MG MGB and MGB GT Tech Talk
Are the rubber bushings from NAPA of any better quality than the ones you hear about on here? Also, are the A arm and upper suspension bushings (front end) something I could replace with some ratchets, wrenches, hammer, and a jack and stands in a parking lot (at school)?
Hurst
Depends on how much you can get away with in that parking lot. I did a lot of serious work on my B, including removing the cylinder head and rebuilding the back-end, in a parking lot. The front-end is a bit more complex, and you'll have it on jack-stands for a few days. Or weeks. ;)
Rebuit a brake caliper in a parking lot. Safety note: be careful with jack stands on warm pavement...they can sink into hot pavement and tip over.
i wouldn't waste money on new rubber bushings. urethane is the better way, imho.
Get poly bushings and they should last for the life of your car. Can you get your car into an enclosed area/garage? You are going to take your front end apart and it will probably take a few days to replace everything. Consider replacing your kingpins and springs. Do the job right and you will not have to repeat it.
Lots of whammin-n-frammin to get the suspension apart and back together again. It also helps to have some pneumatic wrenches available so I can't in all good faith recommend a parking lot repair. Anything is possible but this might be a PITA especially if you run into something weird.
I have no clue about the NAPA bushings except that NAPA generally sells good stuff. They like to sell to garages and a "come back" is like a 45 in the head to a shop.
As far as normal VS poly bushings are concerned, the poly stuff will last longer but before you go putting them in I suggest that you try to get some feedback on the particular manufacturer's experience with noise. Poly bushings are much more stiff and they will almost always give a more solid ( read noisy ) operation, and due to the design of the suspension and the monocoque structure of the car you my have a hard time explaining to the lady sitting next to you that the car isn't about to fly apart.
Jack
A long long... LONG time ago I threatened to quit a job at the local Chevy dealer over parking lot repair. The manager (A HOLE) wanted me to change a starter on a Chevy parked on the street with jack stands. Even though I was young, I wasn't quite that dumb. I pointed out that people hit parked cars all the time & where was I gonna be if someone hit this one while I was under it? Told him if he didn't have room in the shop, forget it. I only lasted a few weeks there.
NAPA sources parts just like everyone else. Probably the same as Moss or others sell for standard rubber replacements. Given the labor involved, I'd spring for the poly ones.
What are the pert numbers for teh poly bushing referenced
Thanks
Sam
I may need this as well., I will post some pic's this weekend on this subject. Please check the forum soon for those with expierence on this subject if I need help or not ?
So the lower A-Arm bushing replacement isn't as simple as unbolting the arm, pulling it off, placing new bushings in and rebolting the arm? The kingpins feel good and are freshly packed with grease. The front pads are also newer looking and not cracked or damaged in any way, but I keep getting this kind of clunk you can feel when braking. I am thinking it is the A-Arm bushings. Is it possible to check the hole in the front a-arm without removing everything to see if there is any wobbling out of the hole?
Hurst
The A-arm bushings were easy in my car, but the upper bushing fought me the whole time. I finally had to resort to the angle grinder and cut the bolt on one side. Just like anything else, when you're dealing with old parts you never know when a simple unbolt/rebolt type job is going to become much more.
You may can get some idea about the condition of the A-arms by a visual inspection, especially if any of them are really worn. The bolts should be centered on the arm. If one or more of them aren't centered, that means the hole has been ovaled. That's not to say that the others aren't damaged at all - but you can know for sure that the off-center ones are toast.
I've replaced head gaskets, water pumps, shocks, even doors in parking lots. Plenty of room, gotta watch the sun though.
Yeah, I am thinking about ordering a set of front Energy Suspension Black poly bushings from Advance or O'Reilly (depends on their price), unless there is someplace else less expensive with shipping. I may see if the spring shackle bolts come loose in the rear too... get rid of that little bit of wheel hop...
Hurst
Hurst89 Wrote:
Alright, thanks for the advice guys. I guess I will wait until I get home, then I can pull the whole front cross member and check everything out and put in new bushings. I guess I will go to poly on them all, only place I might reconsider is the A-arm, using the V8 ones instead just because of noise and harshness, but I will do a little more research. The front end is not quite as tight as it could be.
Hurst