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Hello,
Another consideration often overlooked when working around the bushings in the front and rear suspension is the proper technique for tightening.
If you tighten the lower A-arm pivot bolt when the car is up on jacks with the suspension unloaded, you will prematurely damage the lower A-arm bushings. And the same applies to most non-poly rear end bushings that have a outer metal sleeve with rubber central core and a center metal sleeve.
It is critical to tighten these type of bolts when the suspension is in a loaded stance at normal ride height. The reason being that when you tighten the bolts in the unloaded postition, the center metal sleeve will be locked in place and the central rubber core is twisted when at sitting at noraml ride height instead of in a neutral position. And when the car suspension is loaded even further, like when you hit a bump and the suspension is compressed the center rubber core is twisted even further which over time will tear the bonding to the center sleeve and thus prematurely destroy the bushing. If the bolts are tightened when the car suspension is loaded at normal ride height the central rubber core is not loaded and will travel in either direction equally and will pull the car to a neutral stance when the car returns to it ride height after being loaded in either direction.
Because I do not have a drive on rack like those used at exhaust shops, I had 4 identical heavy duty boxes made of very thick plywood. I put cars on the boxes with my lift to raise them off the floor high enough to use a creeper to get under the car while the weight is on all 4 wheels to tighten things like the lower A-arm bushings or rear suspension bushings.
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Eric
Hi Performance Automotive Service (formerly OVO or Old Volvos Only)
Torrance, CA 90501
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