Diff bushings?

XxSlowpokexX

Registered User
Well I finally shimmed my crossmember to avoid my driveshaft rubbing whe I noticed yet another one of my poly rear diff bushing went to nowhere land.

Apparently I am giving up on poly bushings. I installed these being I needed some ASAP and like always...They just dont work

My Question is...Has anyone run solid bushings here? I know steeda sells the fronts and you can easily make the rear solid.

Curious as to any vibrations and whatnot
 
I don't understand. I've been running poly bushings for 10+ years in my Cobra and SC, without any major issues. It takes me 4+ years of racing in my Cobra to even come close to hurting them.

Heat is what kills them, maybe your diff is setup too tight.

What brand are you using? I prefer the Energy Suspension design, and that's what I have in my cars.

If you really want to go to solid bushings, I could make some from UHMW or even aluminum, if that's what you really want.
 
Well I finally shimmed my crossmember to avoid my driveshaft rubbing whe I noticed yet another one of my poly rear diff bushing went to nowhere land.

Apparently I am giving up on poly bushings. I installed these being I needed some ASAP and like always...They just dont work

My Question is...Has anyone run solid bushings here? I know steeda sells the fronts and you can easily make the rear solid.

Curious as to any vibrations and whatnot

You will not get vibrations. Do a search for my build up and you will see where I got my alum one from. What they transfer is noise. A humming kinda noise it not super loud but noticeble. No vibrations. Loud exhaust and no problem but if you are looking for ultra quiet ride then I dont know what to suggest.
 
I've blasted through several sets of poly diff bushings over the years. I consider them temporary band aides. I think that ordinary street driving may be harder on the poly bushings than track use because I've seen the poly bushings fail on low HP street cars as often as high HP ones.

For sound isolation and a reasonable amount of compliance the OE Ford bushings are best.

As for solid bushings the only thing I can say is that I've been warned about removing all compliance from the differential mount as that will dramatically increase shock loads on axles, etc. I've even seen a Cobra aluminum diff break off the mounting ears. Not sure about all the contributing circumstances on that one.
 
Unfortunately the stock SC diff Bushings are obsolete and hard to find. I got my last set from Green Sales and they cost me $25 a side. You might want to try diff bushings from a Mustang Cobra that had IRS. Should be easier to find than the SC specific version.
 
I had a set in my auto SC (poly) and they lasted awhile but ended up getting hurt after about 6 months..Hurt but still functioning.

Now with my 5 speed for some reason they arent holding up. If going solid will give me an issue with more drivetrain shock that will cause breakage wellllll..Maybe I'd perfer another option.

In reality having a non solid diff bushing will give a little compliance and perhaps enough to save something from breaking..And I dont want to break anything else right at this moment. So I'd perfer that route unless I'm told hey...No issues with solid mounts!

Then If I go solid I will need to set my pinion angle which isnt a huge deal if I get the car on a lift....

Perhaps I'll source out a set of Cobra bushings (rubber) and see how they fare. The good news is now that I shimmed my corssmember and the driveshaft no longer hits anything the car launches like a MOFO with the Delrin out back! I can actually feel the tires biting
 
So I'd perfer that route unless I'm told hey...No issues with solid mounts!

Then If I go solid I will need to set my pinion angle which isnt a huge deal if I get the car on a lift....

Our pinion angle is supposed to be good unlike the cobra ones that from the factory were wrong. I have a set that uses shims and can be removed or added depending. I set mine to the stock shim size.
 
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Rico I have the poly tranny and engine mounts. Only issue I had was to shim crossmember..And a lil more vibration overall. Otherwise my shifter doesnt even MOVE AN INCH! Still up in the air about the IRS mounts though. My rear IRS mount is poly and seems to be holding up rather well but those front bushings are driving me crazy......And when they go all hell breaks loose under there. Currently I actually made my own solid front IRS mounts to Bandaid my issue for the time being....

Doug, I'd give them a try. Worst case scenario is I break them!
 
I've had some poly bushings on my 89 5-speed for probably around 4yrs and 50,000 miles...they still look new. I bought them from Rich at MN12 Performance at the time...

It's probably just your driving, Damon. :p:)
 
I guessing at the age of my poly bushings in my 5-speed car, but they were probably around 10-12K. One was in good shape but the other was crushed and in multiple pieces.

I have yet to hear of an auto car tearing one up. Anyone?

I had put poly in my auto car and saved the oem bushings, I put them in my 5-speed car and they still look great over 5K later.
 
Damon,

Here's a pic of the ES bushings p/n 4.1126G. They're a 2-piece design, unlike the 3-piece design that Rich used to sell, and that Steeda continues to sell. Those early one's seemed to melt fairly quickly, but I've yet to have a problem with these.

I have a couple of sets of these in stock, and a nice stock set that I removed from my LSC. Or, if you want, I can make you up a set in Delrin.

Let me know...
 

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Damon,

Here's a pic of the ES bushings p/n 4.1126G. They're a 2-piece design, unlike the 3-piece design that Rich used to sell, and that Steeda continues to sell. Those early one's seemed to melt fairly quickly, but I've yet to have a problem with these.

I have a couple of sets of these in stock, and a nice stock set that I removed from my LSC. Or, if you want, I can make you up a set in Delrin.

Let me know...

Those are also the ones they sell at AZ. I've used a several of those but don't have any feedback yet.
 
I originally had those in my car (teh twop peice)and forgot to add in the metal sleeves.....WWHOOPPSSSSSS..The bushings are still good however and I may be able to reuse. The Steeda ones lasted all but a day before one completely deteriorated ...I just figured Id get a new set and be set..Didnt work

Perhaps its the three peice design that doesnt hold up well. Its kind of hokey the way they go together.

Doug I am still on the fence on what to do....
 
I absolutely destroyed a set of the 3-piece/side bushings from Steeda in my nearly stock-engined LX. The middle bushing on one side actually forced its way THROUGH the bottom bushing--it's the weirdest thing I've ever seen on these cars. After switching to the 2-piece/side bushings the car has been fine but I still run the stock rubber stuff on my SC. It has way more power than my LX and has never been a problem in this regard.
 
i also have the solid aluminum bushings. The biggest problem i've had is ruining pinion bearings. I changed the rearend right before last years shootout and its about ready to fall out of the car now. That's two in two years for me. I've got an 89 with 250 rwhp 350 rwt.
 
The OEM Bushings are a two piece design with the center post and end washers molded integral to the respective parts (upper and lower) parts of the bushings.

Technically they are classified as "Bonded Tube" Snubbing Mounts and the "extra" washer is a snubbing washer and required to be installed if the mounts are to do their designed function.
 
Well you guys can thank me for testing out the solid alum bushings on an aluminum rear end. Because its now going to cost me another alum rear end to fix...as one of the ears has a stress crack, and will likely bust next time I BOLT ON slicks on it.

SO YOU ARE WELCOME> DO NOT USE ALUM BUSHINGS ON AN ALUM REAR END> :(
 
Well you guys can thank me for testing out the solid alum bushings on an aluminum rear end. Because its now going to cost me another alum rear end to fix...as one of the ears has a stress crack, and will likely bust next time I BOLT ON slicks on it.

SO YOU ARE WELCOME> DO NOT USE ALUM BUSHINGS ON AN ALUM REAR END> :(

Do you still have a flexible mount on the rear of the pumpkin? If so, then yeah, they will crack. If you Fixed mount one end, the other end will need to be fixed mounted as well otherwise the compliant side will move placing the entire burden for fixing the position of the carrier on the end that is fixed in place.
 
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