I own a 95 ex coupe and im finally at the point where im ready to replace all the bushings. The car is lowered like 2 inchs on tokiko/eibach of unknown spring rates and i have a traction bar. I also do a lil bit of autocrossing but really just want to do this for newness sack. I have acces to a lift and 20 ton press.

Iv read a few threads here and there about y u should run oem (rubber?) bushing over energy suspension bushings (polyurathane). People say the energy ones crack within a few years and then iv read people saying that they do fine. U can buy the whole energy kit for like 140 and just browsing over the honda parts cataloge it seemed to be a whole lot more than 140 to replace them all. Is there someone who puts togather a oem suspension kit thatd b more afforadable? Also the kit i was looking at came with ball joint boots (mine have been busted for 2 years+), would this b ok and just pack some grease in em or should i just replace the ball joints? thanks in advance

 

There is a huge debate over the bushings and them failing or not allowing proper motion. Honestly I can find more people completely satisfied with them than those that have had a bad experience. While it may not be much testing time, I have the bushings now with 2,000 miles on them. No cracks, no deformation, no noise... If these things last me a year I would be happy, a $140 purchase for an unbelievable difference in feel and handling over OEM rubber bushings even new. You feel the imperfections of the road and everything feels tight. It does what you want it to do. Its like an instant reaction to the suspension and chassis. Feedback is very good. Would I buy again? Definately! I dont think there is a cheaper way to incease control and feedback.

 

3 years and 30,000+ miles on energy bushings with track days, no issues

best bang for the buck, easier to install and don't have to be preloaded like rubber

 

alright than im sold! il b ordering this week. As for the ball joints, did u guys replace the boots on em and repack them? Once i do this is there a tool i can use to pop the ball joints without busting them? cause i def wont b using the fork anymore (although i do realize that if u put the angled part on metal than it usually doesnt bust them), i dont wanna take the chance. Was changing the bushings pretty straight forward? Should i get the black ones that are graphite impregnated?

 

bump...i wanna hear more...is the install pretty strait forward???

 

as for the balljoints. energy makes replacement ball joint booties for literally a dollar or two each. i keep a few around for just this reason, the fork can easily tear the oem boots.

as for install you can put them in with a simple vice. you will however need a 20ton press or a lot of time with the drill, a big screwdriver and a hammer to remove the old oem rubber bushings though

 

I've heard of WAY more poly ball joint boot failures than I have of OEM rubber. OEM rubber ball joint boots last the longest from what I've seen and heard.

I highly recommend HardRace hard rubber bushings for about $250/set. 100% maintenance free, and they should easily last 8-10 years. Believe me, I've seen worse looking polyurethane bushings with only a couple years of use (even greased regularly) than my 16 yr old original rubber bushings did when I replaced them.

I had poly shifter bushings, which don't even move and should never need to be greased, that literally started crumbling into dust after only about 4 years or so. Imagine what a load-bearing suspension bushing will look like in that time. Anyone who says "well you should have greased it" can go pound sand because if shifter bushings need to be greased then IMHO that's the worst material ever for a non-load bearing, non-moving bushing. The original rubber shifter bushings with about 10 years of use on them looked 100x better than the poly bushings did after only 4. Needless to say I went back to new OEM rubber shifter bushings and felt a huge improvement in shifter feel.

And yes OEM is expensive as hell. Around $1000 to replace all the bushings that the HardRace kit comes with.

 

how the hell could a poly ball joint cover fail? it doesn't do anything LOL all it is; is a shiny dust cover. you can kill either one with the fork and a hammer

 

Because the ball joint boots collapse down pretty far when the parts around it are bolted together. Every polyurethane ball joint boot I've seen installed ends up cracking and leaking all the grease out, causing the entire ball joint to need replacement. Similar to when a CV boot tears, once that dirt gets in there, joint is done.

Rubber is more flexible than polyurethane by nature, and with ball joint boots you need the boot to be as flexible as possible.

My Moog lower ball joints have what I believe is the best ball joint boot material - neoprene. It's actually got an accordion shape to help it flex, almost like a miniature CV boot. I believe these to be superior even to the standard OEM rubber ball joint boots.

 

Well my oem boot has been busted for two plus years, so should i replace it? I already ordered the graphite impregnated energy suspension bushing set from a local speed shop for 130 plus tax. The guy i bought em from said pretty much the same thing ur saying patrick but his "pct" kits were 300 and i just didnt have that kind of money. I looked at the moog balljoints but there like 40 a piece. Hopefully all will go well for me but Il let u guys know how the install goes. I REALLY hope these things dont fail on me prematurly.

