9/16/2006 Rear suspension components installation

I installed these in hopes for stiffer and stronger suspension, and all I really gain here was a lot of suspension and subframe noise. The noise comes from the aluminum subframe bushing. I am in the process of sourcing a set of polyurethane inserts instead.  Otherwise, the rear suspension geometry can now be altered. I left the setting as close to stock as possible. The only thing I change was the camber angle to compensate for the lowering of the vehicle.

As these are the piece that can be easily source through any sellers on Ebay. Most of these components are made in Taiwan or China. I got the rear upper control arms through a friend and it was a substantial saving on my part. The rest of the parts are new from varies store on Ebay. I have reason to belief that all these generic suspension parts are all made from one manufacturer in China, so it really should not matter too much where they are purchased. At this point, only time will tell how well these parts will hold up.

I started by dismantling all the suspension components. Before removing them, make a few marks on the nuts and bolts, so you can put it back together with the new parts without disturbing the alignment too much. You will most likely need to take it to get an alignment done. The closer you put the nuts and bolts back together like the way they were the better. They are easily accessible after the rear shocks are removed.

The subframe bushings only took a few minutes. Start by removing the bottom nut of the subframe on one side of the car at a time. Once the nuts are removed, there should be enough room to stick a pry bar up top to slip in the U shape bushing. Don't forget to sandwich the bottom bushing in place before cranking the subframe nuts down again.

The bushing should be sandwiched flush with the factory rubber bushings.

Reinstall the rest of the new suspension pieces together. Since these pieces are adjustable. Pay close attention and

All done! The pieces look great and they serve their purpose so far. They have been to two Drift events and they are doing well. There is definitely no noticeable stiffness increase but the tires are roasting evenly in the back now all because the adjusted camber angle to compensate for the lowering.