newbieUK Posted November 29, 2008 Share Posted November 29, 2008 Guys I'm looking for thougts / feedback. I've got a 4.6 P38 that is used primarily on the road but have an advisory on the MOT relating to radius arm bushes which I would usually take with a pinch of salt, but whilst servicing today you can see the standard bushes are showing signs of cracking so I guess I need to do something about it now. My question is this. What is everyone else using and the pro's and cons / good or bad experiences? So far I've looked at Deflex Polybush Britpart OEM I don't want (or need) a rock hard ride so whatever the choice should offer similar ride to the originals Landrover rubber bushes. Thanks Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
q-rover Posted November 29, 2008 Share Posted November 29, 2008 I chose OEM and had them fitted. Why They work They are cheap They were designed for the job I didn't have to fit them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Sparkes Posted November 29, 2008 Share Posted November 29, 2008 I also went for OEM. I didn't want any 'poly' devices because: I didn't know what the resulting ride would be like. I expected the life would be less, because the inner metal bush is not bonded to the flexible 'poly'. The purchase price was higher. You don't say whether you DIY or not. Note the OEM bush has a larger external diameter than the hole in the radius arm. The official way of resolving this is to push the bush through a tapered sleeve before the bush enters the arm. I believe some people on here have created / used some other method. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbieUK Posted November 29, 2008 Author Share Posted November 29, 2008 I also went for OEM. I didn't want any 'poly' devices because:I didn't know what the resulting ride would be like. I expected the life would be less, because the inner metal bush is not bonded to the flexible 'poly'. The purchase price was higher. You don't say whether you DIY or not. Note the OEM bush has a larger external diameter than the hole in the radius arm. The official way of resolving this is to push the bush through a tapered sleeve before the bush enters the arm. I believe some people on here have created / used some other method. HTH If I were to go down the route of a poly type bush it would almost certainly be a DIY job, but as I don't have a dirty great big press if I stuck to the OEM it would be going into a garage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clbarclay Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 I strongly advise against the cheap polyurethane bushes. By reducing the costs to half the price, my experiance is you end up with a product not worth buying in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisV8 Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 If going the polybush route cheapies are a waste of money, buy Superflex, expensive but they last, are guaranteed. But OEM will be best for most road use ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GKP Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 I fitted blue Polybushes to my old P38. They gave the car massive steering shimmy at speeds above 30mph. Any pothole or undulation would set off a huge amount of wobble (terrifying at motorway speeds) that could only be resolved by using the brakes. I re-fitted standard OE bushes and had a comfy useable car again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbieUK Posted December 1, 2008 Author Share Posted December 1, 2008 thanks for the input guys, I guess I'm going to stick to OEM's then. I take it there a real barsteward to fit as a DIY job ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Sparkes Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 thanks for the input guys, I guess I'm going to stick to OEM's then. I take it there a real barsteward to fit as a DIY job ?? Have a browse through the Technical Archive before you give up on DIY. If there is nothing in the Archive, then the mention I think I've seen must have been a short comment in a Forum, in which case Search both the RR and International Forums. Good Luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reggie Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I was going to go for the polybush blue (comfort) when I got round to changing mine, now I'm not so sure what to do myself after reading what GKP said! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brookers Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Years ago I fitted a set of genuine orange polly bushes to my old classic along with decarbon dampers and fast road springs, The result was one of the best handling RR I have ever driven, this was confirmed by a LR mechanic who couldn't belive how good it was! On the latest RR I went for a set of the Deflex bushes, absolute rubbish compared to the genuine polly bushes. Either spend the money on genuine polly bushes or superpro's don't bother with any of the other or go for OEM Brookers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishbosh Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 ^^^^^^^^^^ wot he said^^^^^^^^^ Deflex are worse than rubbish. As you are predominately on road I would go for genuine bushes. It can be very cheap to do if you take the arms to the garage rather than book the car in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clbarclay Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 My experiance of blue Ploybush's on a RRC was very favourable, however when it comes to vibrations there can be quite a differeance between to RRC let allown a RRC and a P38, so it doesn't surprise me if other peoples experances are different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddie Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 If your not going to fit original bushed go for genuine polybushes, I just fitted a set to me second vehicle I've used the blue comfort ones but kept the original rubber OE bushes for the shock absorbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reggie Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 If your not going to fit original bushed go for genuine polybushes, I just fitted a set to me second vehicle I've used the blue comfort ones but kept the original rubber OE bushes for the shock absorbers. Is it still comfortable with the blue bushes or has it stiffened it up a lot? