used a hacksaw to cut through the metal part of the bush on the carrier, once you are through that it will easily tap out.
The new outer part of the poly bush on mine easily slotted into the carrier (they come in two parts) I then put silicon grease inside it, pushed the inner part of the bush in then pushed it over the wishbone then bolted the carrier back on job done. Hope that all makes sense

Heath on Tapatalk

Mike Fishwick · Post by **Mike Fishwick** » Sat 10 Mar, 2012 12:36

If you try to fit the OE or M bushes, their steel core is a tight fit on the back of the wishbone - hence the problem of fitting them in-situ.

Go for poly every time.

OldskoolRS · Post by **OldskoolRS** » Sat 10 Mar, 2012 13:05

So...if you wanted to be lazy (but in a way a bit more thorough) you could buy new wishbones and polybush kit. Fit the polybush to it and then just unbolt the old wishbone and bush, then bolt the preassembled new wishbone and bush back onto the car? I've seen a kit on Ebay that includes both wishbones and the rear bush/metal carrier for £99. I thought I'd also buy the softer version of the polybush kit, so I'd swop the bush over from the metal carrier on the new part (they are only £9.98 each, so not a major expense):

Wishbone and bush kit:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/300658138677? ... 1438.l2648

'Normal' polybush kit:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/280598577270? ... 1438.l2648

I know it's a bit wasteful, but it might make the job quicker and more of a bolt off/on operation.

Mike Fishwick · Post by **Mike Fishwick** » Sat 10 Mar, 2012 13:13

Easier? Not really - and a new wishbone is quite expensive, and you still would need a vice to press the poly bush outer into the carrier.

OldskoolRS · Post by **OldskoolRS** » Sat 10 Mar, 2012 13:23

I'm thinking that at 60,000 miles the ball joints are probably past their best anyway, plus I have a slight knock from the front near side, which could be anyone of those parts. I've got vice (well I have a few

) so OK on that score.

I'd hate to go to the bother of replacing the wishbone bush, only to find it's one of the ball joints at fault. I never have much joy trying to work out which bit is worn with just a pry bar, so I kind of thought just to blitz the car with a few new parts. I figure it won't make it worse and it's nice to know it's all been done.

Heath · Post by **Heath** » Sat 10 Mar, 2012 14:19

If you buy the carriers without the bush & the new wishbone you should be able to remove the old wishbone & bush in one piece & then fit your poly bush to the new carrier & wishbone then fit the whole lot to the car. This will obviously save you removing the old bush from the old wishbone & carrier

Heath on Tapatalk

GrahamsZ · Post by **GrahamsZ** » Sun 25 Mar, 2012 20:43

Done it ! fairly easy to do, had to destroy the old ones in situe to get them off.
Driving impressions.....well, slight improvement i would say, steering still tramlines, I guess adout 50% improvement, worth the effort....well probably not.

OldskoolRS · Post by **OldskoolRS** » Sat 12 May, 2012 12:24

Just did mine this morning with Powerflex ones: Only the rear bush on the front wishbones. Took about an hour doing the first one (struggled to get the old 'lollypop' off at first). Once that was off it left the centre of the bush still on the wishbone end, so I cut along it using my dremel then it just peeled off. Had problems getting the bolts to line up with the chassis when I reassembled it, but then I used the trolley jack to lift the wishbone and a pry bar to help line up the holes.

The other side took me about 10 minutes.

I took photos on the job which I'll post back later. Also I bought two new 'lolly pop' bush carriers, so at some point I'll clean up the other ones and take out the remains of the OEM bush. Might put them in the classifieds once I've done this as it saved a bit of time doing the job this way.

The car doesn't feel any harsher riding, I put plenty of the copperslip grease on so hopefully no squeking will develop. However, there is still a clunk from the left hand side when turning sharp right. Maybe the wishbone itself (or rather it's ball joints) or perhaps the linking arms that go from the ARB to the wishbone. I think I'll try the link arms next as they aren't dear, the old ones do look ropey and they should be a quick job to do. Might use Poweflex bushes for this job too...

OldskoolRS · Post by **OldskoolRS** » Sat 12 May, 2012 13:53

Just a few photos to accomany the job.

Parts used for replacement (plus another bush carrier not shown):

How it looked before hand:

Using the jack to help line up the bush carrier bolts with the chassis threaded holes

This was the centre of the OEM bush after being cut through with a dremel (not quite all the way through, then 'peeled' open with an old screwdriver):

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