Evora ARB Bushes

[Cdm2018]

55 minutes ago, Scotsdave said:

I agree to an extent that greasing the standard bushes aren't too hard to do but who wants to jack up the car, remove the undertray and undo the ARB every 6 months/1yr depending on usage.

I fitted the powerflex bushes at the end of December with brand new droplinks at the same time as my car had hit 55k and it is used daily. The ride isn't any harsher and I don't need to worry about the bushes any more.

Yes sounds like my kinda of DIY let someone else do it ! Lol

i will change to power flex next time but do I need to change the droplinks ? Not been mentioned before ? 

Does one thing need the other doing to ensure a full job is done and make it a long term fix ? 

[Scotsdave]

I've done about 30k in the car now and the drop links have never been done in that time. I decided to do them as a belts and braces approach and they were so cheap I was as well doing them at the same time.

[trcm]

I got my OEM bushes greased at the one year service interval, but now almost at three years, I'm hearing a bit of a clonk over the first few bumps of any journey from the offside front, so I've bought some Powerflex (PF34-803-21.5 and PF34-803-23) ones to go in next month. I'll get Hexagon to advise on the state of the drop links too.

[Craig Red Evora]

I replaced the ARB bushes in mid March with the latest spec Lotus ones and it transformed the car. No more clonks and it felt so much more stuck to the road and inspired confidence. I replaced the drop links a month later the same theory as Scotsdave, belts and braces. It's now June and the car is clonking just as much as it did before I changed everything. I drive it daily and my commute is a round trip of roughly 48 miles and includes the awful Surrey section of the M25 with its concrete surface. So three months and just under 3000 miles and I need to replace the bushes again! They were covered in red rubber grease when I installed them as I had already read that lubrication was an issue. The bar was in good condition with no rust or marks so I guess the rubber just gets beaten into submission by the bad road surfaces and becomes soft. The OEM ones aren't expensive but less than 3000 miles and they have had it is a bit ridiculous.

Going to order the Powerflex ones and hope they last longer. 

[p4cks]

19 hours ago, Craig Red Evora said:

I replaced the ARB bushes in mid March ...The OEM ones aren't expensive but less than 3000 miles and they have had it is a bit ridiculous.

Going to order the Powerflex ones and hope they last longer. 

Yep, same story I've heard time and time again.

Powerflex ones seem to now be a no-brainer given that they're the same price as OEM and seem to be made of better stuff

[Julian73]

Installed the purple hardness PowerFlex ARB bushings in my Sport 410, don't notice any difference in harness or cornering crispness, now I wonder if the 410's poem bushings are different the standard?  fingernail test claims about same hardness and inner hole of oem is lined with a carbon anti-friction material.

[trcm]

I got the car back from Hexagon today, and though the tech gave me the old bushes saying they were in fine condition, the ride IS better now with the powerflex purple ones, certainly feeling as crisp and smooth as when the car was new.

Despite being requested, there was no update on the condition of the drop links, so I’m none the wiser there, how does one check armed only with a trolley jack?

Edited July 11, 2019 by trcm

[Bruss]

10 hours ago, trcm said:

I got the car back from Hexagon today, and though the tech gave me the old bushes saying they were in fine condition, the ride IS better now with the powerflex purple ones, certainly feeling as crisp and smooth as when the car was new.

Despite being requested, there was no update on the condition of the drop links, so I’m none the wiser there, how does one check armed only with a trolley jack?

You won't feel anything without having the car very securely supported and lever the drop link with a bar.  If you still have a clunk from the suspension when you go over bumps etc, then either drop links or suspension mounting points are indicated, more likely the drop links.

[trcm]

7 minutes ago, Bruss said:

You won't feel anything without having the car very securely supported and lever the drop link with a bar.  If you still have a clunk from the suspension when you go over bumps etc, then either drop links or suspension mounting points are indicated, more likely the drop links.

Thanks @Bruss, doesn't sound like something I'll achieve on a trolley jack then sadly.

I didn't even know the suspension mounting points were something that would need checking, are they some kind of perishable material as well (excuse my ignorance here) ?

[Bruss]

37 minutes ago, trcm said:

Thanks @Bruss, doesn't sound like something I'll achieve on a trolley jack then sadly.

I didn't even know the suspension mounting points were something that would need checking, are they some kind of perishable material as well (excuse my ignorance here) ?

They don't generally have any issues but are just another wear point. The standard Bilsteins are unlikely to knock due to the materials used, unless the car has a very high mileage. Aftermarket shocks may be mounted with more ridgid bushings and can cause a knock.

 

[trcm]

Well nearside is definitely knocking over bumps, so will have to find a garage which wants to replace the drop links, is there any sense in having just the fronts done, or should one opt for a front and rear ?

[electro_boy]

Think should be fine to just do the front if that’s all that’s knocking. 

I believe Hoffmans only replaced the front on my car couple years back when they had it in for servicing. 

[trcm]

Good stuff, hopefully marginally cheaper to do just the fronts.

I'm annoyed that I asked Hexagon to check the condition of the drop links when they replaced the bushes, and they failed to do so. I have had consistently shoddy service by most main dealers in the 50 miles or so around London.

Now the warranty is up, it's time to find a conscientious independent garage nearer to me (its a shame BoT are 50km away) ....

 

Edited July 17, 2019 by trcm

[Julian73]

On 17/07/2019 at 09:15, electro_boy said:

Think should be fine to just do the front if that’s all that’s knocking. 

I believe Hoffmans only replaced the front on my car couple years back when they had it in for servicing. 

Besides the rears are very accessible anytime you do an oil change.

 

Edited July 19, 2019 by Julian73

[series_one]

After 4 sets of fronts over 8 years I put in powerflex ones in in April. Back to silence. 

I also replaced the ARB as I had done 115k miles then and it was wearing under the bushes. Its a nightmare to replace. The lower arms MUST come off. Believe me I tried every option. This means geo needs redoing. So its a pain.  

Edited July 22, 2019 by series_one
Typos

[Giveitfish]

Same here, Powerflex bushes in at the last service after previous ones were annual replacement and yet knocking withing months.

Still silent 6k miles later, only noticeable difference in NVH from the stiffer bushes is a tiny bit more vibration through the steering on rough surfaces.

[p4cks]

Just had mine fitted, no more noise. Time will tell whether these will last longer than the 3,000 miles the OEM replacements did - I'm pretty confident though as the difference in material is night and day

[p4cks]

On 01/11/2019 at 09:51, p4cks said:

Just had mine fitted, no more noise. Time will tell whether these will last longer than the 3,000 miles the OEM replacements did - I'm pretty confident though as the difference in material is night and day

Happy to report there's no knocking when going over bumps. I'm delighted!