I have a question bout installing energy suspension LCA inner and outer bushings.
do I just simply leave the bushings in the fridge for awhile then just install press those
bad boys in by hand?

 

You'll have to get the old ones out first. That will require a press. I took mine to a speed shop. You won't be able to install the new one by hand, you'll probably want the shop to do them the same time as you remove the oldones.

The ES compresssion rod bushing can be put in by hand according to the forum posts I've seen.

 

i have a press so most likely i can get the old one out.
does anyone have an instruction or tips on installing these bushings?

 

http://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-s...translink.html

 

i did read that thread. OEM bushing for both inner and outer can be pressed out with 29mm sears socket.
Aren't the whiteline and ES bushings differently designed?
whiteline has the race attached to the bushing but ES doesn't have a race. So i thought it maybe possible to press by hand.

 

You are correct. The ES bushings are different than the whiteline bushings and do not have a race.

You can get them started by hand, but need a bit more force to push in and seat them properly. I used a large C clamp to press the bushings together. A bench vice would work fine also. Put them in the freezer for a couple of hours before you do the install, and it will make it easier.

 

i received the bushings today.
Should i put the bushings AND the hollow cylindrical shape thing in the freezer together?
i hope the bushings don't pop when inserting them all the way in with the press lol

 

^ Don't really need to put the metal cylinders in the freezer, just the poly bushing halves.

 

where can i find 29mm craftsman socket in socal?
sears doesn;t have it in stock for pick up. auto parts store don't carry.
the autozone "OEM" axle nut socket looks similar to sears but not sure

 

if you read the link above from 350z it says the socket doesnt work worth a crap due to rounded edges..

go to a metal supply store and buy some aluminum round stock
1.5" diameter 1.5" long

mine cost me $5

 

I used a socket to press my old ones out. The socket doesn't have to fit perfectly on the outer race - a bit smaller is just fine.

I also used neither a freezer nor a press to install ANY of my new ES bushings - I did every one of them straight out of the box, by hand. Buy yourself a bottle of silver anti-sieze lube, which has a brush built into the cap. Use this instead of the grease supplied with the bushings. Give a thorough coat of lube to any place where a polyurethane piece touches metal, and just push them in place by hand. I would say that freezing the bushings would actually make the job harder. The poly halves don't have to be pushed all the way together by hand - just most of the way. When you bolt them back onto the car, that will snug them up to where they need to be.

 

autozone OEM axle nut socket has rounded edge, will this work?

 

Yes, depending on the size of the socket. You want to use a size such that the flat part of the outside of the socket barrel is still slightly smaller than the outside of the original bushing shell. The rounded edge doesn't matter. The bond between the rubber and the bushing shell is strong enough that if you're pushing on mostly rubber, near the bushing shell, the shell will still come out of the arm. That's what you're trying to accomplish. Another trick you can use if you don't have a deep-well socket is to press the center sleeve out of the bushing first and then press out the shell. This destroys the original bushing, but it allows you to get to the shell with a short socket, plus you're replacing the original bushing anyway.

 

thanks for fast reply.
I went to a local metal store and bought the aluminum rid I never knew there was a metal shop here keke
I removed the coilover and end link before I tried removing the bolt that holds the inner bushing. the bolt is like Welded there! breaker bar didn't fit next to the tie rod so I tried loosening from the opposite side(the stud head).
am I the only one who faced this problem?

 

mine was super hard as well..
I used an offset wrench on the nut side by the tie rod, and a big breaker bar on the other.. pull hard enough on the breaker bar and it will come