Daim
FYI, this is 100% untrue! The shockers (technically dampers) on the XJS are completely independent of the spring, and can be entirely removed without touching the spring or suspension wishbones. You are maybe confusing this with the bump stops?

Greg

 

OB
Home made poly washers! I do not believe it! You have saved about 57p and enraged the GF. Plus you need to buy her another chopping board. The dinner you will need to buy the long suffering girl will make a set of OEM shock bushings seem the bargain of the century!

As long as the dished washers are central dish into the wing each side, the washers will be OK, dimensionally, as to longevity, who knows, but presumably you have plenty of chopping board left over ?!! We all await with bated breath: (i) the ride quality and (ii) the GF's revenge.
Greg

 

I was corrected a page ago but yeah, I seem to have gotten it mixed up with something else. I don't know what car, but there was one what required this action... Nevertheless, it is of course easier if the spring doesn't need to be removed

 

 

Hi Greg

Poly Bushes almost exactly the same as the ones I made were £20-£25 on ebay but seeing as you say it makes a difference to the Ride.

Perhaps I will go OEM after all, as its not much good asking advice if you're not prepared to take it from someone who knows.

GF is now back on Stream! and is thrilled with her new Chopping Board in Yellow! to match her hair, No I don't know why either!

But as it only cost me a Fiver! I bought her a knife to go with it.

How Brave or Stupid was that!

 

I hope not! I need some new bushes!

 

Please acept my apologies, Daim, I had not seen it. Must be all the excitement about OB's homewrecking bushes!
Greg

 

No no, I want to know what the home wrecking home made washers work like!

As for the knife, living dangerously, or what?
Greg

 

Greg, all is fine! Absolutely no problem!

I was about to ask myself how someone could sacrifice a chopping board for an XJ-S! Poor chopping board... It's life had only just started!

 

Daim, I can't help but stare at that picture of your car....very nice angle that really highlights the cars lines/stance.

 

Hi Greg

Are you Serious?

Do you really want me to try out these Home Made Bushes, just when I was getting Convinced that they were a waste of time and I should have gone with OEM in the first place.

All my fault for being such a 'Cheapskate!' but £25 for a Set of Polyurethane Bushes, that I cut out of a Chopping Board for nothing, seemed such a rip off to me.

But having re-read through your Advice, I can see the 'Stication' of OEM plays more of a part in the ride, than I at first thought.

So to bring you up to date, the Cars jacked up, the Wheels are off and all the washers and metal cups are out.

The Shocks themselves are really A1 as I had to pull them down really hard to get the Cup Washers off, then as soon as I released them, they sprung back up to the Top.

Not surprised as with no bushes either on Top or Underneath, they were not being compressed and the Car was left to bounce up and down on its own.

So anything that stops this in anyway at all, is a big improvement on nothing!

Unfortunately the bottom cups look a little bit battered, so any ideas what I could do about that.

Undoing the Shocks and everything else, was a piece of Cake but thinking the Car was all sorted, only to find another problem like this one was a real downer, and as a result, 'Misson Creep' then set in.

All OK now with the GF but I'm sleeping with one 'eye open!'

 

That's a very Atmospheric Shot Daim, do you have any more like that?

 

Try these guys

Watts urethane Products Ltd. : Construction Industry

Hope this helps

 

OB
New special washers are available from D Manners, Jag Classis parts etc etc; but as long as they are solid and not weakened, just clean up the ones you have. And the correct bushes too. Best to put in the correct ones... Basic rubber shock bushes (as Ronbros uses) will be a decent compromise if you can see a set cheap in Halfords, your tame factor etc. Poly bushes (IMO obviously) are a no no.

Greg

 

Hi Greg

The Top Caps on my 'Scrapper' look in quite good nick, so I'll get them off and use them for the time being.

But I'm sure you will be 'pleased to know' that I am already working on the Mk11 version of the closest thing you have ever seen to OEM XJS Bushes.

 

I don't know why many people dislike the poly bushes so much... If the choice would be from rubber or poly, I definitely choose poly, for the rubber ones will be split, shrink and harden in a short period like 4-5 years. So in a certain case their lives can be shorter than the OEM ones'.

