Poly Bushes (Powerflex etc)

Will

Will

Will

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I'm pondering a suspension upgrade for my Fiesta ST and have settled on the following items...

Front strut brace (E-tech or OMP)
12.5mm rear track spacers (these move the wheel hub out 12.5mm a side)
Bilstein B8 Sprint Dampers
H&R 30mm lowering springs

I dont want to go really low nor do I plan to be tracking the car so I don't need the ride height or damper adjustment of coilovers, apart from which the cheaper coilover sets for the Mk6 Fiesta all seem to either be considered a bit too hard for road driving, or have issues regarding longevity.

I was wondering what sort of effect replacing the suspension bushes with Powerflex items or similar would have on ride/handling, and I know some of you lot have given your cars the full Powerflex treatment. Is it worth doing? And what difference will I notice?
 
Many Puma owner sreplace with powerflex brushes and then wish they never had, as it makes the handling rock hard and very jumpy on B roads.

If you have lots not smooth roads and you do track days then do it.
 
I think you need to understand why you are doing this. You mentioned about not doing track work, so I feel like saying why bother !

On my s2000 I have done a couple (!!!) of handling mods, nearly all of which you don't feel a benefit until your at or beyond 8/10ths. Even at these levels the reality is I didn't have the talent to maximise the standard car, and I saw them in part as 'confidence modifications'

The polybushes with that setup will destroy your ride on bumpy or even slightly uneven roads. My s2000 quite literally bounces from side to side when making progress down country lanes unless they are surfaced like an f1 track.

If I was you i'd leave the polybushes for now. It's bloody expensive to fit for a reward you will never see on the road, and only gain disbenefits.
 
I'd avoid polybushing a daily, It'll add so much more hardness to the ride, with increased noise and less tolerance of bumpy surfaces.
 
Superflex might do them instead as an alternative supplier.

Fully polybushed my car, makes it a lot firmer but the handling/feel on smooth surfaces is excellent compared to worn bushes.
 
The upper strut brace isn't really worth doing, its the lower one that makes the difference IIRC.
 
ive spent a little time under the bonnet of my GF's 05 fiesta, it has a strut brace as part of the OE design...

as for polys, i put a set on my golf years ago. the effect on NVH was no where near as bad as fitting coilovers

before i fitted the coilovers, the ride was actually pretty damn nice
 
I have full polybushing (powerflex) on my car on standard suspension and imo it was totally worth every penny.

Mine is a daily, the ride is not harsh at all and it tightens the whole feel of the car up something else. I live in Jersey which has some TERRIBLE surfaces and a good 60% of my driving is on back/country roads.

Since fitting them I feel the car is more solid feeling, but not harsh. Because of problems I only had the rears fitted before taking the car for the evening then doing the rest the next morning and I could feel the difference just with them fitted.

Horses for courses I guess, and I can see where the harshness comments might come if you have changed other suspension components as OEM rubber bushings might be your last line of 'defense' against a a harsh ride.
 
Dont polybush make those blue bushings which are only slightly harder than OEM but still benefit from the longevity of polyurethane?
 
My Saxo is fully polybushed with Powerflex purple bushes - everything feels much tighter, steering is nice and precise with more feedback through the wheel... can feel everything working if that makes sense.

With everything else standard (i.e springs/ dampers), it won't feel much harsher at all tbh. With a stiffer suspension setup, I doubt they will make the ride quality any worse.... expect a few more vibrations in the cabin and a tad more road noise though. They are a pain to fit as the old bushes will likely need burned/ smashed/ cut out, but well worth doing if you have the time.

As said, the Powerflex factory recently burned down and most stock was made to order. Apparently they'll be back in business next year. Polyrace and Flo-Flex also do good quality polybushes, might be worth seeing if they do them for your car.
 
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I get the impression Powerflex are over-rated on the road and the guys saying its for the track are spot on.

All the people who rave about Powerflex on the road have replaced presumably tired bushes with nice new Powerflex ones. Sure its better. But then so would a new set of OE bushes
 
[TW]Fox;15543583 said:
I get the impression Powerflex are over-rated on the road and the guys saying its for the track are spot on.

All the people who rave about Powerflex on the road have replaced presumably tired bushes with nice new Powerflex ones. Sure its better. But then so would a new set of OE bushes
Click to expand...

2500 Miles as good as new bushes came out of mine. So your opinion on this is certainly not indicative of my case.

Depends on your driving style and what you want out of your car. If you are a motorway almost exclusively driver then it would be pointless indeed.
 
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