new bearings---holy moly

[19_again]

Well, everyone said the biggest cheapest way to improve the hendling/ride was new bushings and boy oh boy were you right!!!!
I replaced all front end bushings with the prothanes and I am blown away. Managed to replace them all, along with new front dampers from Worldwide (verry nice)in a weekend. didn't get to the left hand crossmember pads as engine is coming out in a few weeks anyways but did replace the right side without removing the crossmember. Lots of tugging and elbow grease but well worth it. Some of the improvement ws due to the abscence of any bushings AT ALL on the inside of the pivot arm connections. But well worth it, if you haven't done it, do it.

 

[jlaird]

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/winner1.gif

 

[vping]

Oh I can't wait to replace mine.

 

[DrEntropy]

Good decision, Mike. That is the last remaining 'thing' on the to-do list before this B actually gets pressed into service again.

 

[19_again]

I know the new front dampers make a difference, and they are highly recommendable. BUT the difference at the steering wheel is dramatic, so much so that I now think I must have been nuts to drive the car with those old bushings. I don't know the difference in quality between the standard poly bearings and the poly thane (red), but I chose the best I could afford. As i said earlier the bushings at the inside of the pivot arm were gone, now it handles as if I had taken 25K off the odometer. Not that there's anything wrong with that!! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
Let the cosmetic changes wait and do this, you'll be glad you did.

 

[Steve_S]

Let the cosmetic changes wait and do this, you'll be glad you did.

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/iagree.gif 110%

 

[Deleted member 3577]

You have a couple other 'freebies' to play with...
(if you haven't already)

Tire pressure
Caster/Camber/Toe

It costs $ after that...
Personally I'd go tyres (like RA-1)

 

[19_again]

OK I'll bite. I just put new Kumho's on, they're 195/14's and that was great. Run at recommended pressure now ,but you seem to have an optional pressure in mind?
Caster/Camber and Toe sounds too much like Lions/Tigers and Bears to me. Supposed to get snow this weekend, I'll get out Mr. Bentley and see what he says about it.
Oh Boy.

 

[DrEntropy]

By "juggling" the pressures a bit, Mike, you can change the under/over steer characteristics. With a freshly stiffened suspension you will be able to feel the differences a bit better, too. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/thumbsup.gif

I've found a 4 or 5 pound differential (fore-aft, rears higher) to give a nice, slight touch of oversteer with a well sorted chassis.

AUTOCROSS!!! WHEEEE!!!!!!!

 

[Deleted member 3577]

Yea...If I run outta money for go-faster goodies....
I'll play with settings...
(Makes me feel like I'm doing something)

Try pump'n the fronts up till they almost explode and take her for a quick lap....Then dump out a bunch [rinse-repeat]
Then do the same with the rears.
You'll get a good idea how to play w/ pressure.

Now you can go crazy with all the different camber-caster-toe combinations...
You can make your car handle anywhere from terrifying to SUV boring.

My own personal feeling is...
If I can drive the Elva with one hand...
It ain't twitchy enough. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif

 

[ronzet]

19_again,

I must agree with you. When I rebuilt(sp) the suspension on my '66 B I also went with the Prothane bushings all around and noticed a marked improvement in handling, although anything would have been an improvement from the originals that I replaced. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

I was so happy with the prothane that I used them on my frame off A. Once again, one of those 'boy am I glad I did that' events.... /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/thumbsup.gif

 

[19_again]

There's a set of bushings for the rear shackles as well on ebay,same advice on them? Using Delrin and bronze as opposed to prothane.

 

[ronzet]

19_again,

I replaced my rear shackles with the prothane as well... All done in one fell swoop as the expression goes...

I don't know if the Delrin and bronze will make an appreciable difference over the prothane and I can't say that the rear made a difference just that, in toto, the car, with the prothane bushings installed, handles much better than any others that I have owned or driven.

My A, with the propanes installed, handles very nicely also....although The ride seems to be much stiffer on the A than the B. This is probably due to the difference in weight between the two car models since the suspention, other than a front sway-bar on the B, it the same design.

For what it's worth... my two cents.

 

[Steve_S]

Solid bushings are good for the track, but they are harder on the car and do nothing for ride quality. They have existed since the beginnings of automotive technology, and there's a reason you rarely see them on road cars.

 

[ronzet]

Steve,

Just for my edification... when you use the term 'solid' are you referring to the Delrin and bronze bushings that 19_again mentioned?

Thanks...

 

[Steve_S]

Steve,
Just for my edification... when you use the term 'solid' are you referring to the Delrin and bronze bushings that 19_again mentioned?

Yes. Solid meaning no cushion or flex. Some pre-war M.G. sports cars did use bronze shackle bushings (keep in mind they had leaf springs front and rear) but they were replaced in later years by rubber. The bronze required more maintenance than owners were willing to perform, and the bushings suffered greatly because of it. All post-war cars were fitted with rubber.

 

[ronzet]

Steve,

I feel sooo edified!! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cheers.gif

 

[sultanoswing]

FWIW, the rear polys (Superflex / Superpro blue) made a great difference to the rear axle's behaviour on my '71 GT over the not-so-tired rubber that was on there.

I did the spring pads and shackles only - I couldn't be bothered pressing the spring eye bushes out - I figured the rubber would last as long in that location as the springs themselves anyway.

 

[Steve_S]

They do indeed. I replaced all rear bushings with Superflex on my '67 BGT. They were so much more precise than the "ok" condition old ones that it made the front end handle horribly until I got around to replacing them as well. For this reason I wouldn't recommend mixing ruber and poly front to rear. Poly front / rubber rear would likely be less harmful to handling than the way I had it.

 

[Nunyas]

I agree with everyone else so far concerning rear poly bushings. I've replaced the shackle bushings and spring pads with poly and they've made very noticeable improvements over the fair condition rubber bushings that were there. The most notable difference is the car's rear feels less 'wallowy' in turns that you take with any sort of speed. The difference is even more noticeable if there bumps/dips in the turn where the loading on the axle changes mid turn.

When I first got my car, I would go around a curve that had a dip in it with some speed and I would get the distinct sensation that the rear was about to whip around on me before the bushings would load up and finally transfer the load to the tires. With the poly bushes, that sensation is completely gone.

Of course, 60 series tires adds another level of greater responsiveness to the handling of the car too /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif