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T O P I C     R E V I E W
Jim S	Still working things out with getting the corrections made for replacement bushings for the front control arms. I think we are closer to getting the changes made, but looking for some input and thoughts as there is an issue. The original 1 piece rubber bushings (typical rubber bushing with steel sleeve) are pressed into the control arms. It appears that they are basically "locked" in place on the control arm with the interference fit of the rubber, or possibly the lube added when pressing into place. The replacement bushings will be a 2 piece design, with a flange added in order to center the control arm and keep it from floating sideways. The problem is the lower control arm rear frame casting has a radius in it that is just slightly larger than the bore on the control arm. So there is no room for part of the shoulder. The front bushing is smaller on the bushing OD so this is not an issue with it. Now we can have the bushing made with part of the flange removed (which is what we are working on now), but other than that there is no solution right now. There process does not allow any other options at this point. When these are installed you would need to properly orient the bushing when installing in order for the flange to clear the radius of the frame casting. One issue is that there will not be much bearing surface for the flange on the rear bushing. However the front one will have full contact. So what's the thoughts on this? Hopefully the following pics explain it better. This is the new bushing with part of the flange removed sitting as it would be installed. This is the same bushing viewed from the other side. You can see that the bulk of the flange is not hitting a frame componet. This (crudely I know) is a sharpie outline of the flange OD and bushing OD. You can see the small contact area for the rear bushing. This shows the front bushing flange area.
Jim S	This is the bushing with part of the flange removed. Looking the other way.
Jim S	Here is what the front bushing looks like. Here is what the rear bushing looks like. This is the replacement sitting next to the original. Note that the bushing is backwards so you can see what the flange looks like compared to the original with no flange. This shows the control arm in position on the car, you can see there is not much room for a flange here. So...bring it on. Thoughts, ideas, concerns, whatever.
quincy	Jim, Looks like you have your engineering and design act together. Is your project a fix for another premature wear issue? Or, just to help supply a quality aftermarket bushing kit because the OEM A-arm bushings are not designed to be replaced?
Jim S	Quincy, This is strictly to get some after market bushings available. These are an item that will be required for all owners at some point. After working thru the design issues, hoping to get a decent price on the set for a group buy.
cnote6	These will be a must in the future.
quincy	Jim, Thanks for being proactive! So an a-arm bushing, according to Chrysler, is not replaceable. A totally new arm is required. My 79 Mustang had the same service statement about the front a-arm, "lower ball joint not replaceable - must replace entire a-arm." The lower arm was stamped sheet metal and millions of these vehicles were produced so the replacement cost was low. Would you be able to find someone to R&R the bushings if they knew were 'unservicable'? Please keep up the good work and let us know when a group purchase can be made!
DFOTOPRO	Jim it would appear that the flange should not have any bearing as long as the total length is the same as the old one dj
Scott99	Jim, if I'm understanding this correctly, perhaps the rear flange that needs trimming could be a done by the customer at the time of installation (with the proper step by step instructions) and that this would help to keep the initial costs down. It doesn't look like it would be too hard to do. (IMHO) Just a thought. Scott
Jim S	Quincy: Should be no problem in servicing these parts. Any qualified front end shop should be equipped to press out the old bushings and install the new ones. DFOTOPRO: the flange bearing surface is what will keep the control arm in place. Since the bushing is of a different design than the original, it needs the flanges to locate the control arm. Without the flange, the control arm will slide until the control arm rubs on the mounting bracket. Not sure if that makes sense or not. Scott: Yes, we could just trim these ourselves, but I figure that shouldn't be needed. They should be able to make these cuts fairly easy I think.
Jim S	Just a quick update on this. We have the changes made now for the control arm bushings, but are still working on the rocker arm bushing. Hopefully we will have some more news in the next month or so.