terrasmak

iTrader: (8)

I use real grease out of my grease gun, that stuff is way to thin.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

hmmm well now that you mention it, that spray is a thin and free running liquid, while the original grease was a slow and thick semi-solid.

What would you recommend?

dcains

iTrader: (15)

As I mentioned, Marine (waterproof) wheel bearing grease has worked best for me.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

ok, so i bought the grease before you made your post. What I bought was the 'Extra heavy duty grease' by Lucas Oil. It's a solid made for a grease gun, and there aren't any creaks so far, even on the stiffest setting. Maybe your marine waterproof will outlast mine, but we shall see.

So, note to self, when using grease for bushings, use the thick/slow kind, and not the spray

thanks all!

dcains

iTrader: (15)

Sounds like you might be good for a while.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

FUUUUUUUUUUUU

Ok so the main creak is gone, but i am still hearing squeaks. I took off the front sway bar today and used the marine grease.

-I applied plumbers lubricating thread tape on the bar where the bushing goes
-I greased the inside and outside of the bushing
-I greased the inside and outside of the first bracket, and its 3 bolts/1 nut
-I greased the inside and outside of the second bracket, and its 1 bolt
-With PB Blaster, I sprayed the bushings of the LCA.

I am still hearing squeaks!!! Do my stock sway bar bushings need replacing? If so what brand?

$13 for Energy Suspension from Z1? I think thats too cheap to not at least try..

http://www.z1motorsports.com/350_g35...oducts_id=5128

dcains

iTrader: (15)

Not sure what parts you're talking about. What are the "first" and "second" brackets? Also, PB Blaster is not a lubricant, and it can actually dissolve certain types of rubber and plastic, so it probably doesn't belong on the LCA bushings.

As for my car, I'm still using the OEM front bar, and living in peace and quiet. Turn in isn't nearly as quick as with the Hotchkis, but I haven't put in the time yet to find some other sort of bushings for the Hotckis. IMO, the problem is the urethane bushings from Hotchkis. Maybe another brand would be different, but I'd still prefer some regular rubber ones, if I can find the right size.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

the brackets I am referring to are numbered 20 (first) and 18 (second). Those are the two brackets that hold the sway bar to the car.

https://i.imgur.com/Li3CYWp.jpg

If PB blaster isnt a good lube, what would you recommend? I have lithium spray and silicone spray in my garage, also can buy something more specialized.

edit:
I called up H&R because i was interested in using their sway bar bushings. They don't sell to consumers, and thats fine, but also dont part out just the bushings. Finding these online is hard, since if the manufacturer doesnt part them out, online retailers might not either. The reason I want these bushings is because "H&R Sport Sway Bar kits include exclusive sway bar bushings, featuring a special urethane/Teflon composite that prevents squeaks and eliminates the need for lubrication. No mess, no maintenance, a perfect fit." Those look like they just may work, albiet in 36mm, so i would need lubricant plumbers tape to make up the extra 1mm difference of my 35mm bar. Oh well. I'll order the 35m Energy ones and post here if there is an improvement.

edit 2:
The z1motorsports Energy bushings are 34mm, but my hotchkis is 35m. I called them up anyways, and Jon did seem hesitant, but he said first try Graphite Grease. It has a compound in it that prevents squeaks, i think he said it causes less play. I can get this cheap locally, so if this doesnt work, i see that 'Brothers Performance' has the energy bushings but in 35m. I'll probably keep the marine grease on all of the bolts and No. 18 bracket, but use the graphite on the inside and outside of the bushings.

edit 3:
Ok so no one, i mean no one, carries graphite grease. home depot, adv auto, napa, websites. Even if they do, its the runny spray type for locks, which are crap in bushings. I emailed Z1 again, and asked them what brand they had in mind. I'm seeing plenty of dry powder for graphite, but that wont work as well.

In the meantime, Vivid Racing is able to sell the H&R bushings, the ones with teflon inside. It's $20 per bushing, so $40 pair, $10 S&H, $53 total. These bushings are 36mm to my bars 35mm, so i am going to use plumbers lubricating tape on the bar to give it the extra 1mm required. I should get them next week and then i'll use the Marine Bearing grease. If squeaks still persist, i'll order the graphite grease that Z1 recommends.

dcains

iTrader: (15)

I don't think there's any need to grease the brackets which hold the bushings, as there shouldn't be any movement of the bushings within the bracket. Also, I don't think there is any need to lubricate the OEM LCA busings, and as mentioned, since PB Blaster is a string solvent (not a lube), it might cause some damage.

I'm excited to hear about the H&R bushings. Very good job on the research! As for the 1mm difference in the inside diameter, that might even be a good thing. Can't wait to find out if these things work - I really want to reinstall the Hotchkis bar. Do you have a part number or link for the H&R bushings. I looked on the Vivid site, but can only find the kit with the sway bar and bushings together.

