Bushing replacement question (which ones are most impactful)
Joined: Sep 2014
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So a bit of an update…
I bought the Megan Racing Spherical bearings for the front and rear lower control arms as well as the anorexicpoodle sway bar end links on eBay a few months back and had them installed.
I understand that there are ranges of acceptable NVH, but I will say that the combination definitely makes obvious rattle and clanging sounds as well as minor clunking feeling during city driving with moderate suspension movement.
You can’t hear anything at highway speeds but you can’t really hear anything at highway speeds because the car is so loud with the soft top lol.
They do definitely give better steering feel and control on track during HPDE events, but I would never recommend them for anyone who doesn’t intend to track the car. As a track driver I’m willing to accept the noise, even though it’s a lot more than I expected, but multiple passengers have noticed the sound without me saying anything.
And I have had the shop inspect the bearings and end links 3 times to ensure they aren’t loose. I haven’t diagnosed which of the components is causing the noise, so it may only be the end links or the bearings, but for sure one or both are making a lot of noise.
I’m genuinely thinking of buying OE end links to swap out to see where the noise is coming from, but can’t bring myself to spend money on something that is only a noise and clunk issue.
I bought the Megan Racing Spherical bearings for the front and rear lower control arms as well as the anorexicpoodle sway bar end links on eBay a few months back and had them installed.
I understand that there are ranges of acceptable NVH, but I will say that the combination definitely makes obvious rattle and clanging sounds as well as minor clunking feeling during city driving with moderate suspension movement.
You can’t hear anything at highway speeds but you can’t really hear anything at highway speeds because the car is so loud with the soft top lol.
They do definitely give better steering feel and control on track during HPDE events, but I would never recommend them for anyone who doesn’t intend to track the car. As a track driver I’m willing to accept the noise, even though it’s a lot more than I expected, but multiple passengers have noticed the sound without me saying anything.
And I have had the shop inspect the bearings and end links 3 times to ensure they aren’t loose. I haven’t diagnosed which of the components is causing the noise, so it may only be the end links or the bearings, but for sure one or both are making a lot of noise.
I’m genuinely thinking of buying OE end links to swap out to see where the noise is coming from, but can’t bring myself to spend money on something that is only a noise and clunk issue.
I guess it's a good idea to check nuts and bolts for tightness after upgrading to these.
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Joined: Sep 2020
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From: Houston
That’s a good tip to try disconnecting the end links and see if that’s what’s causing the problem!
I was definitely surprised by how much noise I get, especially from the rear of the car. I’m hoping it’s just the end links, and that would make sense based on all the earlier feedback and experiences from others.
I was definitely surprised by how much noise I get, especially from the rear of the car. I’m hoping it’s just the end links, and that would make sense based on all the earlier feedback and experiences from others.
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From: Long Island, New York
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From: Illnoise. WAY downtown, jerky.
@B serious
In a lot of cars, they use rubber bushings to do that. Look at Miatas, or a lot of other Hondas.
Only mentioning that because ball joints are a very common type of spherical joint. It goes against the notion that sphericals are a loud, crashy race only item.
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From: Houston
Yeah great call on testing the endlinks by disconnecting them. I disconnected the rears and the noise went nearly completely away. And the only noise now is a tiny bit coming from the front, and only on serious discontinuities in the road like massive off-camber speed bumps. So the bushings are golden! And the rear end links are the "issue".
Because I'm at stock height, I'm going to order a replacement set of stock rear end links and I'll keep the adjustable set in case I ever decide to lower the car with the Ohlins. But for now at least I'll have a nicely articulating suspension without the rattle and clank of the adjustable end links.
Because I'm at stock height, I'm going to order a replacement set of stock rear end links and I'll keep the adjustable set in case I ever decide to lower the car with the Ohlins. But for now at least I'll have a nicely articulating suspension without the rattle and clank of the adjustable end links.
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From: Houston
Is it just for corner balancing then? I thought that somehow lowering the car shifted the end link distance and meant the need for adjustability to keep pre-load to a minimum...obviously I'm learning a lot about suspension one spoonful at a time lol
Joined: Nov 2007
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From: Illnoise. WAY downtown, jerky.
Even if your car is lowered evenly, or on stock suspension, there may be small variations in height, causing the bar to preload to one side.
You can also adjust the angle delta of the swaybar in relation to the control arm.
But I don't see the above (except maybe the corner balance thing) being worth all the noise and racket they're going to make.
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