Not sure where to get these bushings other than shelling out $150 for new linkages from Mazdatrix with the bushings in them. I considered doing this for all of the rear-end bushings, but almost $800 for $50-60 in bushings from Atkins feels a little steep. My car is only a streetcar, and I would like to improve a little on the 40-year-old bushings currently installed.

I'm planning on keeping all rubber in the rear to limit binding and stress on components, unfortunately, the only watts link bushings I can find are poly. Any issues with poly in the watts link as long as all the other links are OEM rubber? Or is it really worth spending 3 times as much for factory links and rubber bushings?

 

I put poly all the way and have not had any binding issues so many claim to experience.

Maybe if it's a track car or you always drive it like you stole it, but after 2k miles, mine handles much better than it did before. I do some spirited driving on twisty roads with no problem.

 

I really think for a streetcar that is never really at its limits, poly all the way around is probably just fine.

 

as the axle moves up and down it also rotates (pinion angle changes), so the Watts links need to twist.
plan B is actually a rod end style, maybe just one, they twist better than the stock stuff

 

Maybe buy new watts linkages from mazdatrix to get the factory rubber and then just new bushings from Atkins for the other rear links. Wish Atkins sold rubber bushings for the watts link

 

I have poly on the watts and swaybar and original factory rubber on the links. Works fine, no binding even driving hard.

 

For most street cars the binding issue is theoretical. Your suspension will bind and possibly cause snap oversteer if you push it to it's absolute limits on the soft factory bushings. When you replace the soft factory bushings with poly bushings you Greatly reduce the threshold before binding.

Poly bushings in the front are great. Poly bushings in the rear are a mixed-bag, at best. The factory design NEEDS soft squishy bushings to flex through it's arcs. Putting firm poly in there feels great under low-speed grocery-getter to "spirited" driving, but will put you in the ditch when you drive it hard. Much sooner than the squishy stock bushings will put you in that same ditch. The rear end geometry needs as much flex as possible for your 1st gen to run with the big boys.

I love 1st gens. FC's are ****** ugly copies of porsche 924's and FD's are just rotary powered Miatas. SA/FB's are true originals and landmarks, both performance and style wise. But the suspensions are greatly compromised. They were relatively cheap cars from a new and untrusted Jap company. You can't just throw modern upgrades on them without understanding the original design.

 

Going to try and get as much rubber for the rear as I can. Maybe someone will start manufacturing new bushings for the watts link.

Thanks, guys

 

Nobody will make soft rubber OE replacement bushings for a 0% interest car. Nobody cares about these cars but us. We're lucky Mazda still makes the parts they do.

And if the small cost of stock parts is too much for anybody, then you picked the wrong antique car to rebuild. You can get any part you need for a '64 Mustang. But an '85 Mazda, good luck.

 

it is also ride height dependent, the lower the car is the worse the binding.

 

Hell I had snap oversteer with the stock bushings back in 1985. Did a 270 trying to exit the NJ Garden State Pkwy too fast one time. All stock everything.

 

I just went with all new Mazda OEM watts links, watts link bracket, and upper links. Got them from local dealer. For sure not as cheap as a bushing kit, but I think the OEM hardware is worth it.

I'm running T3 TechnoToy lower adjustable links (solid rod ends).