MX-5 Suspension Bushes

BinnsY

BinnsY

BinnsY

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Joined
19 May 2009
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1,511
Location
Nottingham
So I've had my MX-5 for a while now, and I'm aware of the fact its just ticked over 12 years old. Mechanically it's all sound and given me no issues at all in the three years I've owned it. I've had a few problems with rust and spent a small fortune having most of the rear arches rebuilt, but now that's been done its body work is as pristine as can be. It has only racked up 52,000 miles in it's time and has a full service history. But I'm getting to the stage where I'm starting to think I should really sink some money into the bushes.

Has anyone on here had this done on an MX-5? I know there are quite a few people who own them on this board. Google makes it a bit of a minefield and even the selection on MX-5 parts is confusing.

This set would seem to be my first choice as it looks like it replaces every bush on the car http://www.mx5parts.co.uk/bush-piece-front-rear-suspension-arms-mk1225-p-2658.html but I imagine fitting is going to be a small fortune?

I've also come across this set http://www.mx5parts.co.uk/bush-powerflex-front-wishbone-mk1225-p-3059.html cheaper to buy and less bushes so I assume cheaper to fit but then I would only be doing the front bushes so presume I would also need the matching rear set.

Overall I find it quite confusing, the MX-5 has so many bushes and so many different options of bush kits I honestly dont know which ones I should be changing. You can buy just the front upper, just the front lower, complete front, and even more options on the rear!

In short I'd love to hear from anyone that has already had this done and what there reccomendations are.
 
Can you get some pics of the front and rear suspension on those cars? People here will be able to tell you which ones will need replacing, but if you want it to drive absolutely like new, just do them all, renew everything, its what i did on the M3
 
Lots of discussions over polybushings on MX5Nutz forums....consensus seems to be that a lot of the available products cause as many problems as they solve, with poor fitment, or design flaws that means they do not work as well as the standard bushings (e.g. crush tubes sticking) or result in stiction that inhibits suspension movement slightly, which results in unpredictable handling as the suspension does not behave altogether consistently.

Many people go for slightly stiffer rubber bushings from IL Motorsport - these give some of the benefits in terms of handling, and will 'refresh' the car, but without the issues associated with the harder polybushes which can make the ride harsher and will require maintenance, not to mention the issues mentioned previously.

Of all the polybush brands available, if you insist, then Superpro seems the best rated on the forums, if you must go for PU rather than rubber bushes. I'd speak to Blink Motorsport, Roddisons Motorsport, and Skuzzle Motorsport and see what opinions you get...!
 
Yea I'm not fussed about poly bushes if they are likely to cause as many problems as they solve. The way I see it the rubber ones have listed 12 years already so a new set of rubber ones should be good for at least another 10! Looking at the ones in my first link I think they are the ones by IL motorsports that you mention. Any idea how much fitting might be on that full set? I know theres going to be £100 of alignment after the work is done, so jsut with the alignment and bush kit I'm up to £350 already.

Matt when you say pictures, do you mean of my paticular bushes to try and work out which are worn? Or just the MX-5s suspension in general?
 
Yeah, the suspension in general, incl subframe.

Ill stop being so lazy...

rear-subframe.jpg


thats the rear, pretty, lots of joints
 
Fitting is hard to say, it took me a few days when I did my MX5, although some of that time was taken up going to someone who had a vice i could push the old bushes out and new ones in with. That was just doing the wishbone bushes, no others. I imagine if someone was quick and they had the right tools they might get it done in a day, if not quicker!
 
Yea I simply dont have the skills / tools to do the fitting myself. I would most likely be using a local MX-5 Specialist that have done work for me in the past.
 
Phone them and ask how much they will charge!

If I was to do it again, I would probably use that kit you linked. As good as polybushes are they get a bit tiring using a car on the road, as it makes the car quite a bit stiffer. So unless you are tracking your car a lot, the IL motorsports kit makes sense.

Edit: Might also be worth pricing in new camber bolts, if they haven't been undone, or come out for a while it is likely they will be rusted and may break when removing them.
 
yea thats going to be my next step, was just hoping someone else might have had it done so I had something to compare it to. At the minute they could say just about any price and I think my response would be "oh".

I had a full alignment done a couple of years ago which I imagine needed the camber bolts moving so hopefully there all good?
 
You may need them, I had to replace 3 on the front, only for the last one to need replacing when I got to WIM as it would't adjust properly. Just worth taking into consideration, from memory I think the bolts are about £9 each brand new
 
Vigoro said:
Edit: Might also be worth pricing in new camber bolts, if they haven't been undone, or come out for a while it is likely they will be rusted and may break when removing them.
Click to expand...

absolutely this. dont expect them to come out at all and they can cause so much hassle. are there any options for replacing them all together?

Replacement camber arms are an easy way round the problem

TSU9940001.jpg
 
Why would you use camber arms?

Only need bolts, that go into the wishbones, that allow camber adjustment anyway :p

Oh, all 4 of the rear camber bolts were fine on mine iirc, only the fronts I had issue with.
 
If I was going to refresh all the bushes I'd stick to 1 of the following 3 sets depending on budget.

* OEM replacements
* IL motorsport uprated
* Superpro

Cheap polybushes will cause you more issues than its worth.
 
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