My 1302S Beetle is very sensative to the state of its front suspension bushes and it really gets the shakes when they are worn. Does anyone have experience of using Polyurathane bushes?
If you are changing these bushes on a regular basis it is probably because you are using the finest that German & Swedish can supply, or as we in the trade call it, "cheap taiwanese cr*p". Try to get hold of some OE ones, either from VW Heritage ( care, they also sell the same ones as G&S, insist on BQ ) Or, pause for sharp intake of breath, your VW dealer. Polyurathane is OK, but it has a nasty habit of sqeaking when wet - not a problem in the American desert, more of an irritaion in the English countryside.
Poly Bushes I think have more advantages than disadvantages - the main one being their durability. I have been fitting them to MGB and TR suspension for some years now and have had no adverse reports/ complaints. Some poly bushes come with stainless tube inserts, some are a direct fit. Price could be twice that of original part. If you are knocking out suspension bushes I would first ask if the alignment of the components was right, second ask if replacement bushes were fitted and tightened at a state of rest (not the mechanic the vehicle) .One can fit up suspenion bushes in such a position that the movement of the suspenion is acting against the forces set up in the bush. Regards Jonathan Laver
Hi Michael, Here's the reason I was prompted to join in the first place. I have replaced all the front and rear bushes on my 1303 with urethane versions. It wasn't expensive (although time consuming for me), it has changed the handling out of all recognition and I eliminated squeaks with liberal doses of silicon grease. Pete Barr
Pete, I replaced all the front with Urathane on my 1302 and it seemed to be fine on the Edinburgh. Yes I used a lot of grease as well and didn't hear any squeaking. The reason I used them was because I couldn't get a full set of genuine and some of the pattern ones were "CTC" as Simon rightly describes it. I re-bushed because my 1302S had developed the shakes again. The 1302 and S are renowned for this, probably due to the very complicated steering linkage giving so much scope for slack. Anyway, the bushes I took off didn't look too bad, apart from the ones fixing the anti-roll bar to the frame head. So I actually didn't change the ones pressed into the inside pivot of the Track Control Arm, I re-bushed with PU a spare set of Track Control arms that I had. I also changed the lower ball joints and fitted a different steering idler (not new or re-bushed) and a new steering damper. After all this the shakes have more or less dissaperaed apart from a tiny bit that could probably be cured if I was to have the front wheels balanced. As far as the back goes I can feel its a bit "loose" and would benefit from the same treatment. I have actually rebushed both before about eight or ten years ago but it just shows these things don't last for ever. When I had the car the speedo read 2,400. It's now 39,000 and it only gets used for trialling! Michael
If you are changing these bushes on a regular basis it is probably because you are using the finest that German & Swedish can supply, or as we in the trade call it, "cheap taiwanese cr*p". Try to get hold of some OE ones, either from VW Heritage ( care, they also sell the same ones as G&S, insist on BQ ) Or, pause for sharp intake of breath, your VW dealer. Polyurathane is OK, but it has a nasty habit of sqeaking when wet - not a problem in the American desert, more of an irritaion in the English countryside.
ReplyDeletePoly Bushes I think have more advantages than disadvantages - the main one being their durability. I have been fitting them to MGB and TR suspension for some years now and have had no adverse reports/ complaints. Some poly bushes come with stainless tube inserts, some are a direct fit. Price could be twice that of original part. If you are knocking out suspension bushes I would first ask if the alignment of the components was right, second ask if replacement bushes were fitted and tightened at a state of rest (not the mechanic the vehicle) .One can fit up suspenion bushes in such a position that the movement of the suspenion is acting against the forces set up in the bush. Regards Jonathan Laver
ReplyDeleteHi Michael, Here's the reason I was prompted to join in the first place. I have replaced all the front and rear bushes on my 1303 with urethane versions. It wasn't expensive (although time consuming for me), it has changed the handling out of all recognition and I eliminated squeaks with liberal doses of silicon grease. Pete Barr
ReplyDeletePete, I replaced all the front with Urathane on my 1302 and it seemed to be fine on the Edinburgh. Yes I used a lot of grease as well and didn't hear any squeaking. The reason I used them was because I couldn't get a full set of genuine and some of the pattern ones were "CTC" as Simon rightly describes it. I re-bushed because my 1302S had developed the shakes again. The 1302 and S are renowned for this, probably due to the very complicated steering linkage giving so much scope for slack. Anyway, the bushes I took off didn't look too bad, apart from the ones fixing the anti-roll bar to the frame head. So I actually didn't change the ones pressed into the inside pivot of the Track Control Arm, I re-bushed with PU a spare set of Track Control arms that I had. I also changed the lower ball joints and fitted a different steering idler (not new or re-bushed) and a new steering damper. After all this the shakes have more or less dissaperaed apart from a tiny bit that could probably be cured if I was to have the front wheels balanced. As far as the back goes I can feel its a bit "loose" and would benefit from the same treatment. I have actually rebushed both before about eight or ten years ago but it just shows these things don't last for ever. When I had the car the speedo read 2,400. It's now 39,000 and it only gets used for trialling! Michael
ReplyDelete