Powerflex radius rod bushing cup?

[jwendorf]

I'm updating most of the bushing on my '89 2WD this weekend. The powerflex radius rod bushing kit comes with a metal 'cup' that (according to their instructions) is supposed be installed on the forward side of the chassis in between the chassis and the bushing.

Can anyone advise as to whether this 'cup' is supposed to be used or not?

The reason I ask is that the cup has a lip that is supposed to fit inside the radius rod hole, however the diameter of the lip is bigger than the diameter of the hole on my van.

['88MoneyPit]

The cup goes on the front side of the mounting bracket. The lip should fit in the hole that the radius rod fits through.

S

[hans j]

I found a lot of rust build up on the radius rod holes on my van. It was making it look like the holes were slightly smaller than they actually were.
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1986 Canadian Syncro Westy TDI - 1989 Syncro Single Cab - 2001 Audi S4 - 1981 VW Caddy ABA - 1980 VW Caddy EV - 1973 VW T-181

[zak99B5]

The rubber front bushing has a metal disc with a lip molded into it. It' same separate piece in the poly application.

The radius rod bushings need to flex and compress as the wheel moves up and down and turns.

Rubber flexes and compresses. Poly does not. The metal will wear it away until it's too loose.

This is one application where rubber is better than poly. For something like the steering rack mounts or upper control arm bushes, poly can work well because it's not asked to flex.

[Christopher Schimke]

[kirsplat]

In some cases part of the forward bushing rusts to the chassis and needs to be pried away.
This may be your issue.
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86 Syncro|EJ253|Carat

[zak99B5]

[furrylittleotter]

cup goes "Out" I really like mine. My New rubbers didn't last long at all.

Neil2

[jwendorf]

Thanks for all the replies, the metal disc that was attached to the original bushing was still in the hole; the old bushing tore away and the metal disc stayed in place. Because of rust, age and leftover rubber bits it wasn't obvious that there was anything removable there. Once I figured it out I was able to tap it out with a hammer and punch. Then the powerflex bushing cups fit as expected.

I kept the parts that were giving me trouble and will post a pic of them later.

[Mark W. Roush]

Hello all, I just wanted to report on my experience with the powerflex bushings on my radius rods as perhaps others have had a mysterious sound coming from their front end!?
I bought from Chris at T-3 some years ago and at the same time I switched my 1984 front end entirely to a late model setup and added GW big brakes, GW 0 lift springs and fox shocks not to mention urethane everywhere. So many parts replaced that it took me some time to find my mysterious clunk. Turns out it was this "cup" which has a lip slightly small (1/16") for the hole in my chassis. It would slide just enough in that hole either side to side and/or up and down and on both sides! Of course there is no way to tighten up the tension on the urethane due to the length of the cylindrical spacer. My spectacular final fix was to add a ring of .016" copper sheet cut to about 1/8" and temporarily held in place with a short piece of scotch tape while I worked it back into position (all without removing the rods) tricky because of the angle of the rod but doable! I wish I'd taken a picture of the cup with the copper but I trust you get the idea! Now my front suspension is absolutely quiet! Yeah!! PS: My chassis is so clean and rust free that perhaps that added to the cups ability to slide around.

[ALIKA T3]