BMR Radius rod bushing problem!!!!

[BAWLZ SS]

Ok everyone!!!!... I just did the front suspension on my car today and i couldn't do the radius rod bushing cuz i could just not knock off that joint that goes on to the spindle. So i took it to the shop to get it done. Once at the shop the guy that was working on it (mechanic) showed me that the factory bolt that goes through the actual radius rod bushing and the chassis was thicker that the sleeve that came with the BMR kit. I just replaced every single bushing in my car and everything fit perfectly except of course for the last bushings which were the radius rod bushings. Like i said already... The factory bolt was thicker than the actual diameter opening of the sleeve provided by BMR. Have any of u guys and girls ran into the same problem? I got to the shop an hour before they closed so since the bolt could not go through the sleeve i had to go to the hardware store and buy an thinner bolt that could go through that sleeve so that they could bolt everything up and i could take my car home. -_- BMR is closed on weekends so i could not give them a call to see what i could do about it. Wanted to get my car alligned tomorrow but now i want to fix this problem. The bolt i used was a grade 8 bolt but had slight slack when inside of the sleeve. Not happy with that at all. SMH can anyone give some feedback on this??? BMR reps???

[L99CAMA2011]

Originally Posted by BAWLZ SS

Ok everyone!!!!... I just did the front suspension on my car today and i couldn't do the radius rod bushing cuz i could just not knock off that joint that goes on to the spindle. So i took it to the shop to get it done. Once at the shop the guy that was working on it (mechanic) showed me that the factory bolt that goes through the actual radius rod bushing and the chassis was thicker that the sleeve that came with the BMR kit. I just replaced every single bushing in my car and everything fit perfectly except of course for the last bushings which were the radius rod bushings. Like i said already... The factory bolt was thicker than the actual diameter opening of the sleeve provided by BMR. Have any of u guys and girls ran into the same problem? I got to the shop an hour before they closed so since the bolt could not go through the sleeve i had to go to the hardware store and buy an thinner bolt that could go through that sleeve so that they could bolt everything up and i could take my car home. -_- BMR is closed on weekends so i could not give them a call to see what i could do about it. Wanted to get my car alligned tomorrow but now i want to fix this problem. The bolt i used was a grade 8 bolt but had slight slack when inside of the sleeve. Not happy with that at all. SMH can anyone give some feedback on this??? BMR reps???

I know of this setup very well, first of all you shouldn't use any bolt other than the stock so park your car or replace the stock arm if possible. Second you received a wrong sleeve and BMR should have to express ship you the correct sleeves asap. I have installed every option for front radius upgrade on this forum and I am now going back to the Pfadt solid radius setup. Because they fit without issue best of all and needs no altering. http://www.pfadtracing.com/catalog/p...roducts_id/197. Also I replaced the BMR/Energy suspension ,(same thing just black vs. RED), with these because like in autocross or during harsh cornering or quick lane change maneuvers the BMR bush moves out of alignment and changes toe. Personally I think they should be a safety hazzard and should be pulled of the market.

[BAWLZ SS]

Originally Posted by L99CAMA2011

I know of this setup very well, first of all you shouldn't use any bolt other than the stock so park your car or replace the stock arm if possible. Second you received a wrong sleeve and BMR should have to express ship you the correct sleeves asap. I have installed every option for front radius upgrade on this forum and I am now going back to the Pfadt solid radius setup. Because they fit without issue best of all and needs no altering. http://www.pfadtracing.com/catalog/p...roducts_id/197. Also I replaced the BMR/Energy suspension ,(same thing just black vs. RED), with these because like in autocross or during harsh cornering or quick lane change maneuvers the BMR bush moves out of alignment and changes toe. Personally I think they should be a safety hazzard and should be pulled of the market.

Yeah im not happy about it at all!!!! :( i was thinking the same thing that they prob sent me the wrong sleeves! Right lenght just wrong hole diameter!!!! I will be sending a PM to some of the BMR guys on here and see if they can help me out!!!! Ohhh and really... U think that by doing harsh cornering and stuff my allingment will get thrown off.? U said it can trow off my toe. Another thing... I did my whole rear suspension and the whole front except for the redius rods and my car drove straight as can be as if i had just done a allingment... Just set everything back to the factory lil marker marks. Little green line or so to see if anything has been messed withã well yeah and like i said. Car drove perfect just like it did before i did any suspension work. After my radius rod bushings got changed my car now pulls to the passanger side pretty bad. i dont know if that bolt had to do anything with it but it was the same as stock except for the diameter of it. (stock was a little thicker) (wrong sleeve i guess but i had to drive the car back home) i'll see what happens and NO i will not be driving the car. At least not like that.!!!!

[BMR Suspension]

First of all, sorry about your install problems. I'm sure we can determine the source of the problem and get this fixed for you.

The radius rod sleeve should be 1.00" OD. The wall thickness should be 0.219". The ID should be 0.562". We do not have a 1" sleeve with a smaller ID, so it is odd (but not impossible) that we would have used the wrong sleeve.

Two possibilities come to mind.
1) Check for a burr along the ID of the sleeve. We deburr the ID on every sleeve, but it is possible that some of the sleeves were not deburred properly.
2) We fabricate rear sway bars from 1.0" x 0.250" wall thickness tubing. It is possible that the operator grabbed some sway bar tubing rather than the sleeve tubing when cutting these sleeves.

I recommend that you inspect the ID for burrs. Hopefully that solves the problem so you can get everything fixed today. If that doesn't solve the problem, please measure the ID with a caliper and determine the wall thickness to determine if you received the correct inner sleeve. If you have the wrong sleeve, we will get you the correct one sent on Monday.

On Monday, we will check our sleeves and verify that the correct sleeve tubing was used.

