Is there really a difference if you have brand new rubber -vs- brand new poly or poly-graphite? I know a lot of people see a noticeable improvement but they also are comparing it to some old worn out rubber. I realize poly will last longer, but will it make the car feel tighter going down the road -vs- brand new rubber? Or is the difference negligible?

 

Greasable poly. The graphite stuff will eventually need to be lubricated.

 

Yes the difference is MASSIVE. The difference is as great in magnitude as using MUCH larger sway bars, but is not the same qualitatively... it's more like, the sway bar is more immediately connected to both the car and the moving parts of suspension, and there's less feeling of reaction delay or softness about them. The different material takes some of the stock "wallow" out of everything.

I will NEVER put stock rubber those on anything I own. It amazes me that the factory continues to do so. I know all about their concerns with NVH of course, but no one I have dealt with - wife or daughter for example - has EVER complained about that when I have replaced theirs. They comment instead on how much more responsive the car feels to the steering, and such as that.

I also use the greaseable ones, and just grease them at the same time as everything else. Doesn't seem too much of a problem to me. I've never had sqweeeeking problems, like some complain of; not sure what causes that.

 

thanks for the reply. i’m sort of leaning towards TDS greasable poly graphite. because i want black color. it’s my understanding they are a bit softer than pure poly.

 

I''m a firm believer in polyurethane swaybar bushings. Not only are they stiffer, but they also never rot. The rubber always rots. They also don't affect the ride quality...

 

There's no benefit to softer on swaybars. Makes more sense on suspension and engine/tranny mount components.

 

guess that makes sense. it’s a control feature, not a ride feature

 

Wrong. The benefit from rubber sway bar (center, ) bushings is less NVH and they don't squeak. The center rubber bushings are clamped and contained by the mounting bracket. They by design, will not deflect as much as end link bushings. They out last end link bushings AT LEAST two to one. Hence why increase NVH?

The OEM's (and myself) sometimes use Poly for the end link bushings, to more quickly and efficiently transmit energy from the control arms, to the Anti-Sway Bar. But I have NEVER seen an OEM use poly for the center bushings. On my 1988 Lincoln Mark VII LSC, I switched the OE rubber end link bushings from rubber to poly and achieved flatter cornering. But I DID notice a MINOR increase in NVH. I deemed this to be acceptable, for the benefit.



"You pays your money and takes your choice".

 

The "benefit" you speak of is negligible. Poly doesn't squeak if lubricated, and the noise increase is almost undetectable, all else being equal.
You can even wrap Teflon tape around the bar where the frame mount bushings go and they will never squeak. Softer poly bushings will provide the same reduced handling performance as rubber.
So no, I'm not wrong.

 

Poly does squeak, even with their special lube.Esp when it gets cold out. Gets old taking the stuff apart to find the squeaks and lube them. Poly does shrink and crack over time. It also binds up the rearend when you hit a bump during cornering.

I pulled the poly out of my car and tossed it out. It fell out of the shells of the rear control arms. I only use poly in the swaybar endlinks like the factory.

If you want better cornering and don't care about having to lube them several times a year, binding or the noise go with poly.

 

Must be why mine never squeak...

 

I've had the TDS poly graphite front bushings for going on 16 years; I think I greased them twice in that time not once did they squeak. I also have poly everything now installed in the last year with tubular a-arms.

If I could I would do the entire car in poly-graphite but I've yet to find the right bushings for my set up.

This is the only grease I use on poly bushings.

Sway bars will not be too noticeable on noise but the A-arms you can feel the road. Cracks in the asphalt will give you a jolt but it isn't horrible. You just need to ask yourself is it a daily driver I want slanted to comfort or a weekend warrior that I want to handle as sharply as possible.

I do think poly bushings may be more prone to squeaking if you live and drive in the salt/rust belt.