RS4 Nylon bushings

[ven0m]

Has anybody ever tested custom made Nylon bushings on our cars?

Nylon in hardness is rated between Polyurethane and Aluminium. Some manufacturers also add microscopic inserts of oil during manufacturing so the material is self-lubricating. I read that a lot of rally cars and different track cars use these.


I may go down this path during my suspension overhaul. Just asking if anybody else has gone this rout before?

[JimmyBones]

Nope but I can tell you that the spherical options out there work really well.

[ven0m]

Nope but I can tell you that the spherical options out there work really well.

Hey Jimmy, for sure! That's why I'm ordering from 034: Front&rear upper spherical control arms and aluminium bushings for the sub frames.

But I'm looking at the other bushings which are only available in polyurethane (from Powerflex and such):
- lower front
- lower rear

[CoreyRS]

Do the spherical options change the feel of the suspension?

[RS4forfrank]

Hi Guys,

Would like to understand why spherical would be superior to a polyurethane bushing like a poweflex product? My car is on the stock 19's happy with the handling, I don't track the car, and its not lowered, I just want the bushings to last longer and suspension to feel that solid feeling like when I had to replace the original rubber bushings. Also would bearings give a harsh feel to the car?

Interested to hear opinions and experience.

Thx.

[ven0m]

Do the spherical options change the feel of the suspension?

Hi Guys,

Would like to understand why spherical would be superior to a polyurethane bushing like a poweflex product? My car is on the stock 19's happy with the handling, I don't track the car, and its not lowered, I just want the bushings to last longer and suspension to feel that solid feeling like when I had to replace the original rubber bushings. Also would bearings give a harsh feel to the car?

Interested to hear opinions and experience.

Thx.

Hey guys, to answer both your questions. I haven't run spherical, nylon or polyurethane on any of my cars.
But I gathered a lot of info from a couple of my racing friends and from other users on here which run track-setups, etc.

From soft to hard the materials go in this order: Stock rubber => Group N rubber => Polyurethane => Nylon => Aluminium
(detailed info for every type of material: http://www.mc2racing.com/tech/20090130a/index.html)

@CoreyRS, yes a lot. The wheel geometry doesn't deflect under load. You wont get any unwanted camber or caster when cornering hard. The road response will be as direct as it gets. It will also greatly decrease all driving comfort.
@RS4forfrank, for your needs the polyurethane is the way to go. Just get the graphite-grease-matrix impregnated polyurethane bushings from Powerflex as the polyurethanes are stiffer than rubber and will produce "squeeching" if not greased and the impregnated ones are self lubricating (maintenance free). But be aware that a polyurethane bushing has a greater lifespan than OEM rubber, but it stil wears out. A metal or nylon bushing will out-live the car.


For my needs: I will be tracking the car and I want the suspension components stiff, so I will go for the metal options where possible and the rest I will make myself on a CNC from self lubricating Nylon.

[seishuku]

The point of the bushing is to have some "give", like the shock and springs on the suspension. You wouldn't drive around with a chunk of metal replacing your Springs, would you? lol

Nylon or Delrin works well, but they will "hammer out" over time. Spherical bearings with nylon inserts would be the best, but they'll hammer out over time as well.

[ven0m]

The point of the bushing is to have some "give", like the shock and springs on the suspension. You wouldn't drive around with a chunk of metal replacing your Springs, would you? lol

Nylon or Delrin works well, but they will "hammer out" over time. Spherical bearings with nylon inserts would be the best, but they'll hammer out over time as well.

The point of the bushings is to do, what you need/want it to do.

If you want a comfortable ride, you will want all components to absorb noise, vibrations and hits - your solution is rubber.
If you want the best handling, road feel, steering response and control on the track - your solution is metal (or anything that comes close in stiffness)



A bushing is either a pivot or a static point. A shock absorber is a shock absorber. You're comparing apples and oranges.

[CoreyRS]

Well then sometimes an apple can be an orange...because a bushing (or anything in the load path), no matter the material, absorbs energy.

[RS4forfrank]

Awesome, thank you.

[ven0m]

Well then sometimes an apple can be an orange...because a bushing (or anything in the load path), no matter the material, absorbs energy.

True, also the chassis absorbs energy. But you want that to be rigid (to some degree).


I think it's best we leave it at "Choose the bushing material for which job you need it to perform."

Normal road use = rubber
Stiffer road use & a bit of track = polyurethane
Harsh road use & track use = plastic & metal

[CoreyRS]

True, also the chassis absorbs energy. But you want that to be rigid (to some degree).


I think it's best we leave it at "Choose the bushing material for which job you need it to perform."

Normal road use = rubber
Stiffer road use & a bit of track = polyurethane
Harsh road use & track use = plastic & metal

Agreed.