[BMR Suspension]

Originally Posted by L99CAMA2011

I know of this setup very well, first of all you shouldn't use any bolt other than the stock so park your car or replace the stock arm if possible. Second you received a wrong sleeve and BMR should have to express ship you the correct sleeves asap. I have installed every option for front radius upgrade on this forum and I am now going back to the Pfadt solid radius setup. Because they fit without issue best of all and needs no altering. http://www.pfadtracing.com/catalog/p...roducts_id/197. Also I replaced the BMR/Energy suspension ,(same thing just black vs. RED), with these because like in autocross or during harsh cornering or quick lane change maneuvers the BMR bush moves out of alignment and changes toe. Personally I think they should be a safety hazzard and should be pulled of the market.

Yes, a spherical bearing for the radius rod will work great for autocross and harsh cornering. However, it will also transfer most of the road noise, vibration, and harmonics right into the body of the vehicle. About 98% of the 5th gen Camaro customers are unwilling to accept that extra noise, so we do not sell a spherical bearing radius rod option at this time.

Yes, the BMR bushing will compress more during harsh cornering than a spherical bearing. This may cause changes to toe depending on how hard you are pushing the car. However, the BMR bushing compresses much less than the stock GM bushing.

Remember, the radius rod was designed to compress by GM. The radius rod changes planes as it travels through its range of motion. The front suspension will bind if it doesn't compress. That is why we use a 3-piece bushing with a softer durometer polyurethane on the outside bushings.

We have NEVER had any indication that there is a safety hazard with this product. We have sold hundreds of these bushings and have never had a failure that I am aware of.

[L99CAMA2011]

Originally Posted by BMR Fabrication

Yes, a spherical bearing for the radius rod will work great for autocross and harsh cornering. However, it will also transfer most of the road noise, vibration, and harmonics right into the body of the vehicle. About 98% of the 5th gen Camaro customers are unwilling to accept that extra noise, so we do not sell a spherical bearing radius rod option at this time.

Yes, the BMR bushing will compress more during harsh cornering than a spherical bearing. This may cause changes to toe depending on how hard you are pushing the car. However, the BMR bushing compresses much less than the stock GM bushing.

Remember, the radius rod was designed to compress by GM. The radius rod changes planes as it travels through its range of motion. The front suspension will bind if it doesn't compress. That is why we use a 3-piece bushing with a softer durometer polyurethane on the outside bushings.

We have NEVER had any indication that there is a safety hazard with this product. We have sold hundreds of these bushings and have never had a failure that I am aware of.

Actually I've tried those Pfadt solid pieces before and NVH was not an issue. I even forgot I had solid pieces in there. The reason I removed the first set was because the arm I placed them in had a bad end the piece that goes into the knuckle.

[BAWLZ SS]

Originally Posted by BMR Fabrication

First of all, sorry about your install problems. I'm sure we can determine the source of the problem and get this fixed for you.

The radius rod sleeve should be 1.00" OD. The wall thickness should be 0.219". The ID should be 0.562". We do not have a 1" sleeve with a smaller ID, so it is odd (but not impossible) that we would have used the wrong sleeve.

Two possibilities come to mind.
1) Check for a burr along the ID of the sleeve. We deburr the ID on every sleeve, but it is possible that some of the sleeves were not deburred properly.
2) We fabricate rear sway bars from 1.0" x 0.250" wall thickness tubing. It is possible that the operator grabbed some sway bar tubing rather than the sleeve tubing when cutting these sleeves.

I recommend that you inspect the ID for burrs. Hopefully that solves the problem so you can get everything fixed today. If that doesn't solve the problem, please measure the ID with a caliper and determine the wall thickness to determine if you received the correct inner sleeve. If you have the wrong sleeve, we will get you the correct one sent on Monday.

On Monday, we will check our sleeves and verify that the correct sleeve tubing was used.

I dont have a caliper to measure it but when i get home i'll see if i can take more pics of the sleeve and the bolt. When i get a chance i will take it apart and get the sleeve out for an inspection of what u just mentioned.

[L99CAMA2011]

This is a few pictures of the Energy Suspension pieces in the eye of the radius arm. If the shop did not make sure the bush is in proper position when installed it will result in improper arm alignment. The bush needs to be in dead center on both ends. I also think this kit should come with some sort of adhesive to secure the bush in position to prevent it from moving during harsh maneuvers.

[BMR Sales]

Originally Posted by BAWLZ SS

Ok everyone!!!!... I just did the front suspension on my car today and i couldn't do the radius rod bushing cuz i could just not knock off that joint that goes on to the spindle. So i took it to the shop to get it done. Once at the shop the guy that was working on it (mechanic) showed me that the factory bolt that goes through the actual radius rod bushing and the chassis was thicker that the sleeve that came with the BMR kit. I just replaced every single bushing in my car and everything fit perfectly except of course for the last bushings which were the radius rod bushings. Like i said already... The factory bolt was thicker than the actual diameter opening of the sleeve provided by BMR. Have any of u guys and girls ran into the same problem? I got to the shop an hour before they closed so since the bolt could not go through the sleeve i had to go to the hardware store and buy an thinner bolt that could go through that sleeve so that they could bolt everything up and i could take my car home. -_- BMR is closed on weekends so i could not give them a call to see what i could do about it. Wanted to get my car alligned tomorrow but now i want to fix this problem. The bolt i used was a grade 8 bolt but had slight slack when inside of the sleeve. Not happy with that at all. SMH can anyone give some feedback on this??? BMR reps???

Give me a call here at the shop and we can definitely get you taken care. It looks like we had mishap in the assembly department and you got the wrong sleeve. Like I sadi give me a call here at the shop and I can take care of it.