Bushings: new rubber VS new poly VS don't bother VS mix and match?

[thriller]

Howdy.

 

As all the running and rolling gear is out of the 260 at the moment & needs paint, thought I'll never get a better chance than this to do a full overhaul (yep, might-as-well bug got me..).

 

I don't like the idea of squeaky poly, though greased on install apparently makes it alright for a while. I also hear that black poly is much better than red. Which is good, not going to go sticking blingy red bits all underneath the car. Don't want to go installing grease nipples into the moustache bar and that kinda stuff though. Maybe it's better to leave hard to reach ones  as rubber though?

 

Also hear that poly is quite stiff. That's not tooo big a problem for me, as long as it's not stupid bouncing up and down the road stiff. As long as it's actually worth it in terms of cornering compared to rubber? But most people can only compare poly to old rubber that it replaced. Has anyone got experience with new rubber vs new poly? Is poly actually going to last much longer than rubber like a few people say?

 

And for those bastard sharp object bushings like in the rear lower wishbone thingy, or the front lower control arms, or moustache bar.. Basically anything you need to press out.. Is it worth replacing them or will the difference not really be felt?

 

 

Basically I think what it comes down to for me

-Is poly going to last much longer than rubber?

-Does it make ride quality terrible?

-Will it feel much nicer to corner etc compared to rubber?

-Is the pain of doing moustache/LCA/rear wishbone thingies worth it?

[Ledge]

Hi Mate.

Good job on the painting by the way.

 

You need to decode what you are going to do with the car.

If its just for cruising with the missus and the occasional spirited drive

then i would stick to rubber with good shockers.

 

If you are going to put it near a track or hillclimb then maybe go the poly.

otherwise keep the rubber, much more comfy on the road.

 

cheers

[thriller]

Cheers 

 

Personally I'd be happy just to putter around in a stockers L26 with a bit of a bootfull every weekend or so. But with the L28 coming it should be reasonably feisty, and to have it handle like a bucket of poo would be a bit of a letdown to the engine. I'm leaning toward just going rubber and eventually upgrading the shocks. But if they're going to last half as long as poly and feel significantly more 'boaty', then might not be the best option.

 

The other option would have just been get new rubber throughout, and go poly in a couple of spots like swaybars, steering rack, where the difference would be more noticeable?

[Riceburner]

For me, poly are ok. It'll come down to cost/availability, poly is easy to get and will need replacing a lot more often. The OEM rubber is great, lasts a long time too. The moustache bar OEM rubbers are around $100 a pair, but the poly bushing FULL KIT is only $200.