FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Ive searched all over this forum and others, and Im still on the fence about which bushing material I should use up front in the upper and lower control arms..

I have read most people hate poly because it rides very rough and the position of the lower arm in the rear tends to bind and wear out very quickly.

There are others who recommend the 1LE bushings up front from GM. Are they really stiffer than stock ones but are still rubber and therefore right between the normal rubber and poly?

Others say Moog is the better route to go. Does moog make stock ones and 1LE type ones?

I have read where a couple people say to use the poly kit, and buy a moog bushing for that rear spot on the lower control arm...

After reading everything I just dont know...

First and foremost, this is a daily driver. I drive it hard on the street, and I tend to push corners pretty hard when Im driving out in the country.

You can see in my sig that Im not messing around with my car, pretty much nothing is left stock...

This spring will find my car getting some Strano sway bars, Strano lowering springs, and the koni 4/3 kit..

Please post up your ideas/concerns/recommendations. I want to make an informed decision on this, and I need to replace the bushings while Im in there because they are 16 years old and have 125xxx+ miles on them.

Many thanks!!!
Cody

sjsingle1

iTrader: (1)

i say poly....try em............you will like em

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Are you using them? Did you buy Energy Suspension or Prothane? Did you use the poly bushing in the lower control arm rear location? How many miles do you have on them and are they still holding up alright? Are they greaseable?

Sorry for the bombardment of quesitons, but these are the things I am concerned about with the poly bushings.

99FormulaM6r

iTrader: (2)

I'd go for the rubber, if you're looking for handling no sense in inducing bind. Also, I believe the Moog's are usually the same as the GM 1LE type.

bigj2717

iTrader: (15)

I went with the fully energy suspension kit on my car and I couldn't be happier. I drive the car really hard and it doesn't have any problems in the corners

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Yeah I dont want the bind, but I also dont want rubber that would give a little too much in hard coners either. Just trying to figure out what will work best for my application.

Good to know about the moog being = to 1LE

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Interesting! Ive read that the brand you bought has the problem with that lower rear bushing. How many miles do you have on this setup? Daily driver?

sjsingle1

iTrader: (1)

i have the prothanes......on my front lower control arm.......my upper arms are spohn with rod ends......my car is a DD and no problems with the polys

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Cool! This is exactly what I wanted, people chiming in with what they have and how they use them!

Why did you decide to replace the upper control arms and not the lowers?

mOtOrHeAd MiKe

iTrader: (8)

Full Energy Suspension front end kit and it is doing just fine in the upper and lower control arms. Out back we have 1LE bushings in the stock LCAs (boxed) and stock rubber bushings in all other locations in the rear. Daily Driven.

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Curious, why did you do poly up front and rubber out back? How many miles do you have on this setup?

I was thinkin about coverting to the 1LE rear bushings actually, I have poly now and people scream that it doesn't allow the rear to articulate...

sjsingle1

iTrader: (1)

the lowers were waaaaay more $$$ than the uppers.......but its on my wish list

mOtOrHeAd MiKe

iTrader: (8)

Exactly for that reason. Articulation.

A pair of blown caster bushings made the decision to do the front rebuild easy; ultimately the front was more affordable to do in poly-U over rubber. We'd considered aftermarket arms as well... but, at the end of the day reusing the stock parts made the most sense. There are a few thousand miles on it since last Summer/Fall. The BJs, tierods and steering rack were all done at the same time... night and day difference!

The rear actually came with the 1LE arms because it is a B4C model. It was cheaper for me to box up the stock arms and keep the 1LE bushings than to buy poly-U bushings and keep the arms stock (plus I like welding). Playing with the suspension in the garage it didn't seem to have any issues with the movement/articulation. Also, because the car is our DD in the good seasons I didn't want a buck-board ride in the rear... keeping the stock rubber bushings should help with this.

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Ok, so pardon me if this is a noob question, but what good does replacing the uppers do alone? Did you get adjustable ones or something? Because other than a few pounds, I dont see what the aftermarket uppers would do that are not adjustable.

Just lookin to see why you decided to do this.

I've read about modifying the upper arm to reset the shock in the middle of it's travel on a lowered car, do these uppers do this for you?

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

I see! The logic makes total sense to me. Thank you for taking the time to type out your reason, I really appreciate it. The more I think about it the more I might do the 1LE rear bushings. But I have aftermarket boxed control arms in the rear.. I wonder if the bushing dimentions are exactly the same as stock??

sjsingle1

iTrader: (1)

rod ends give you LOTS of articulation......but they are also a bit noisy

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

in a daily driver I dont want the extra noise, and maintainance that goes along with them.

BIG_MIKE2005

iTrader: (116)

See I was always told for poly bushings you need to be able to grease them, hence the aftermarket pieces with poly bushings having the grease zirks. With rubber you dont need to grease hence the stock arms not having a provision since they come with rubber.

So if your supposed to grease poly but your arms or suspension piece doesnt have a grease zirk, will the poly wear out faster than the Moog rubber replacement or possibly even tear from not being lubed properly?

Maybe we can get Sam to chime in on this topic

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

Im actually considering just drilling the holes and adding zerks in the stock pieces to I can run poly and grease them, should work great I would think??

FirebirdStud

iTrader: (5)

I talked to Sam today. He said rubber is the way to go for a daily driver pushed hard. I told him my mods, how I like to drive, and that Im gonna use his springs/swaybars and konis. He said the poly isn't needed for my car, and the aftermarket A-arms just aren't strong enough for autocross or driving the car hard.

He said the moogs are not the same as 1LE, but it is the next best option. He told me the polys are cheaper than rubber, but I would be happier in the long run with the moogs. So, that is Sam's .02 cents.