Polyurethane
Front Control Arm Bushings Part Numbers
31015, 31016, 31027 & 31028
7490 -
|
Read Installation Instructions thoroughly before
beginning. |
Kit Contains:
ITEM # QTY DESCRIPTION
1
4 Polyurethane Bushings
2 4 Steel Inner Sleeves
3 4 Steel Outer Sleeves (in #31027 & 31028 kits only)
4 4 Steel Flat Washers
1.
Jack up car and place securely on
jack stands. Remove control arms from
vehicle. Note position of alignment
shims.
2.
Beginning with one control arm,
remove retaining bolts and lock washers from control arm shaft ends.
3.
Remove the rubber and inner sleeves
from each bushing. The best method is to
burn the rubber out with a small torch.
This produces heavy black smoke, therefore it
should be done in an open, well-ventilated area away from anything you do not
want covered with black soot. Upper
control arm shafts can be removed from control arm after removing rubber
bushing to facilitate cleaning the remaining steel outer sleeves (shells). Lower control arm shafts cannot be removed
from A-arm assembly, so clean-up is more difficult. Outer sleeve (shell) should be free of all
rubber, not dented, and mostly free of corrosion.
If installing bushings with
new steel outer sleeves, don’t burn out the rubber bushing. Instead, knock the complete bushing unit out
of the shaft ends. First clamp the
control arm (shaft) into vise. Using a hammer and chisel, work your way around the steel outer
sleeve, knocking the sleeve out of the control arm. This will remove the sleeves and the
rubber. Discard. Then install new outer sleeves (Item #3) into
shaft ends. If necessary, pound in using
a block of wood and hammer. NOTE: Lower control arm shaft must be reinstalled
in control arm before installing outer
sleeves.
4.
Install polyurethane bushings (Item
#1) in control arm with shaft in place.
Finger pressure should be adequate.
Poly bushings must not be loose in steel shells.
5.
Lubricate outside diameter of inner
sleeve (Item #2) and install in polyurethane bushing. Check that inner sleeves are snugly seated
against the shaft shoulder and the shaft (see drawing).
6.
Due to the variation in the control
arms, it is necessary to check the length of the inner sleeves. File each inner sleeve down until the sleeve
protrudes between .010 to .020 from the outside edge of each
polyurethane bushing. (This will
leave a slight gap between the bushing and the outer flat washer, so the
bushing won’t squeak). Install new flat
washer (Item #4) onto each bushing and secure with original retaining bolt and
lock washer.
7.
Now test the bushings by mounting
the control arm cross shaft in bench vise.
Control arm should pivot smoothly on the bushing’s inner steel sleeves,
but should not be so loose as to fall down under its own weight.
8.
Reinstall control arms in car. Realign car using specifications in Vette Brakes & Products’ Suspension and Handling Guide
as a reference to fine-tune the suspension to the driving characteristics
desired.
Polyurethane control
arm bushings, when properly installed, will improve the ride and handling of
any car. The bushings act as bearings to
reduce the effort needed to move the control arms when the wheels encounter
bumps, etc., on road surfaces. As a
result, this shock is absorbed by the suspension system instead of transmitting
it to the rest of the vehicle. Also,
polyurethane bushings hold their initial characteristics much longer than
rubber bushings, greatly reducing front end maintenance and holding front end
alignment much better when cornering, and when braking loads are applied.