LIE495 s14Q

my front tention rod bushings are broken since 2003. dealer wants $95 for each tention rod. no bushing for sale individually. guys any good suggestions?

Monkey Boy

buy an aftermarket one. jic tein whatever make a choice do some research.

KeN VeRsUs RyU

Just get bushings from like whiteline and have them installed somewhere. They're only 50 bucks. Or buy some tein rods.

Levi SPL S14

I have tiens they are good **** the dealer.

LIE495 s14Q

love you guys for the reply. i got to think about purchase new bushing or new t/c rod like tein.

I'm with Stupid

Stay away from urethane bushings. They're known to break things....

LIE495 s14Q

are you series ? can people comfirm this ?

l2aine

Pillowball tension rods are more known to break if driven on harsh roads compared to poly, because pillowballs have no give in them - they're super solid so there's no means to absorb road shock. They're stronger and more precise on the track, but aren't the best choice for a car driven on public roads.

I'm running whiteline bushings on OEM tension rods. Steering response improved a lot (just like with solid pillowball rods), is a lot better compared to the OEM jello, and it's less $ than going with full pillowball tension rods. And, like I stated above the slight "play" that the poly bushings have over a solid piece of metal helps absorb some road shock IMHO

I'm with Stupid

What do you base this on? If you search through other forums you'll see it's pretty well documented that urethane bushings can rip the t/c rod out of the lower control arm. It's especially a problem on lowered cars. Also the t/c rod should not be absording "road shock", that's what springs/struts are for. The stock bushing is designed to decrease road feel to the steering wheel, like vibrations, bump steer, etc. Foward and reverse motion aren't important here what is important is the lateral, side to side, motion the rod must move to stay aligned with the lower control arm. Urethane bushings don't allow this and can over time, break things that a spherical bearing won't. You can use urethane though, but you have to drill into the bushing and remove material so it isn't as stiff.

l2aine

simple - experience.

I'm with Stupid

Then quit rally racing.

l2aine

^ I'm with Stupid.

Chiefgmsr

OK so what is or outcome here. I have to make this decision soon. And need help deciding. Whiteline bushings or tein tension rods. I kinda need something ASAP and would rather save money for now and get the bushings. BUt if it's better to get the tension rods i'll wait til i can afford them.

I'm with Stupid

Unless you're buying the bushings already installed make sure you get a quote for pressing them in before you decide. The local dealer near me wanted over $200 just to press in nismo bushings and a few other shops don't even have the right size drifts to do it.

l2aine

Whiteline bushings are great for daily-driven cars.. stiffer than stock, better response than stock, but not so stiff that you feel every bump in the road.

Pillowball Tension Rods are stronger, even more responsive (especially when braking), but might be too harsh on daily driven roads. Since there's no 'give' in a solid pillowball, any bump you hit will be transmitted through the whole chassis.

And the stupid guy got something right - installation for the bushings could cost anywhere from $40 to $200 (although anyone dumb enough to spend $200 on bushing install would have been better off buying pillowball rods instead for the same total $)