Need help with bushing purchase
 

Hey guys, I am planning on replacing my bushings asap but am needing help on which ones and how many I need. I am not a suspension guru and keep getting confused everytime I look at more and more bushing kits. Can someone confirm my information.

Here is what I have already done suspension wise:
Pettit Racing Trailing Arms
Megan Toe Links

I am going to go with the PowerFlex Polyurethane Bushing Kit from JKL Racing. The full kit includes:
Differential Bushings
Toe Link Bushings
Trailing Arm Bushings
Shock Mount Bushings
Rear Upper Control Arm Bushings
Front Upper and Lower Arm Bushings
Steering Rack Bushings
Rear Lower Control Arm Bushings
Front and Rear Sway Bar Mount Bushings

So since I replaced the Toe Links and Trailing Arms I do not need these bushings from the kit, correct? Also, what are the "shock mount bushings?" I am under the impression that they are the bushings that are pressed into the actual rear shocks. If that is true then I am not going to need shock mount bushings because I am going to upgrade to coilovers in the near future.

I am also going to be needing to replace the pillow ball bushings. Obviously I am going to be ordering the bushings, dust covers, and clips from Ray Crowe. But I am not sure how many I am going to need. From my researching I hear 6 pillow ball bushings total. But I'm not sure if that is with an all stock suspension. So with what I already have and the bushing kit I am planning on purchasing, how many pillow ball bushings will I need and where will they be going?

I know this seems like a "let me hold your hand and do the work for you" kind of threads but I have honestly searched and searched but I keep going in circles because I do not know enough about the suspension and bushings to answer my own question.

Correct, you dont need the bushings from the PowerFlex kit since you already have aftermarket trailing arms and toe links. You can sell those bushings to someone with stock arms and get some money back. The shock mount bushings go on the rear upper control arm. This is where your shock or coilover bolts to on the control arm. You'll use this even if you have coilovers. You'll need 6 pillow balls with dust covers and clips (optional). The pillow balls are all for the rear (3 on each side). Theres two on the lower control arm and one on the upper control arm.

beautimus! thanks wan

No problemo. Just be glad you dont have to install the bushings on the stock toe links. :icon_tup:

Ya. Well I'm going to buy this stuff but have a shop do the instal. I don't have the tools to do this. I'm really excited to finally be getting this done.

Your car is going to feel like new once you get this stuff installed. Too bad you're not local or I could have done the install for you.

Now that you mention it...what's the deal with that soft metal (aluminum?) bushing sleeve on the stock outer toe-link? What a PITA to press in.

ya I know. Actually, where are you located?

I'm jealous. My suspension is crap. I just finished up what I think is all I'll ever need for the engine....runs strong, but every bump on the road just drains my soul! Clonk, clank, clunk - it's not fun. My brother was riding shotgun and was just laughing on a recent trip. It's embarrassing...him calling the RX a "clunker." WTF? It really took out the excitement of all my engine work. Onto the next project.

Is this job really that difficult with the proper tools - namely a bushing press and torque wrenches? I've heard mixed input here. I didn't think I could do it myself but some members got me to believe I can. What do you think Wan? Pretty straightforward with the proper tools and an FSM? I mean...if an elf can do it right?? :) (Your pic is hilarious.) So many parts though.....a bushing kit and all those pillowballs.

Give us a before and after Dmoney.

I know how you feel Zoolander. That's why I need to do the bushings. I have wanted to replace them for a while because it has begun to make me not want to drive my own car. It's just getting uncomfortable and embarrassing.

I would do it myself but I don't have the tools or the time. I also would much rather get a qualified shop to do it and make sure the torque specs are correct as well as do a proper alignment once everything is installed.

Once I get the bushings installed I'm going to get a differential brace so it takes off some of the stress from the new bushings and I won't run into this problem in the future.

I will for sure give ya'll a before and after. Right now though I'm trying to get in touch with JKL racing to order this custom bushing kit.

Now you got me looking at trailing arms and toe links D. Did those make a difference into the feel of the car? Or decrease any clunking as there are new bushings inside those....

man i need to do this aswell, i am thinking about ugrading to the Rotary extreme toelink and trailing arm unless i get the rx7.com one.. but besides that all the bushings besides the diff and motor mounts need to be changed...

