What one person can put up with another person can hate; it will depend on you. I will likely continue to do Poly on my own vehicles, but I usually discourage people from doing so.
I had a STS miata full of poly bushings. I also drove another one with essentially the same suspension but all stock rubber. The difference was noticeable but not life changing.
I was just as fast on course in the rubber bushing car though it did feel a little bit less precise. I definitely liked the rubber car better on the street though. I never had any squeaking issues at least not that I could hear over the road noise of a miata with sticky tires and aftermarket exhaust though the PO had installed grease fittings along with the bushings.
I definitely recommend doing that if you go the poly route, it turns yearly service from a week of disassembling and reassembling the suspension to about half an hour with a grease gun. On a miata it's easy to justify because you basically can't buy stock bushings anymore so poly is way cheaper. I would say it really depends on the car. I've don't this on a lot of cars and no owner has complained about a change in ride quality.
Changing to poly bushings on a Triumph Spitfire doesn't seem to adversely affect ride quality, although the car isn't exactly smooth riding to begin with. I have them in the front of my AE Frankly there was no noticeable difference in ride quality, handling, or noise, but the car was already on rock-hard coilovers, so it might've been that any difference the bushings made was small in comparison.
The big difference is in longevity, that car used to wreck rubber LCA bushings within a year of autocross alone, and I'm on at least my 3rd season of autocross and track days with the poly bushings. Also a great place to use poly bushings is on the steering rack, they'll help tighten up the steering a bit with no meaningful potential for NVH problems. One thing to consider, depending on how the control arms and sway bars are configured is what Polyurethane will do to the movement of the pieces.
Sometimes poly can make things worse. Not all the time, but often if you can use poly without causing binding, etc. That seems to be why on a lot of double wishbone Hondas it is recommended to NOT use poly. Most seem to recommend rubber or for racing purposes spherical bushings instead. I have a steering rack, transmission, rear diff, and rear subframe bushings on my FRS. Made a pretty big difference. No more slop and everything seems much more direct e.
I also have no noise. That's one thing I forgot. The biggest difference I ever saw from polyurethane bushings were subframe bushings on an E Totally eliminated nasty wheel hop on my autocross launches.
Bushings which are just isolators and don't have to accommodate rotation seem like a less compromised fit for polyurethane, at least avoiding sliding motion on a material arguably not well suited to it. They're stiffer than OEM but don't have any of the downsides of poly.
I did my last Miata with them. I think it depends on the car, and the suspension design and geometry whether poly bushings will make the ride harsh.
I put some on my front lower control arms on my old E36 BMW, and it did nothing to diminish the ride quality, but it exponentially sharpened the steering response mid-corner.
I also happened to forget to grease them, and they didn't squeak. Since the OP said they didn't care for comfort, I would suggest to go with poly. However, I would suggest that you only switch if you owned your car for a while, so you can notice the difference.
I made the switch to poly bushing when refreshing a Miata suspension before turning it into an Exocet. Truly the only decision that I made that I wish I could rethink. This places cost and comfort high up on the priority list. The use of rubber materials reduces cost for the manufacturer and therefore the buyer.
In terms of longevity, the polyurethane material resists abrasions, cuts and tears much better than rubber. Beyond that, it is resistant to oil and many chemicals, leading to far less deterioration and degradation over time in comparison to rubber. All of this results in a highly increased lifespan, lasting as long as the car does for many owners.
On the Shore hardness scale, rubber bushings read between 18A and 60A similar to a pencil eraser , while Polyurethane usually resides in the 80A to 95A range similar to a skateboard wheel. Since the bushings reside in areas of movement in the chassis and suspension system, different hardness materials will affect both comfort and vehicle handling.
With polyurethane filling these areas, the joints and linking points in the suspension have less cushion to impact and torsion. This ultimately translates more details of the road surface into the chassis, providing a stiffer ride. Whether or not car owners prefer this change all comes down to personal preference. Energy Suspension develops its Hyper-Flex bushing kits to replace nearly every factory rubber bushing in the chassis and suspension, depending on the vehicle.
The stiffer material construction of these components prevents slop and unwanted movement in these areas. This means that when you induce a change to the car by turning the wheel, accelerating or braking, your inputs have a greater and quicker effect. The characteristics of polyurethane over rubber help not only in responsiveness but also in suspension geometry while the car is in motion. When the springs and shocks compress or expand from cornering, accelerating or braking, alignment settings often change.
The softness of rubber runs the risk of introducing excess or unwanted alterations to camber or toe, negatively affecting the handling of the car. Polyurethane, however, significantly reduces the amount of flexion in these areas, keeping the suspension geometries more true to their intended setup. Assembly Required To get a feel for the effects of polyurethane bushings, we put it to the test on our Mazda MX In most cases, a worn-out bushing is to blame.
Car bushings are small suspension components that reduce friction between the metal parts of your vehicle. Made from shock absorbent materials, usually urethane or rubber, they are crucial to ensuring a smooth ride. For something that makes such a big difference, bushings are surprisingly simple. They consist of just two parts: an outer usually metal sleeve and a spongy interior.
Instead, mechanics recommend replacing them when you notice the following symptoms:. Much more pliable than polyurethane, rubber is a great choice for those looking for a bit more give in their suspension. Once the domain of the military and racecars, polyurethane bushings did not become widely available until the s. For anyone looking to upgrade their suspension, poly bushings are a great choice.
It depends. For people who prefer leisurely cruises down Main Street, rubber is often the right choice. It dampens vibration much more effectively than poly and ensures a comfortable ride.
Unfortunately, rubber bushings are also costlier and require replacement. If you have a lead foot, on the other hand, poly bushings are probably the way to go. In addition to their durability, they also provide increased performance and better handling. No matter what you decide, Poly-Tek can help. Feel free to give us a call at 1 or email us at [email protected] to discuss your suspension bushing needs.
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