can someone explain to me what bushings are/do, and why i should replace them?

 

You should replace them if they are worn or mileage is high.

 

which ones?

 

All of them.

Rear trailing arm and front LCA will probably be the first to look suspect but at high mileage, they're probably all shot.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EG6_tuner &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">can someone explain to me what bushings are/do, and why i should replace them?</TD></TR></TABLE>

If you take two pieces of metal and bolt them together they become solid. That's great if you want one solid piece, but sometimes you want the two pieces to act as a joint with the strength of two pieces of metal bolted together. So, you stick a bushing (in any of their many forms) between the two pieces to create a joint. Some move a little, some move a lot. Some move in every direction, some can only move in one direction. The engineers that built your car designed these parts to work in a certain way, and when a bushing goes bad or is damaged it not only ceases to work as intended but it makes the other parts more prone to failure.

Replace any and all bushings that are damaged or old. Sometimes it's obvious (it's in two pieces), sometimes it's a little sag or slop. If you want to know what bushings to use, the search button will answer that. There is no one good company/kit/brand/setup.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by travis &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">There is no one good company/kit/brand/setup.</TD></TR></TABLE>

But you cant go wrong w/ OEM or Mugen

 

what about energy suspension? they seem to get alot of good reviews and what not, have you used them? would you have a suggestion about a combination if there's "no one good company/brand...", etc. etc.

suggestions for street and race would be stellar. but i guess it would depend upon your race of choice, whether it be drag, auto-x, road race, etc.

i personally would be interested in a street setup if you have a suggestion. i think at 237k my bushings are prolly toast by now.

 

OEM/Mugen - poly = junk

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by itrhopeful &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">what about energy suspension? they seem to get alot of good reviews and what not, have you used them? would you have a suggestion about a combination if there's "no one good company/brand...", etc. etc.

suggestions for street and race would be stellar. but i guess it would depend upon your race of choice, whether it be drag, auto-x, road race, etc.

i personally would be interested in a street setup if you have a suggestion. i think at 237k my bushings are prolly toast by now. </TD></TR></TABLE>

The reason I said that there is no ONE good company or brand is because I am convinced that (at least for my application) the best setup is just the right combo of OEM, Mugen, poly, and solid metal. Not all bushings are designed to perform the same function so the best replacement for each bushing isn't always the same. For a solid street setup, I would honestly recommend fresh OEM bushings all around for both performance, durability, and ease of use (no lubing or cleaning needed). The "upgrade" from 237K OEM bushings to fresh OEM bushings is huge. Keep in mind that there are SOME instances when the Mugen set is cheaper than OEM (not often) and in those instances I would get the Mugen set. Otherwise, I'm a big fan of Mugen bushings but I'm not sure the added benefit would be realized on a street car and it's a big expense.

 

ooh well that makes sense. it sounded like that was what you had meant. what do you think about energy suspension? where sould you recommend getting the oem bushings from? i'll probably be replacing my clutch over the summer and i figure it would make sense to make a big project out of it and change at least most of my bushings as well.

thanks for the tips so far though. i'm about halfway trying to collect info for a future road race car but that won't happen till i get out of school. (college takes forever when you take the minimum number of credits every semester.)

 

polly
prothane
you can get stock bushings from the dealer.
i odnt know why youd want to drag out something as easy as changing a clutch into a bushing burning extraviganza. but thats up to you. just so you know, for suspension bushings, you will need a press to get the outer metal sleeve of the original bushing out after you cut/burn out the rubber part. the prothanes (and the ES probably) slide right in. no pressing required most of the time.
what you should check out hwile you have the trans out is some motor mount inserts since im sure those are shot.

-spenc