I've spent the last 8 hours changing my trailing arm bushings to poly and swapping springs. Thanks to the homemade trailing arm bushing tool, pressing the shells out/in was the easiest part of the job.

I'm too exhausted for a play-by-play, but here are some things I wish I'd known before doing the job.

1. If at all possible, remove or drop the cat-back exhaust first! If you can wait and do the TABs at the same time you do the exhaust that would be the way to go. There is just NO ROOM to get power tools in there with the exhaust in the way and it is almost impossible to drop the trailing arm enough with that damn under-axle pipe in the way. It's also near impossible to remove the spring; I scratched my freshly painted springs all to hell.

2. If you build the TAB tool, get a fully threaded bolt! McMaster-Carr part #92620A733 vs. the one recommended on the website. Trust me, you will be grateful, especially if you are installing poly bushings. Hint: the TAB tool COULD be very useful for pressing the poly bushings in.

3. The SuperPro FRONT polyurethane bushings are not well thought out! When I got my trailing arms out I found that I had a "V" bracket welded in one side of the mounting ears to center the sleeve on the front TAB. Well, the poly bushings from SuperPro did NOT take that into account. Rather than do something permanent like break the welds on the tab, I cut down the poly bushing (that was already installed, making it a pain). IF you do the FRONT TABs,then before you install them in the trailing arm, take them to the belt sander and remove about 1/8" (maybe a bit more) worth of the bushing material FROM ONE SIDE ONLY. Make sure when you press them in that the side with the missing material faces the outside of the car.

This would have been more like a 4 hour job if I hadn't run into all this. Just wanted to get it all down before I forget.
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'93 244: 'A' cam 4 deg. advanced, 25/22 sways, custom heim endlinks, poly bushings, and a lot more styling customization than I care to recount.

I think I replied to your old post "I built a TAB tool"
http://www.brickboard.com/RWD/volvo/1285495/220/240/260/280/careful_poly_rear_tabs_made_tab_tool_today.html

I hope something helped.

My biggest piece of advice, DONT remove both ta's at once! Remove the sway, then shock, spring, and arm of one side at a time.

I encountered the same V tab problem, but I did not grind anything off, I (not very simply) used a jack and pushed the hell out of the bushing till it popped in and I could pound the bolt through. This took about 30 min for each side. It can be done but you WILL curse the lord's name. After getting them in, the poly deforms well around the V tab and sits in there well.

Exhaust- I removed two rubber hangers and the pipe dropped down about 3 more inches and was fine.

I didn't use power tools. You cheated. I am dumb and poor.

I honestly want to hear more about you getting the rear tabs in. Did you press in the shells only then, using the tab tool, pressed each side of the super pro bushing in, then the inner sleeve? That was the best way for me, but it wasn't easy. The first side I just cranked in with the whole thing together and the tab tool cut the poly (not much, but a little, after it entered the second ear and the force increased. I had fiddled for an hour and got to the point of just saying "F" it and cranked till it was in. The second side I was far more strategic, but it took forever.

This really is not an easy job the first time you do it. Power tools would ABSOLUTELY help, but you'll still be levering, pushing and grunting with the arms.

The torque rods and panhard are a piece of cake.

I would recommend pulling the torque arms first only because mine were shot, but the rear and front TABs were fine after 17 years. But of course I was changing them anyway...
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89 245 'loaded' with a Great Pyrenees; 91 245 project

Jason,
Yes, your advice did help - I wasn't tempted to install the bushings as a whole. I pressed in the shells first which was surprisingly easy. Then I was JUST able to squeeze the the poly in, but there was NO WAY I was going to get the center sleeve in by hand. So I used different configurations of the TAB tool and a socket or two to pull the thing through, which would have been a LOT easier with a fully threaded bolt.

And you're right, I finally removed the hangers from my exhaust - praying that the rusty sections didn't snap - and got a few more inches to play with; I don't think I would have been able to do the job otherwise.

Power tools - yeah, they are sweet. Trust me, I'm poorer than you, but my father has every tool known to man, including a huge air compressor and tank and a good assortment of air tools.

I looked online after I found those V tabs, to see what others had done, and T'Bricks had a thread or two talking about it. Several people said that pressing the arm in like that might cut up the poly bushing causing it wear too fast. They recommended chiseling out the tab, but that's just stupid - why would you rather cut a part off your car permanently than cut a bushing that can easily (kinda) be changed? So I pressed the sleeve half out of each one and sanded down the bushing until it fit with very little force.

