bushings!

[statik]

My subframe bushings were shot, and the collars weren't cutting it anymore, since I had the subframe down I decided to do the rear control arm bushings at the same time. This car sees some autox and eventually id like to try out an HPDE but it's no track car, so adjustable/solid arms was not what I was looking for. I went with nismo subframe bushings and energy suspension polyurethane control arm bushings.

Dropping the subframe, in hindsight I should have left the diff in and used that to drop it from, would have been easier but 2 jacks manage to do it.



The subframe is pretty light without the diff in there =]



Turns out the front 2 bushings were practically ripped in half




Unfortunately I do most of the work by myself so taking pictures while cutting out bushings was not my first thought, but basically: drilled out the rubber around the inner shell, didn't burn any rubber out, then you just cut the outer shell to relieve the tension and tap it out.



I had planned on powder coating everything, but in the end I was short on time, and really just wanted to drive the car so I said fuck it, the rust wasn't that bad on the subframe.

The arms/uprights



You could always use a press right? Torrin 10-ton mini press $250 shipped from northern tool with extended warranty.



A 7/8" socket fits perfectly in the arms, so thats what I used to press them out, then just use a large socket to catch the bushing.




It's very important that you align everything properly when doing this, if you are not careful it's possible to shatter a socket under enough load(so I've read), it was easy to tell when something wasn't going to budge, so I just stopped and re centered the socket.

Viola!



The A arms were impossible to press out, they have a collar that prevents you from pressing them straight on, so I had to burn/cut them out.
The camber/toe arms were the easiest to do since its a straight shot through top to bottom. The uprights took careful positioning and some creative thinking.

When installing the new bushings be sure to clean out the arms and use a bit of the supplied grease on the inside of the arm, the outside of the bushing, and the inside of the bushing, as well as the new sleeve that goes inside the bushing. Unfortunately that shit is like glue, so I didn't get a lot of pictures.






All done!



I ran out of battery so I don't have any of the subframe bushings/installation, but it's possible to press ALL of these bushings in using this press and some creativity. A larger (and more expensive) press would probably be easier to use.

The best advice i can give when pressing the new bushings is patience and a flat head screw driver, squeezing these bushings into the arms was frustrating, the grease easily gets dirt on it, which you don't want, and the ends of the bushings are quite large and don't seem like they will want to fit.

Before installing the subframe I bolted everything to it, installed the diff/axles, and torqued everything down. It seemed much easier to install it as one piece then doing everything under the car. I had a friend help guide the subframe into position under the car and it installed in about 10 minutes.

Total time spent was probably ~15 hours of work as pressing the bushings out/in is time consuming.

Driving impressions (after getting an alignment): the rear feels solid but not harsh, theres virtually no more noise from the rear (some from the aluminum driveshaft) and the bushings don't make any noise at all. Theres a bit more vibration, especially during decel, but nothing worth complaining about. There probably won't be any more autox this season as its getting quite cold in NY but im certain I will be happy with the results.

On a side note, some of you may not know the Moog S14 front ball joints fit perfectly in the rear A arms, and I used the press for that as well. After pressing the subframe bushings, control arm bushings and ball joints, it's certainly seems worth the price for DIY'ers.