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will C Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 Guys I'm looking for thougts / feedback. I've got a 4.6 P38 that is used primarily on the road but have an advisory on the MOT relating to radius arm bushes which I would usually take with a pinch of salt, but whilst servicing today you can see the standard bushes are showing signs of cracking so I guess I need to do something about it now. My question is this. What is everyone else using and the pro's and cons / good or bad experiences? So far I've looked at Deflex Polybush Britpart OEM I don't want (or need) a rock hard ride so whatever the choice should offer similar ride to the originals Landrover rubber bushes. Thanks Paul I have a 4.6 with Polybushes on the front radius arms and panhard rod. Most of the vehicle's life is spent on Irish backroads with poor surfacing. I have had no vibration problems and the ride quality is very acceptable. The standard bushes need a special tool to proess them in the poly's are a DIY job. WillC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbieUK Posted December 11, 2008 Author Share Posted December 11, 2008 Just to add even more confusion to the whole issue. I was at my local indepdent yesterday for an LPG problem so thought I'd ask them whilst I was there, and they told me they have started fitting the Britpart bushes and have no problems with them at all. I'd almost given up on poly type bushes, but now I'm keen again, although I think I would be more inclined to go for Polybush blue over Britpart for no other reason that no one has commented on the Britpart ones but there's plenty of feedback on the Polybush ones and most of it seems to be positive. Whilst on the subject has anyone got Britpart bushes fitted ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishbosh Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 Britpart? Err no thanks! Superpro or genuine IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Escape Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 I changed the radius arm bushes on my P38a yesterday with OEM. Even with a 20ton press it was very difficult to get them in. I had to resort to machining on end to make it slide in easier (and straight). Even then, I neede 5 new ones to replace the 4 old ones, as one cracked when being pushed in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbieUK Posted December 15, 2008 Author Share Posted December 15, 2008 well guys here's the update. I manage to win a fleabay auction so i am now the proud owner of a full set of polybush blue for a little over £50 so I'll be heading down the road of replacing the OEM's with these at some point when the weather gets warmer. Any tips on fitting these that could potentially save me a lot of heartache ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teslo Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 I have Britpart Blue bushes on my RRC with no problem so far. It is there for about two years. I will be changing front radius arms in short time so i will check them. To new arms i will put Polybushes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbeaumont Posted December 17, 2008 Share Posted December 17, 2008 I had polybushes on the old Classic (blue 'comfort' ones), and they were a huge improvement, particularly in terms of road handling over the worn OEM bushes. I've never had the chance to drive a truck with polybushes and an identical truck with OEM bushes back to back, so I can't say how the two really compare. The P38a has much better ride and handling to start with though, so I'd question whether it's worth it on them anyway? I bought a full set of polybushes intending to do it myself, but after doing the panhard rod decided to pay a garage to fit them - fitting the polybushes is easy, but getting the old standard bushes out is a major PITA if you don't have a press. It perfectly doable but it's pretty slow work and I didn't fancy doing the whole truck! My thinking was that if I needed to change any bushes again it would be an easy DIY job, but since the bushes would probably have lasted the rest of the lifetime of the truck that was probably irrelevant. Be warned that some garages at least are less than inclined to go near the A-frame (classic at least - I think it's a similar setup on the P38a?) as they fear they'll end up having to do the ball joint too. The one I used handed those bushes back to me when I collected the truck and told me they hadn't bothered to do them So make sure you know exactly what they're agreeing to do when you book it in. Would I polybush again? Not sure - I think I'd probably just have OEM fitted, unless I had lifted suspension and went through bushes regularly (in which case I'd go polybush so they were easier to change). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Sparkes Posted December 17, 2008 Share Posted December 17, 2008 Be warned that some garages at least are less than inclined to go near the A-frame (classic at least - I think it's a similar setup on the P38a?) as they fear they'll end up having to do the ball joint too. As you asked the question ... the answer is No, the 38A doesn't have the A frame like the Classic. The radius arms for the rear axle have 'conventional' rubber bushes at the chassis end, and don't look too difficult to change. I've never done it. The axle end is completely different, as the arm is clamped, and doesn't pivot around the mounting point; if those ever go I'd suggest it's a case of new arms, as these twist in use to fulfill an anti-roll function, as well as an axle location function. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbeaumont Posted December 17, 2008 Share Posted December 17, 2008 As you asked the question ... the answer is No, the 38A doesn't have the A frame like the Classic.The radius arms for the rear axle have 'conventional' rubber bushes at the chassis end, and don't look too difficult to change. I've never done it. The axle end is completely different, as the arm is clamped, and doesn't pivot around the mounting point; if those ever go I'd suggest it's a case of new arms, as these twist in use to fulfill an anti-roll function, as well as an axle location function. Interesting - I wonder how big a part that plays in the superior handling of the P38a? I could imagine quite a bit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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