Team Chevelle banner
1 - 20 of 20 Posts

· Registered
Joined
·
86 Posts
Discussion Starter · #1 ·
Hi,

i need to buy a body mount bushing kit... but just can't decide which one.
handling will be better with poly than rubber, but also the ride confortt is being affected... but... how much ?... and is nothing in the middle ?

here are the choices that i have in mind :

Polyurethane, Red : Energy 3-18113R
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ener...rQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_3325wt_897



Polyurethane, Black : Energy 3-18113G
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ener...rQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_3311wt_897



Rubber : Tamraz :
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/68-6...rQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_3593wt_907



Please, choose one, and let me know why.
All comments are Allways Welcome !


Best Regards,
Arturo.-

:)
 

· Registered
Joined
·
977 Posts
if your car is just a driver then reg rubber is fine. The poly ones are nice

and since they are harder when tighten everything down it makes the car

overall stiffer. How much of benefit? IDK Really it just comes down to

taste... O.e.m look or a "perf look"
 

· Registered
Joined
·
2,029 Posts
I am replacing mine this winter with rubber. This kit seems complete and can't beat $80:

http://www.ss396.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=chevellecamino&Product_Code=DCC-1516

They also sponsor this site!
I have that exact bushing kit I am installing right now on my project... Here's my thoughts on these... They look to be engineered well but they aren't exactly like OEM, and I'm almost convinced they aren't as hard as the OEM rubber, either. Very soft and I'm almost inclined to use a mix of graphite impregnated polyurethane and these soft rubber pieces. It's no doubt, if you're needing to replace the 40+ yr old ones in your car now, they will work fine, they just shouldn't deflect to the degree they do with just squeezing them with my hand. If interested, I can demonstrate the softness with some pics, it'll just have to wait until this evening.
FWIW, the solid rubber pieces, without the sleeve inserts, are much harder than their sleeved counterparts.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
2,500 Posts
I have that exact bushing kit I am installing right now on my project... Here's my thoughts on these... They look to be engineered well but they aren't exactly like OEM, and I'm almost convinced they aren't as hard as the OEM rubber, either. Very soft and I'm almost inclined to use a mix of graphite impregnated polyurethane and these soft rubber pieces. It's no doubt, if you're needing to replace the 40+ yr old ones in your car now, they will work fine, they just shouldn't deflect to the degree they do with just squeezing them with my hand. If interested, I can demonstrate the softness with some pics, it'll just have to wait until this evening.
FWIW, the solid rubber pieces, without the sleeve inserts, are much harder than their sleeved counterparts.
Thanks for the input. Pics would be nice:thumbsup:

I have no clue on how these go together, but maybe the insert bottoms out before the rubber compresses?

Some of mine are really soft! Of course they are original.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
31 Posts
one suggestion with using the energy suspension ones... make sure you dont need new metal inserts for the bushings, because those come with none( or at least mine didnt)
I tore into my car to find out my originals were eat up beyond use... so now im on to having to fabricate new ones, or buy rubber versions that have the metal sleeves with them.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
2,029 Posts
Pics will have to wait for tonight, I wasn't much in the mood for anything but... :boring::boring::boring: :(
 

· Registered
Joined
·
536 Posts
I don't know if this helps you but here's a pic of the Energy Blacks i'm using. I decided to go with poly. I don't know the difference between the red vs. black but I chose the black so they don't stand out. You have to keep in mind that for our cars going ALL poly is probably not the best thing. I think poly can be used selectively. I noticed that kit is a full poly kit and i'm thinking for the rear UCAs you would want to do rubber which I did.

Ride comfort comes from the all around package starting with how low profile of tires you want to use > poly or rubber UCA/LCA bushings > poly or rubber body mounts. I chose a combination of mostly poly with some select bushing in rubber. I want my car to ride fairly stiff but I know i'm going to have rattles and vibration noise all over the place. It's not gonna be no Lexus.

More pics on this post towards the bottom of the thread.

 

· Registered
Joined
·
2,029 Posts
Thanks for the input. Pics would be nice:thumbsup:

I have no clue on how these go together, but maybe the insert bottoms out before the rubber compresses?

Some of mine are really soft! Of course they are original.

Pic explosion...

Solid bushings that come with the kit... little deflection but with weight on it, it will flex alot more than this.



Here is the installed bushing... radiator core support. I couldn't find torque specs for any of the body mount points but these bushings squish like crazy so I couldn't torque them very much. When cranking it down, it seemed like the insert didnt bottom out on anything, even the molded in top washer.


The top piece of the two-piece bushings is soft and not much meat on it. I expected more.



Top and bottom pieces...


Shot of the insert thickness and a view of the molded in top washer.


Bottom side of lower piece.


I think these bushings are made well, I just think they could be made of a harder rubber. I think these bushings will stay on the core support and the back half of the chassis... but I am going to experiment with some graphite impregnated polyurethane bushings in the middle mount points. If I have to, I'll cannibalize my left over rubber bushings for inserts if the existing ones are unuseable.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
3,604 Posts
I would consider carefully any plans to mix bushing types. There is a fair amount of flex in the frame which the body resists nicely. This is why harder bushings would be considered in the first place. But if you have stiff in some places and soft in others, then you concentrate the forces in fewer mounts. Think of the soft mounts as slackers that do not do any work leaving the stiff mounts to pick up extra work. Those poor overworked mounts may just snap and go postal on you ;) Or at least break body welds.

I would also suggest that there are torque specs for the body mounts and they should be tightened right on down until the metal pieces bottom out. Yes this will squish the rubber and it is supposed to. The alternative is for loose bolts/nuts to back off and potentially come out. That is probably a big part of why the soft rubber compound was used.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
536 Posts
Does anyone have torque specs for body mounts using the poly bushings? I don't think i saw it in the Energy Suspension instructions but will look again this wknd.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
2,500 Posts
These are the ones I picked out of the masses: http://www.opgi.com/product.asp?top...topvalue=0&newflag=0&grpcode=10767&yearrange=
I'm sure they will last another 40 years.
They sure have a nice sales pitch of a description (also on sale for $70):

When we introduced these in 1986, they were considered the gold-standard in body bushings. Today, they are still the best on the market. Why? Because we didn't cut corners then, and we don't now. Just as we did in 1986, we continue to produce them in custom case-hardened steel tools (expensive, but the right way to do it), insuring a consistent, precise injection-molded-rubber bushing every single time (unlike ones that competitors offer, which judging by the lower density, seem to be produced in cheaper aluminum molds). In addition to our finely reproduced rubber bushings, it's also noteworthy that each steel insert is also stamped the right way in authentic zinc. Again, no competitor bushing & insert combination comes close. The bottom line is that you get the finest quality, time tested and proven over and over again to be the best anywhere. Your satisfaction guaranteed!

 
1 - 20 of 20 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top