Solid/poly bushings

[LS3_JC]

I have 2012 SS manual, and well after 130k miles I think all the rubber is pretty worn. I regularly beat on this car wether it be 1/4 mile, drift events, or just messing around in the middle of nowhere. I’d like to stiffen/refresh the car up starting with new bushings. NVH isn’t much of an issue as long as the car has a kind of whine to it (like a straight cut equipped rally car) like I’ve seen on other cars with stiffer bushings. Preserving driveline health is also important as the car sees heavy use + daily driving. What would be my best choice for bushings and mounts in my case?

[SIM GhostrdrZ]

Solid
Plenty of threads/video how to’s. Don’t over think it

[CamaroCracka]

I've done inserts, poly and solid. Did not notice a bunch of new NVH with poly or solid on the turbo car, but there are some new noises since I recently did the vert. Can't say for sure that it's the new bushings yet.

I was not impressed with inserts, but the verts don't have voids in the bushings so there is less room to improve. I was ok with poly, but a set of new solids came up for sale and they were getting scarce so I picked them up. Then I broke an axle and installed the solids while I had it apart. I still have the polys if you are interested.

I would say if you don't mind a little NVH increase and you want the best performance solution, go with the solids. Also, getting the stock bushings out is as big an investment as the bushings themselves in my book. Using the heat and socket method on the fronts is straight forward, but the back does not want to drop far enough. I ended up cutting the top of the rear bushing off with a sawzall and then putting a socket in there. Still required a lot more heat than the fronts.

[LS3_JC]

Originally Posted by CamaroCracka

I've done inserts, poly and solid. Did not notice a bunch of new NVH with poly or solid on the turbo car, but there are some new noises since I recently did the vert. Can't say for sure that it's the new bushings yet.

I was not impressed with inserts, but the verts don't have voids in the bushings so there is less room to improve. I was ok with poly, but a set of new solids came up for sale and they were getting scarce so I picked them up. Then I broke an axle and installed the solids while I had it apart. I still have the polys if you are interested.

I would say if you don't mind a little NVH increase and you want the best performance solution, go with the solids. Also, getting the stock bushings out is as big an investment as the bushings themselves in my book. Using the heat and socket method on the fronts is straight forward, but the back does not want to drop far enough. I ended up cutting the top of the rear bushing off with a sawzall and then putting a socket in there. Still required a lot more heat than the fronts.

So I went with BMR’s solid delrin bushings and I can say it was worth the work. Car feels planted and tighter, definitely have more confidence with hard driving, and I absolutely love the new sounds.