BTW, which end links do you have? Other than the Powergrids, which I have now, I haven't found any which stay quiet and last, especially open-type Heim joint links.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

I actually don't have a part number, and the reason is because the bushings stand alone arent officially listed. I called up and asked them since they sell the H&R bar to start. I assumed, correctly, that they may sell bushings seperately. The shipping is ground, and they will be here next week.

As for the end links, they are from Whiteline. Is there a big difference between powergrid and whiteline? Both are adjustable.

Also, the sway bars are to their stiffest setting.

dcains

iTrader: (15)

Thanks again, for the info, and please let me know how these bushings work out, either by PM or a post to this thread.

As for the Whiteline links, I've seen two types, the sealed (like the Powergrids) and open (Heim joints), which do you have? I've had both types of links on multiple cars, and experience has taught me to go with sealed links, both for longevity and being quiet.

Why full stiff on the bars? Doesn't seem appropriate, especially on a daily driver, and that stiffness can actually cause worse handling and poor ride quality, too. I'd start soft and work your way up from there, adjusting for over-/understeer as you prefer. I like full soft up front and second hole from softest in the rear. I get good turn-in and elimination of the understeer from the OEM bars. Full stiff might also be pretty scary in the rain. Depends on springs/shocks, and tires/pressures, too, so play and see what you like. You can also use half-settings, and for a while I had the front bar set at full soft on one side and second soft on the other side.

CptWiggles

I have had very similar experiences regarding heim joint endlinks as well as setting the front sway bar too stiff. Both will make an extraordinary amount of noise.

Also, I read somewhere, maybe this forum, that urethane bushings absorb many types of grease, including ptfe's. When I first installed my Hotchkis sway bars I used Superlube which is a very good grease, but soon enough I had some massive squeaks coming front my front sway bar. I reinstalled and relubed my sway bars with this stuff:

http://www.energysuspensionparts.com...shing-Lube.asp

It's much thicker and kind of tacky. I don't feel that it's been long enough to really say that it will last longer than the Superlube, but from the research I did and my own experience it does seem promising. Also when you do re grease the bushings, make sure you slather that stuff on EVERYWHERE. No harm in using too much.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

Dcains,

Well the instructions say to put it on full stiff then go down from there as needed. I used to have it on the 3rd least stiff setting, and there is a big difference in turning at full stiff. It's actually alot of fun. And i've driven in the rain at full stiff, there isn't ever any slippage. And I have heim endlinks. Is there a lube spray needed for them or is it just bad design?

As for the H&R bushings, abb2autodesigns is a vendor that sells them here. If you PM them and ask, they will give you a really good price, alot less shipped then what I paid.

Cpt Wiggles,

Did you have squeaks before you used that lube and now you don't? So you used that lube, made the bar less stiff, and uses non-heim joint end links?

dcains

iTrader: (15)

The bar settings are up to you, but generally you want to use them to fine-tune the balance of the car, and when they're too stiff the bars can overcome the car's primary springs and screw up the rest of the suspension.

Funny about B2 Designs selling the H&R bushings, as they're maybe 15 minutes away from here. I'll contact Charles and see if he can set me up with those bushings next week. He actually already got me a replacement set of Hotchkis bushings (which I didn't need) about a year ago. I thought the Hotchkis bushings had worn out, because of how noisy they were, but they looked like brand-new.

I've never had a set of Heim-jointed links that weren't noisy as they got broken-in. Just the nature of them, which is fine on a race car, but obviously not a daily driver. If you lube them, the grease/oil will attract grit and make things worse. I suppose you could try a dry graphite, but I wouldn't recommend anything that stays wet. My Powergrids have at least 30K miles on them, and they're still silent and as tight as new. Too bad they were the 3rd set I bought, after wasting my time and money learning on other brands.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

hmm maybe its just me. This are the whitelines i have. Are they sealed or heim?

dcains

iTrader: (15)

Your Whiteline's are sealed, like OEM-type rod ends most often are. They should last a long time, and be nice and quiet.

The Heim joints look like this:




These are the SPL's, and notice how the ball and socket are open to the environment.

Rev_Night

iTrader: (3)

Well thats good that i have the good kind. But bad because I thought it may be a source of squeaking. Also, I called H&R and asked them if grease is allowed to go on the outside of their bushing (held by bracket). They replied in the negative, and said that their bushing is designed to be a dry bushing, inside and out. In fact, the extra grease could attract dirt and make it squeak.

Now that I'm getting super sensitive to the noises coming in front, i'm starting to hear some clunking up front and low speeds. Surely that can't be caused by bushings...

CptWiggles

Sorry for the late response, I don't remember which setting I used for stiffness, but I didn't change that when re-lubricating the bushings. I simply removed the bushings and lubed up everything which comes into contact with the sway bar bushings. As far as end links go, I am using the stock end links, but I have had experiences with other cars in the past where heim joint end links will cause lots of noise and be morel likely to seize and rust.

CptWiggles

Also, does anyone know of any other end link options which are sealed like the Whitelines?

dcains

iTrader: (15)

Powergrids are the best I've ever used, and I've tried just about everything. There are also several "best endlink" threads here you can reference.