expo1

Back in October 2004 I put a set of Racing Beat swaybars on my 8. After 19,000 miles, driving it all winter and three track days I began to hear a noticeable groans / creaking sounds from the left side front end when I drive over dips / small bumps. After looking for anything I could see with my eyes or tighten with a wrench I took off the left front swaybar bushing and found the cause of the noise. The bushing grease I used during the install dried up, I was driving my 8 with dry sway bar bushing. In the second photo you can see marks on the bar from the Urethane bushings. I think I used enough grease during the install as I could still see some of the grease that squeezed out the sides on the bushing. I don’t feel I over tightened the nuts because wouldn’t that have shown up before 19,000 miles? I did use a torque wrench but went with the higher end of the torque range as per the instructions. Could it be the clamps need to be torque to the lower end of the range?
What I ended up doing was getting a set of greaseable front swaybar bushing from Summitracing.com and will just lube them every 2-3 months. You don’t need to take the wheels off to get at them, just need to raise the front a bit. I checked the rear bushings while I was at it and while in much better shape they too were on the dry side. I just took them off and added grease. Those are easier to work one than the front. The noise is gone and I now have something else to lookout for on this car.

So people with aftermarket swaybars that came with urethane bushings it is advisable to check and see if they still have a good amount of grease on them.

scarroll

I have had the same problem with my Miatas

You wouldn't happen to have a part number from Summit, by any chance?

Thanks

expo1

PN# ENS-9-5166R 32mm (Racing Beat bar),
The rear RB bar is 19mm but the clamp they carry is too big, I need to locate a smaller 19mm clamp that's greaseble. As you can see in the third photo you have to remove a bolt that holds part of th ABS system in order to attach the clamp. The clamp holds that part in very well. Or you can get a hacksaw and trim the top of the clamp a bit.

scarroll

If you do have a diffiicult time finding the smaller clamps for the rear.

I have had decent success with drilling and tapping the clamp to accept

a zerk fitting. Then drilling a smaller diameter hole, through the bushing

to let the greese through. It's kind of a pain, but it works if you can't

find a suitable replacement.

olddragger

iTrader: (3)

never thought of this . good info, i will be checking mine
olddragger

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

the bushings/clamps are made by Energy Suspension and on the front you don't have to cut the brackets; push the bushing/clamp assy. as far down on the slots as possible and then just bolt it down. The excess part of the bracket that overlaps onto the ABS wiring clamp will simply bend and conform OK to the frame mount without causing any problem. If you cut the bracket then it will expose unplated steel along the cut which will rust and stain the surrounding area

expo1

If you look at the third photo you can see thats what I did, the overlap of the the bracket holds the ABS bracket very well. Just wish to add that when I installed the bars I made a DIY and there is a photo of the front bar with plenty of grease in the bushing
https://www.rx8club.com/attachment.p...chmentid=32645
So I still do not know where I went wrong or if this is normal with aftermarker sway bars.

SDB

Urethane squeaks, always has and always will. It is also cheap, you can get the Energy Suspension parts with zerk fittings at any Autozone. I don't understand why aftermarket manufacturers insist on trying to sell these as no maintenance items. Some come with special grease and others with fittings, but ultimately they will squeak. OEM rubber will cost more but the squeaking will be gone and I doubt that you will really notice any handling differences. And yes, it is normal for aftermarket swaybars (if they use urethane).

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

That's because you have the bushing brackets pushed UP all the way on the slots, look at the photo and see how much slot remains to move the brackets DOWN away from the overlapped area

expo1

The sway bar does not have that much vertical free space. To move the brackect down would also require the bar to move down which it cannot. The set up in that photo ( https://www.rx8club.com/attachment.p...chmentid=53715 ) is holding the ABS bracket quite well. But thanks anyway.

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

I have the same diameter bar and don't have a clue what you're referring to, the brackets and bar slide fully downward

rAte

I wonder if Hotchkis makes sways for the RX8. I had them on my EVO and they were great. They had grease fittings front and rear and they were adjustable.
I didn't know Autozone has Energy Susp. stuff. Cool.

Aaron/ rAte

Razz1

Thank you very much for the advice and especially the solution.

FastRX8

I hate to resurrect such an old thread, but I'm looking into installing the RB swaybars in the next couple of days.

Is this what I'm looking for at Autozone for the fronts?
Energy Suspension Black Greaseable Performance Sway Bar Bushing Sets - 32mm Bar Diameter
http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiBr...EEGS%7C%7Etrue

They also sell Energy Suspension Black Greaseable Performance Sway Bar Bushing Sets - 3/4" / 19mm Bar Diameter
http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiBr...EEGS%7C%7Etrue
Will that work for the rear swaybars?

Thanks for any help.

- Cesar -

expo1

I had trouble finding greaseable brackets for the rear so I just bought zerk fittings, drilled / tapped a hole on the OEM brackets which are reused with the RB bar and made my own. The thing with the rear ones is the distance between the mounting holes; the rear bolts are fairly close together. They might have more offerings now but making my own was very easy.

Astral

It it possible to simply re-grease the urethane bushings every 15-20K miles (basically wait until they start making noise)?

What kind of bushings do the Whiteline swaybars come with?

expo1

Yes, but it's MUCH easier to do with Zerk fittings. I just give them a little grease every other oil change.

peloponisios

I have the RB sways but the guy who installed them (smart thinkin' there) saw the grease that RB included and told me about the possibility of drying up so he used proflex's grease with copper. I have them on for around 15000 Km and until now no squeeking, no rattle. Maybe u should give it a try.

Spin9k

I have Whiteline, not RB, but because of this possibility of this with the urethane bushings they supplied, I simply put a thin washer under one side of the bracket to add a tiny bit more clearance for the grease by loosening up the bracket. No problems for over a year.

firebirdude

iTrader: (3)

That's an interesting idea. While the bracket may be tight, the bar itself will not be quite as tight in the bushing. I wonder if this will cause problems?

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

..... check thread date ...

expo1

Since I made this thread I have had zero issues with my sway bar bushings. Every 2nd oil change I add some grease to them, Zerk fittings rock!

firebirdude

iTrader: (3)

Oh I guess maybe bushings don't need grease at all in 2008...

expo1

If you check the third photo in the first post you will see what a brand new Energy suspension sway bar bracket looks like. In the photo attached here you can see the same bracket after three years and 82,000 miles. Energy suspension is a popular supplier of sway bar brackets, maybe for some applications they are not up to spec and should be checked. I have not tracked my 8 in over an year and was not driving it hard. A few days ago I noticed a noise on the right and found the bracket. I will be sending these back to them in hopes they find something wrong that can be fixed for newer brackets.

ZoomZoomH

iTrader: (1)

ah, the bane of having polyurethane bushings

does mazdaspeed's kit use polyurethane bushings as well, or they use plain ol' rubber?