Yes, I cursed God, Jesus, Buddha, Brahma, and every other god I could think of during the job - it's a good thing they are forgiving. I'm glad it's over but...*sigh*....I promised to do my father's 245 now. Excuse me while I cry a little.
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'93 244: 'A' cam 4 deg. advanced, 25/22 sways, custom heim endlinks, poly bushings, and a lot more styling customization than I care to recount.

Sean,

I faced the V-thing that I called a "Chevron" a few years ago and posted on it when I went "POLY" on the front tabs. I tried to jamb the new bushings with all kinds of grease up into the slots in the floor... and finally succeeded! Then I sat the car on the ground and if I pushed down on the rear bumper there were two horrid squeaks! Did I mention that grease was dripping right and left?

I dropped the trailing arms again despite bruises and stitches from the previous attempt, broke out the air chisel at 90PSI of drive, and 10 minutes later both chevrons were gone. Followed up with an angle grinder to smooth the two ripped spot welds on both sides, coated the bare metal with POR and went to bed to recover from my wounds. The following morning, I had the front tabs bolted up and squeak free within 20 minutes. No problems since.

When I looked at the Chevrons with the trailing arms out, it became obvious to me that the chevrons were there to aid bolt alignment during the manufacturing process. They did not appear to be structural at all as the bolt OD hit the rails before the inner bushing tube got close to the chevron. Also, on such a small piece such as the chevron, I considered the two spot welds were meant to be non-structural, ie. way too easy to snap.

Don't forget that on the production line, the entire 240 drivetrain was installed from below... more or less in one piece!

I'm not saying you should drop the trailing arms right here and now, but the next time you do, zip those chevrons out of there and never worry about a front TAB squeak again!

jorrell
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92 245 250K miles, IPD'd to the hilt, 06 XC70, 00 Eclipse custom Turbo setup...currently taking names and kicking reputations!

That is a burly job. I spent 8 hours the first day and 4 more the next. But at least we now know some shortcuts and tricks! You are a good son to do that for your pop's car too....

Tell me, do you notice a difference in noise from your rear differential? More I assume? I never heard any with the old rubber in there, but now I think that poly transfers a good deal bit more noise from the axle. curious if you notice the same?

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89 245 'loaded' with a Great Pyrenees

I only drove it around the block, so I can't say for sure, but I didn't notice any new noises. I'll definitely listen and let you know after I've driven around some more.

As for working on Dad's 245 - weeell, he does pay for college...I guess this makes us even. :)
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'93 244: 'A' cam 4 deg. advanced, 25/22 sways, custom heim endlinks, poly bushings, and a lot more styling customization than I care to recount.

No question about it, this job sucks. Air tools are worth their weight in gold.

The first time through is a friggin' nightmare. Second time is very unpleasant. Third time is, "ho-hum, another miserable, nasty job."

A lift makes the job somewhat humane.

Do one side at a time.
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Don Foster (near Cape Cod, MA)

er...when i did this i didn't have any problem with either the exhaust or the front bushing. maybe i'm just lucky?

I've since read that some 240's did not have the "V" bracket to center the bushing. I guess I got "lucky," because there was no way my trailing arm was even going back in without some cutting, let alone work smoothly.

Exhaust - if you didn't have any trouble with it then you've either got an over-axle exhaust or it rides lower than mine.
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'93 244: 'A' cam 4 deg. advanced, 25/22 sways, custom heim endlinks, poly bushings, and a lot more styling customization than I care to recount.

re: "...It's also near impossible to remove the spring; I scratched my freshly painted springs all to hell...."

When I changed the springs (put in IPD's overload wagon springs on my '84 and '93 sedans), I ran into a problem doing it on my '84, which had a different exhaust pipe that prevented me from pulling out the spring (the '93 gave no problem). But the "collision tail" (for lack of any better term) -- the thing that conducts rear collision forces to the axle -- on the rear caliper is easily removed without disturbing the caliper. There's simply a bolt on the inner side that you can remove to pull off the tail, and then the spring easily slips out (at least in the case of my '84).

Yep, noticed that while I was putting the spring back on, Ken, and yes it did help a lot. But the exhaust was still keeping me from getting the spring easily in there.
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'93 244: 'A' cam 4 deg. advanced, 25/22 sways, custom heim endlinks, poly bushings, and a lot more styling customization than I care to recount.