The end-all, be-all consensus poll on front end rebuild kits

[bull]

You people are going to decide which way I go. I've heard that Poly bushings are noisy (I hate noise) but that rubber doesn't last as long (I hate doing things over). So which is it, folks? I want a consensus!

[Rack]

 

[dodgey68]

i heard that the cars in that era were designed for rubber , and you should use rubber , because of all the flexing and twisting the front has to do ,(i have put rubber back into mine)
and if you put harder bushes and so  on in the front that  wasnt designed to be  or alterd to suit , the front will have problems,
my two cents wurth,

[Ghoste]

You need a third choice for "combination of the two".  Actually, I don't know that there is a "best" in this case, at least not definitively.  I think for a stock regular driver type of car, rubber is right and partly for the reasons dodgey68 mentions.  I think it's less about what the car was designed for though and more a case of how much do you want to stress 40 year old parts.  A car like Mr. Angry pops up though and I just can't imagine it without poly.  I don't know what Mike has in it, but if it were mine and I were to use that car the way I envision it, that is what I'd run.
My own car is a combination of the two.  For example, my strut rods are going into poly because I don't want them moving forward.  My sway bars are poly because I want them to be still.  My control arms are rubber because I just didn't like the idea of pounding them anymore than they already get.
This is one of those questions that will likely get as many different answers as you get replies and each one is going to be correct.

[tan top]

third choice    every thing is poly for me also  , except the lower control are pivot bushings .  as at the time i done mine  there was a lot of talk about not using poly there , so went back with  new OEM rubber type ... ... still have the new poly ones  might change them some time to see what all the fuss about was about  not using them there 

[Plumcrazy]

You need a third choice for "combination of the two". 

   Each has it's advantages.   I use rubber everywhere except the sway bar.  I like the slightly smoother ride that rubber give you, but using poly on the sway bar reduces body lean without going to a larger sway bar.

[Shakey]

I also went with rubber because I didn't want a squeky car, just like the pair of shoes I bought and returned the next day and told the lady "they were squekers" - she laughed and said no problem. (you may recall that Cheers episode)

Anyways, some folks may chime in and tell me/us that they used polyurethane bushings and they don't squeek 'cause they lubed them with grease.  That's fine an all, however I have also heard that they will squeek no matter what and that is something that I would not be happy with. 

I choose to go with rubber as I can change them all myself if need be.  I figure I'll only be driving the car around 2500kms per year so it will be sometime before they will need to be replaced.

If you're interested in what I've got, all the items are noted here:

http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,15396.0.html

[Ghoste]

I'll put up my hand for the non squeak but add that a) I have rubber in the areas where most force is twisting and poly in areas where it primarily just holds a component in place, and b) my car is loud enough to make a front end squeak a fairly low priority issue.

[The70RT]

Bull - you said in a earlier theread you weren't gonna box in the lower A-arms and not weld up the K-member....so I think rubber is the way to go if your not gonna beat on it

[Steve P.]

I'm with Ghoste and Shakey both. There is a time and place for everything. Until you get serious about street racing or join the BULLRUN type of group, I would stick to rubber for most places. There are very good reasons to go to poly. It will stiffen everything and every move your car makes. Again, great if you are racing around cones or just realllly like the feel of a nimble sports car. Of course it will never be exactly the same..

That being said, I will be using rubber everywhere with the exception of my leaf springs. On my body, Ma Mopar was not so nice as she was with your body. Fitting large wide tires inside my quarters is hell. I am moving my springs inboard 5/8ths" to give the tires a little play. The POLY bushings will help to prevent the leaves from moving around or rolling over in a corner.


My entire front end had just been rebuilt right before I bought the car with NOS everything.. It's all tight as a drum and only has a few hundred miles on it. Problem is, they are NOS. All the rubber is splitting everywhere. I am figuring on doing all of it in new rubber.

[Ghoste]

And the rear springs are an area where I have rubber and wish it was poly.    Oh well.

[bull]

Aw man, everything has to be complicated. I changed the voting options.

[Ghoste]

You're the best, man!

BTW, as far as the issues about rubber not lasting as long, the stuff held up pretty good in 1968.  I think it would be in there (and perform) long enough that you wouldn't get too bent out of shape when the time came to replace it. 

[Steve P.]

I agree. I should have made it more clear that the NOS parts in my front end have been on the shelf for 35 plus years.  Don't even ask why the guy used them with the old rubber boots. 

Where is that gun-to-head smiley??

[Mike DC]

 
-- A totally-worn-out stock setup that's a couple decades old is not a valid way to judge how a brand-new stock rubber kit would feel.  The new kit is already gonna feel a hell of a lot tighter even if it's the same material. 

--  A suspension rebuild kit made of solid brass bushings still won't tighten up the front end if the steering box & rag joint are loose. 

[Steve P.]

So sorry Mike. I didn't mean to imply that I don't like rubber. Not for any reason. I should have made a better point of (stay away from very old rubber parts even if they have never been used).

I will be replacing all of my NOS rubbers with BRAND NEW rubbers. The joints are all fine, just ancient rubber.. Basically I think the shelf life was out dated long before the installation..

Sorry for any confusion..

[Mike DC]

So sorry Mike . . .

Was that directed at me? 

I wasn't trying to criticize anything specifically in this thread on my last post. 
I was just throwing out general thoughts on bushings in old cars.

 

[gtx6970]

I used a quality rubber in everything except the urethane strut rod bushings to help control for and aft lower control arm movement withKoni shocks all around.

[firefighter3931]

Poly user here.....i hate sloppy handleing cars. 

If i want a "cushy" ride i'll jump in the 1 ton dually ! 



Ron

[bull]

I never worried about any of this crap back in the '80s when I was 19 and would race anyone with my old '70. I once took a 35 mph corner at 70 in that thing with cracked, original rubber bushings while racing a guy on a Kawasaki Ninja and just dealt with it. Now look at me. I'm officially an old fart. And seat belts? To hell with those. I threw them in the corner when I replaced the carpet.