A bit. I got a bit more traction. I really don't think I can feel as much of a difference though until I replace the bushings. I did it a while back too so it's hard to remember. They are definitely worth the purchase though. Especially since you know you won't have to replace those bushings. Ya they have pillowball bushings.

You really can't go wrong with what brand of toe links and trailings arms. For the most part they are all the same. Some are just more used than others. I don't think anyone has really had any long enough to say that one is better than the other. It's mostly just a difference in colors.

yea i think i will go with rx7.com, they seem the cheapest so far, ill just paint them black, since im not a fan of the blue

If JKL falls through, I see that rx7store.net has the SuperPro bushing kit now. Worth a look. Did you install the toe links and trailing arms yourself DMoney?

I've only replaced the stock toe link bushings with the SuperPro ones and it can be a PITA to install those greased up bushings. They'll pop out of the toe links and end up across the room if you're not careful. It feels like you're trying to catch that greased up deaf guy from family guy :lol:

I'm in Southern California. I mainly do bushings on FDs since I have the proper tools specifically for this car.

The job is not hard to do. Its just very time consuming if you're doing it alone like me. The hardest bushings to press out and in are the toe links. I think those are the biggest pain in the ass if you go with poly bushings. The diff mount would be the next hardest and the front lower control arm may be a PITA because it can be difficult to free the ball joint if you dont have the proper service tool. Just make sure you press the stock bushings & pillow balls out from the correct side and torque everything down when you're done. You'll need an alignment done right after.

While they look the same, not all toe links and trailing arms are created equally. Manufacturers can specify how tight they want the pillow balls to be. The tighter they are, the more expensive and the better they perform. My friend makes adjustable arms for Nissans and Toyotas and his parts are usually more expensive than the rest because he's using parts & materials that you'd find on a professional race car.

I actually really like all the bushings that the PowerFlex offers. I don't think JKL is very active anymore so I think I might just get them straight from PowerFlex UK. Pricing for what I want is $635.

Ok, understandable. So for example, is there a major difference between the rx7store toe links and the rotary extreme toe links. Or say a Pettit toe link and a rx7.com toe link?

I was just saying, but still correct me if I'm wrong, for what is offered to the general FD owner from the aftermarket parts community is toe links and trailing arms that do not differ much from company to company. I can see toe links and trailing arms from major companies like RE-Amemiya or FEED being very different and have "tighter pillow balls" but that is because they have better funding than companies that most of us know and purchase our parts from (rx7store, rotary extreme, rx7.com, pettit, etc)

Honestly, I don't know how big of a difference there is between those toe links since I havent seen or compared them all. It would be nice to get a hold of them and try to compare them side by side but I can't afford to buy them all just for a comparison and then lose money on them by trying to sell them or sit on them till someone wants me to install them on their car :( I personally run the stock toe links and trailing arms w/super pro bushings on my car and am very happy with them.

so what are the pillow ball bushings that you have to have stock? im not like 100% on suspension, i know very minimal.. why dont they make aftermarket ones?

The short answer is that theyre so good, theres very little, if anything, that can be improved on the design. I think the only other company that sells them for the FD is FEED. Heres a link to a pillow ball kit by them (check out the price :D): http://www.neweraparts.com/Default.a...&ProductID=785

I have to replace all bushing, i have already changed few month ago the Lower Control Arm Middle Bearing,Lower Control Arm Outer Bearing,Upper Control Arm Outer Bearing beacuse they were usured
Wich one is best for street use?
Superpro or powerflex? Other? (full kits)
I have also mounted few years ago the full coilover Apexi evx so i guess.
Should also i buy somthing more once i do the job?

please use a simple english since im Italian and i may found some difficult in technical terms,

Thanks
Pietro

up

What do you use the car for? For street driving? Track use? Both?
It sounds like you have already begun by replacing some with stock bushings. If you only drive the car on the street or the occasional track use, I would continue to use MAZDA replacement bushings.

+1

Thanks for reply, i do use only street and may be some track (but not hard truck) Mazda replace ae very expensive, with 550$ about i can take a full kit of bushing of superpro or powerflex... or other.
Mazda dosen't make any kit and one by one it will cost more than 800.