I'll be replacing the springs and shocks (finally) next month. I was just wondering how to tell if I should replace the bushings while I'm at it? I'm not sure I'll have the $$$, but on the other hand, I'd rather wait and do it right than have to go back and rip it all part again.
Any suggestions?

 

81K??? Might as well. Without the new bushings, you might not fully enjoy the springs and shocks.

 

depends on how shot your bushings are. Acutally, putting new shocks in doesn't entail tearing that much of your suspension apart, at least when compared to putting in bushings in.

If you are doing this yourself it probally will be a multday job for bushings. Putting in shocks are a walk in the park compared to bushings.

 

i just did my shocks a week ago, one bolt siezed in the LCA bushing and the other came right out

the one that siezed ripped the bushing
i pulled the bushing/bolt combo out and beat it with a sledge until the bolt came out

i did reuse the bushing too. Mechanically it's not a problem

The other bolt that siezed on me was the upper bolt that allows the hub to tip out. Instead of pulling this bolt out i remove the two bolts that went into the body since they were not siezed.

If you do it yourself, definately replace the LCA bolts and do not try to remove the nut on the side of the shock, it is welded on


[Modified by yaksplat, 7:32 AM 9/18/2001]

 

See, I don't really know how to tell if they're shot. I mean, do they just look ragged out? I figure with the miles I have, they probably are.
I wonder what it would cost for my mechanic to do it when he does the springs/shocks? I don't have a press, or the know-how to do it to my satisfaction.
I'm planning on about $75 for the shocks, but if bushings are such a pain, maybe double that?
I just don't know what kind of labor to expect.
Energy bushings, lubed up nice and sloppy, right? Good choice?

 

Typically you can tell by looking at the bushings. If they appear to be heavily cracked - almost looking dry rotted - they're getting tired. It's not critical until they tear though IMO. On my car, the rear trailing arm bushings were the first to commit suicide.

Should you do poly? Depends. They're high maintenance IMO (I've got them). If you don't want things squeaking and/or binding up, they really should be taken out every so often and lubed. And this is going to be a hellaciously expensive job if you take it to a shop. The entire suspension has to go. Then all the control arms go to the machine shop to get the old bushings pressed out (some shops might burn them out as an alternative). Reassemble the car, and DEFINITELY have a 4 wheel alignment done when it's back together.

Not a job you should trust to a questionable shop. If this installation gets botched, you'll have to live with it and take stuff apart to correct it. You can't just put the stock pieces back in like you can with a set of shocks (for example).

All IMO.

 

I'd have to agree with what krshultz is saying. My Rear Trailing arm bushings were cracked at 95k on a 95 Integra in sunny cali. Snowy conditions will rot out the bushings more quickly however. However 81k isn't really that much mileage to have to worry about it yet.

Honestly, if you don't have the technical know how to change your shocks, maintaining urethane bushings would probally not be your cup of tea.

Labor for changing bushings is usually about 300 dollars. The entire suspension actually comes out of your car for the install. Shocks only require a little disassebling of the suspension for their install. Plus add in 100 dollars for an alignment as well as the 100-200 needed for the bushings and it's gonna cost quite a bit of money.

If you really want to do bushings but don't want to deal with the maintainance, get the mugen bushings. They are identical in design to the stock ones but are made of a much harder rubber than the stock ones. Not as hard as urethane, but no squeaking and no maintaince after install. Yes, they cost about 500-700 for the set, but if you've compared the mugen ones to the prothane/energy suspension ones, then you know there is also a big difference between the two. The mugen ones don't require the reuse of any old parts, while the prothane/energy ones do.

 

Hmmm... Sounds like I'll wait. I don't abuse the car too much, and it was well maintained before I bought it last year.
I took a look at the existing set, and there aren't any visible cracks or rot, as far as I can tell. I'm sure there are some hiding up in there I can't see...
I haven't decided if I'm going to do the suspension myself or take it in. For $70, it's probably worth it. Although I'd like to try. It doesn't sound too hard, aside from compressing the new springs to insert the shocks.
OK. Thanks!

 

I'd say it's worth swapping out your shocks yourself to learn more than the savings. The only thing is that I don't know if you want to do the compressing yourself. Spring compressors are made by the devil I swear...

Have the shop disassemble the stock assembly for you and you can assemble it without a compressor.

 

Well if I'm just removing the shock/spring assembly do I need to compress that? I thought I just yanked the whole thing and pitched it (unless YOU want some stock GSR bits with more than 80k on them), but I had to compress the new springs to insert the new shocks. Do I have it backward?
Where's a good place to see a detailed install? I don't have a Helm's manual (I know, I know).
Thanks!

 

You really should get a helms manual, it is well worth the investment if you plan on doing work on your car.

You don't need to compress the shock assembly to remove it from the car. First just remove the entire shock and spring assembly from the car. You will need to compress it to disassemble it (there are ways to disassemble it without compressing it but are somewhat dangerous). You can't just throw away the assembly because there are parts on the assembly that you will need, mainly the spring mount that holds the assembly together to assemble you new springs and shocks together.

Most springs are short enough that you can assemble it without needing to compress the spring.