 

Front lower Moog ball joints are like $55 each at local retailers. IMHO it's worth it though because I really believe they to be of the highest quality. Luckily someone here on H-T was kind enough to loan me his OEM ball joint tools so installation was a snap using my bench vise.

 

there has got to be something about your climate that just does not mix with poly, one of these days maybe we'll have a clear cut idea on why they live forever in some climates and fail quickly in others

 

Moog bushings

 

ok guys iv started the intsallment process and....omg! this **** is horribly annoying. I had to cut the sleeve with a pnuematic saw then had to curl em out with a hammer and chisel. I dont even really need the press but iv been using it to tear the center piece of the bushing out. Iv only done the rear driver side and shifter so far. When i first replace the driver, going in reverse and pulling the ebrake made the whole rear right hand side shoot up, like i ran that tire into a curb or something. Now that its been a few days its seattled down and doesnt do it anymore. Just wanted to keep u guys up to date and i appreciate all yalls help. If u have better ideas on removing the sleeves let me know.

 

Fire, melt those f-er's.
Then just cut the metal ring that is left in the hole. Clean it up, and press the new bushing in.

I need to do mine, but I am unsure what to use.

I swear poly doesn't like certain climates. My friend just bought a car, and the guy said the bushing have close to 45k on them. We pulled them to lube them up, and they looked perfect.

 

same here in oregon, i have 50k on energy bushings and they look new

i really haven't been able to determine what climates are friendly vs unfriendly. so far oregon and washington have proven to be very poly friendly

 

how do u give advice than in the very next sentence say ur unsure of what to use??? i guess ur talking about what bushing to use?

im not having a problem with the bushings, its the metal rings that r such a PITA! i press out the bushings and they come right out, then i cut the metal sleeve in two spots (being careful not to cut into the arm) than proceed to beat the **** out of it until it starts to curl (which my teacher had to do cause i was getting so aggravated). How often do u think i should pull these things to lube em?

 

Yes, I don't what to go with, either poly or hardrubber.

OHH, Yea, we just beat the crap out of it untill It poped out. The metal ring is a pain.

I have actaully never pressed out a bushing, only burned them out. Maybe the heat made it a little easier to get out? Used a map gas tourch by the way.

 

Hard rubber was a no-brainer choice for me. I wanted something I could install and forget about. I don't ever want to have to deal with pulling the entire suspension again if I can help, and definitely not on a regular basis - not to replace crapped out poly, or to lube up anything. IMHO poly just isn't worth the hassle.

 

Patrick the **** is super easy to get out once theyve been installed, its not like u have to remove the ring again. That being said i completely understand ur point and for me it was really a money thing. the "pct" (race, hard rubber) are like 300 as where the polys are only 130, had they been cheaper i probably would of gotton the hard rubber. Iv heard its a lot harder to install the hard rubber too but at the same time i dont think u have to remove the steel ring which has been my biggest hassle.

Well i did the passenger rear today in 2 hours so im quit proud of myself haha. Now all the easy ones are out the way, il move to the front tomorrow.

 

Do you have a link for the PCT kit?

Another good kit would PIC's hardrubber kit. Under $250 to replace everything bushing in the car. I am thinking of this kit. But it is to late for you lol

 

Well hard rubber ones are essentially the same construction as OEM, so the whole OEM bushings have to come out, including both inner and outer metal sleeves with the OEM bushings.

I think I paid around $250 for my HardRace kit and another $120 for installation at a shop (I took off all suspension and took it to the shop in the other car).

 

Yea... It makes me wonder where Patrick lives?

I have read stories of people in california haveing good luck with them. At the same time east coast guys haveing a bad experience.

 

well il keep u up to date on the condition of these things. Is the front a lot harder to do? i think im gonna start on that today. iv noticed the kit didnt come with trailing arm bushings and it another 25 bucks for those, should i go ahead and get those too? how hard r they to change? what kind of grease should i put in the ball joints?

 

Get the Pic Performance/Suja1 Bushing kit and call it a day.
http://picperformance.com/store/scri...?idProduct=233

If you need any misc. bushings get it straight from the dealer such as balljoints..etc..If you want to make it easy on yourself follow the link above.