My choice will be OEM or poly, I don't choose rubber ones. If I want to go original, I choose OEM, if I want a longer life or a performance, I choose poly.

 

Personal bad experience with short life, squeaks, harsh ride, to start with. From an engineering point of view, they are a downgrade. From a marketeers point of view, they're a perfect solution looking for a problem. From a cost accountant's point of view it's a nightmare exercise trying understand how 5 cents worth of plastic can be successfully retailed for $25 without a huge marketing budget that eats most of the profits.

Each to his own though.

 

Mikey,

Hmm, actually I use ply bushes on my own car and have had any problems at all, but those bushes are the one I directly asked a factory to make. That might be why I haven't had problems so far. I had them use polyether urethane, whose hardness is around 80(a little harder than nitrile rubber), so they do last longer and isn't too hard.

Polyether:
resistant to water(not hydrolyzed), oil
highly resistant to coldness
high elasticity

Polyester:
resistant to coldness
highly resistant to oil
easily hydrolyzed
normal elasticity

The cost of the polyether urethane isn't so cheap. Japanese plastic isn't cheap basically, but is of high quality.

So I still believe "high quality" urethane bushes overcome the rubber ones.
On the other hand I understand the poly isn't good for pivot bushes. But at least for this purpose this isn't a bad choice. If it became a bad choice, it is just he/she chose a bad quality bushes.

Eventually the OEM bushes are made from polyester urethane, though.
Polyester urethane can be made softer than polyether urethane. That is why they are hydrolyzed and turn into powder.
So it is natural the polyether urethane bushes lasts longer than the OEM ones.


My conclusion:
Do make sure they are made from polyether urethane when buying poly bushes.
Otherwise don't buy them.
May well ask a seller the shore hardness. The OEMs are like 50, tire rubber or rubber bushes approx 70. 90 is too hard in my opinion.
80 feels like a hard rubber, still can be compressed considerably. If you want sharper handling this is a good option.

When buying rubber bushes, make sure they are made from nitrile or chloroprene rubber. Don't buy natural rubber ones.
If you get a new shock and new rubber ones come together, I recommend not to use them. They seldom last long.

All depends on what material is used.

 

Hi Greg

Up until this afternoon, I was driving one of the Noisiest Cars on the Planet, with Squeaking, Creaking and lots of Bangs and Rattles, including that mystery noise that sounded just like 'Breaking China'

And the Car used to wallow around like a 'drunken Sailor'

But Not any more!

To day I went to this firm near me that Specializes in everything made of Plastic and Rubber.

So I took an old 'Bush' from the 'Scrapper' and explained that I wanted the same sort of stuff but much harder, so that I could use it to make some bushes for my Shock Absorbers.

They were on it, like an Easter Bonnet! and found the Perfect Piece of Kit for the Job and once I told them about the Car, they got so interested that they gave me one of their Sample Sheets, so I could cut some out.

Then let them know if I wanted it harder or softer, as I cannot remember the Technical Term, I'll call it a degree of 'Squidgyness'

But this Stuff was more resilient to bounce than the OEM.

So after re dressing the 'Cups with a 'Ball Peign' Hammer, I cut some bushes out and put them on.

After which I then went for the 'Mother of All Test Drives!'

I was Totally Shocked at the difference they made!

There wasn't one single Squeak or Bang or Rattle and that noise of 'Breaking China' had completely disappeared, including the thumping noise from the Exhaust as it banged on the Chassis.

I was going over every single road hump I could find, including Manhole Covers and everything else in between, with not a single sound to be heard except for the Song of the Engine.

As for the Handling of the Car, it was as Flat as a Pancake as all the Body Roll She had was now eliminated and was taking Corners, like She were on rails!

I was absolutely Gobsmacked at the difference that it made and only wish I had found out about that Bush problem sooner, which should have been discovered when She had her MOT.

Coming out of a fast corner with the Power on (just a bit!) I could spin the wheels without even trying, which had never happened before as without the Bushes in the Shock Absorbers, The Bodywork used to roll all over the place but now She really handles like a dream and as for my 'home made bushes' they seem to be doing the Business!

 

I'm thinking you should go into the Jaguar shock bushing buisness! With the review you wrote, I'd buy a set or two!