Thanks. I'm on the fence about delrin. I know it's the best choice competitively speaking, but my car is driven daily, and my drives to Packwood are 2.5 to 3 hours long. Then there is the drive to nats. Not sure I want to endure the NVH created by delrin for such extended periods.

Poly, while not optimal, is still way better than worn-out OEM bushings (at least for single pivot bushings, like the front upper control arms). At least in my experience.

 

If your OE bushings are worn it makes more sense to replace the arm assembly entirely

 

How so? It seems like having incrementally firmer bushings would be a step in the right direction, for a car that sees higher sustained loading than it did in stock trim. I understand the issues around multi-axis bushings, but for those that pivot on a single axis, why not make the move to poly for a competitively driven car?

 

George, I have a write-up DIY on my blog on how to install the upper control arm bushings... trust me, it's quite a pain in the ***.

 

Otherwise you are better off putting new OE bushings in, poly is a step back from the OE bushing design

 

It really sucks the lower control arm Delrin bushings from SpeedSource are not BSP legal... :/ They sure do look nice.

 

Thanks for the link. It does look difficult. Perhaps a press from Harbor Freight would make things a little easier.

Do you drive the car on the street much? If so, what is the ride quality like? I expect some degradation, and can live with that, but have visions of a very buzzy, noisy car.

 

They are not delrin, neither are the Drop Eng lower bushings though their literature states they are

 

Whats a bushing?

 

From their website.
-Front Lower Control Arm Bushings are precision machined and molded using UHMW Polyethylene.

-Front Upper Control Arm Bushings are precision machined and molded using UHMW Polyethylene.

From what I understand, UHMW (Ultra-high-molecular-weight) and Delrin are very similar. Delrin is easier to Machine but UHMW is used in moldings. UHMW has the highest impact strength of any thermoplastic presently made. It is "highly resistant to corrosive chemicals (with exception of oxidizing acids); has extremely low moisture absorption and a very low coefficient of friction; is self-lubricating; and is highly resistant to abrasion, in some forms being 15 times more resistant to abrasion than carbon steel."

 

Umm yeah, materials was my BSME minor so I am familiar with UHMW and most other polymers. I just forgot that they took the cheaper route, hence the lower price. IMO Delrin is a better suspension bushing choice as it has much more resistance to cold flow/creep, which is an even bigger problem with polyurethane. Which is why a spherical bearing would pound the seat loose quickly if the carrier was UHMW. Somebody had a set of the lower DE bushings FS on the forum a while back so I asked him about the design. He told me it was identical to SpeedSource/Motorsport design with a spherical heim bearing in an aluminum carrier.

The OE bushing design has minimal deflection. The reason to use the delrin upper arm setup is that it greatly reduces rotational friction/resistance.

 

Search, select, copy and past was my minor, so....

From what I have read, UHMW can last longer but extreme cold is an issue.

Mazdatrix sells both the MS and the DE and describes them the same way.

For custom Delrin bushing (rear toe arm) I found this place. They only need a drawing or a new bushing to work from.

 

George, I drive it on the street from time to time and to be honest, I really didn't notice a difference too much. It's not something that literally screams out "HI I'M NOTICEABLE" to you to be honest, so I wouldn't worry about it.

 

maybe copy & paste was their minor, or maybe you flunked out of "call them up & confirm"

I did speak with someone who had them in hand. That doesn't mean I'm right because I only took his word for what he told me, but it certainly means I did more than make assumptions ...

based on my own direct experience with UHMW material for bushings I don't see how it will hold a spherical bearing tight in that location for very long. Again, I could be wrong, but that is again my direct experience and not an assumption.

 

I have had both the Speedsource and Drop Engineering upper control arm and LCA camber bushing assemblies ( got some DE ones on E-bay in a stink bid for really cheap )

The Speedsource ones are machined a bit cleaner...but the materials seem identical. The LCA units are both spherical bearing pivots with aluminum carriers like Team said.

 

If I decide to make the purchase I will make the call. I am not making an assumption, I mearly stated a fact that they described the products the same way. Information provided on the web is always supect and with this one it is even more suspect because it is described several different ways.

 

I quite don't get all this bushing bashing for polyurethane products. Could you enlighten me?
I have a good experience with polyurethane bushings and they seem to last well. The only thing that I didn't follow in the usual instructions was the greasing part. I didn't use the "specific" bushing grease but copper grease instead.
I didn't cover many miles with them in the rx8 (approx. 8 hours) but in the proper racecar they tend to last more than one season of racing.
Any info would be much appreciated

G

 

if polyurethane is a step down compared to stock is what I've been hearing, can someone explain this to me I always thought factory for the majority of cars were rubber,and I know for a fact that polyurethane is a lot more durable then rubber so I'm having a hard time believing stock bushings are better then Polyurethane, I've been searching and I found a place with poly delrin combo. http://www.coorstek.com/products/pla...Fe1dtgodpzdjHg
http://www.cheperformance.com/Tech/C...n_Bushing.html

 

start with your assumptions and work from there

and I didn't bash anything --> IMO the only way to improve on the OE bushings is with a solid type of bushing whether it be a heim bearing, delrin, UHMW, etc.

I would rather everything be heim bearings, but the STX rules don't allow this


.

 

Ok, if it's an opinion then I get it. I was just trying to understand the factual data behind your choices. I understand the durability concerns of polyurethane and that's why I pointed out the copper grease, what looked an insane choice to me at first but.. try to convince an italian mechanic not to do something! He just splattered it all over and pressed the bushings back in

Delrin would be awesome but possibly too harsh above kerbs with my current shock setup.

Thanks again anyway, this is one of the few threads worth reading.

 

crap, I was informed that these specific wheels were discontinued. The perfect fitment, only 17.2# each, and probably near impossible to find a used set ... oh well. SSR might as well folded, Tanabe has pretty much gutted them to nothing special

 

hey don't know how legit this site is but I found the wheel you want but they seem overpriced.[URL="http://http://www.rhdjapan.com/ssr-type-c-rs-racing-spec-wheels-54426"]

 

start with your assumptions again .... lol

 

What sway bars do you guys run, and do you have sway bar end links?
I looking to get a set of sway bars and was wondering if anyone had some advice on which sway are good. I was thinking of getting racing beat set for $335.

 

^Please read through this thread before asking redundant questions...Or we will probably throw flaming ***** at you...


On another note I want EVERYONE to tune in to GoRacingTV.com tomorrow at 1pm EST. The Evo school is at PRI and they are announcing information about the new East Coast National Tour!.

They want all the viewers they can get to show interest. Tell your wife, tell your husband, tell your kids, tell your neighbors!