Steering: - "Polybushing" Question - Poor Steering

S60Chris · Sep 27th, 2011, 14:29

Hi All,

My 2004 (04) S60 D5 SE just passed 120,000 miles and all appears to be going strong with the exception of the following...

...The steering seems a little more wallowy/wandery than it should be. I know it's more akin to a tank than anything else, but I know that the steering should be a bit more precise.

It has 4 premium Hankook tyres which were all fitted new at the same time, and they are correctly inflated and balanced. There are no issues with the tracking.

I have been reading about Polybushing - and it was something that was suggested in a different thread.

It seems that the reccomendation is that the wishbone things give a dramatic improvement on steering, wheras the engine mount polybush is not reccomended.

Would anyone be able to advise on where I can get these wishbone Polybush fittings, which brand is best, how much they cost to purchase and how much they would cost to get fitted?

Thanks,

Chris.

t5_monkey · Sep 27th, 2011, 16:13

polybushing should help a lot.

Mines in the garage today for a full poly-bush, new topmounts and droplinks (front) it's done 60,000 miles.

S60Chris · Sep 27th, 2011, 16:15

Excellent - what sort of labour cost are you looking at?

Let me/us know what differences you notice when you get it back...

Sprintman · Sep 27th, 2011, 17:11

Hi S60chris,

this is something I've been thinking about doing on my V70R, have a look at the Powerflex and Superflex websites, I recall the bushes are shown on these with the prices. Haven't investigated what's involved in changing them yet, whether it's a case of dropping the wishbones off and pressing in the new bushes or if it's more complicated, so don't know what the labour costs are likely to be. Would be nice to know if anybody's done this and what difference it made?

Cheers,

Peter.

ianbr · Sep 27th, 2011, 22:48

Fitted Powerflex a couple of years ago.Just the front bush in the wishbones.

Transformed the car from unstable under barking with some disconcerting tramlining to the ultra stable car that I remembered from new.

Havn't looked back since. Did the job myself and took about 1-2 hours per side. But then I am an amateur and was being very carefull.

There is a good description on here somewhere (with pictures) including the what to wathc out for if doing it yourself.

Sprintman · Sep 27th, 2011, 23:52

Hi all,

just found the wishbone polybush fitting guide -

http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showth...ht=poly&page=4

And from what's been said about steering & braking after fitting them it sounds like a good idea, now definitely on my "to do" list.

Peter.

S60Chris · Sep 29th, 2011, 18:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by ianbr

Fitted Powerflex a couple of years ago.Just the front bush in the wishbones.

Transformed the car from unstable under barking with some disconcerting tramlining to the ultra stable car that I remembered from new.

Havn't looked back since. Did the job myself and took about 1-2 hours per side. But then I am an amateur and was being very carefull.

There is a good description on here somewhere (with pictures) including the what to wathc out for if doing it yourself.

Thanks for this. What was involved in changing them - anything complicated? I'm capable of doing stuff myself, I service my car myself etc, but am also amateur. My dad is much less amateur than me... so maybe he would help.

So is the difference seriously noticable under normal driving conditions? I'll look to order some tonight.

S60Chris · Sep 29th, 2011, 18:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sprintman

Hi all,

just found the wishbone polybush fitting guide -

http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showth...ht=poly&page=4

And from what's been said about steering & braking after fitting them it sounds like a good idea, now definitely on my "to do" list.

Peter.

Thanks for this, I'll have a butchers now.

Sprintman · Oct 8th, 2011, 17:48

Hi all,

changed one of my front wishbone polybushes yesterday and came up with a problem in the process.

The polybushes have a reduced diameter section in the centre bore to match the reduced diameter of the OE pins, however the pin on my wishbone was a constant diameter, and after discussion with Polyflex it would appear that my car has an aftermarket wishbone. Also the aftermarket wishbone appears to have the metalastic bush cast in, so unlike in the installation description above you don't need to remove the outer steel sleeve of the original bush. Polyflex suggested either boring out the reduced diameter section of the bush or reducing the centre section of the pin, which is route I chose by grinding down the diameter of the centre of the pin to fit the bush, leaving about 10 mm of the original diameter at each end.

So, in short, when you come to fit your new bushes be aware that if you find you have aftermarket wishbones then you don't need to cut out the steel sleeve, just clean out all the bonded rubber, and you will need to modify either the bush or the pin. When installing the pin in the bush you'll need to make sure that it's lengthwise position to the rear bush is the same as original to ensure you can easily fit it back on the car, and you need to fit the whole wishbone back on the car in a horizontal position so the rear bush slots in easily as it's a tight fit in it's housing.

Once you get yours apart and find you have an aftermarket wishbone the above description should become clear. Good luck.

Sep 27th, 2011, 14:29	#1
S60Chris Master Member Last Online: Aug 12th, 2023 10:16 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: East	"Polybushing" Question - Poor Steering Hi All, My 2004 (04) S60 D5 SE just passed 120,000 miles and all appears to be going strong with the exception of the following... ...The steering seems a little more wallowy/wandery than it should be. I know it's more akin to a tank than anything else, but I know that the steering should be a bit more precise. It has 4 premium Hankook tyres which were all fitted new at the same time, and they are correctly inflated and balanced. There are no issues with the tracking. I have been reading about Polybushing - and it was something that was suggested in a different thread. It seems that the reccomendation is that the wishbone things give a dramatic improvement on steering, wheras the engine mount polybush is not reccomended. Would anyone be able to advise on where I can get these wishbone Polybush fittings, which brand is best, how much they cost to purchase and how much they would cost to get fitted? Thanks, Chris. __________________ MY24 XC40 Recharge Twin Plus & MY23 VW Touareg Black Edition 3.0L V6 286 Gone: MY02 S60 2.0T S, MY04 S60 D5 SE, MY05 V70 D5 SE G/Tronic, MY14 XC60 D5 AWD SE Lux Nav Geartronic & MY17 XC90 D5 Inscription

Sep 27th, 2011, 16:13	#2
t5_monkey Monkeying Around Last Online: Mar 13th, 2016 20:05 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: York	polybushing should help a lot. Mines in the garage today for a full poly-bush, new topmounts and droplinks (front) it's done 60,000 miles. __________________ Release the Monkey inside of you >>> Trunk Monkey

Sep 27th, 2011, 16:15	#3
S60Chris Master Member Last Online: Aug 12th, 2023 10:16 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: East	Excellent - what sort of labour cost are you looking at? Let me/us know what differences you notice when you get it back... __________________ MY24 XC40 Recharge Twin Plus & MY23 VW Touareg Black Edition 3.0L V6 286 Gone: MY02 S60 2.0T S, MY04 S60 D5 SE, MY05 V70 D5 SE G/Tronic, MY14 XC60 D5 AWD SE Lux Nav Geartronic & MY17 XC90 D5 Inscription

Sep 27th, 2011, 17:11	#4
Sprintman VOC Member Last Online: Mar 13th, 2023 22:39 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: East Herts	Polybushes Hi S60chris, this is something I've been thinking about doing on my V70R, have a look at the Powerflex and Superflex websites, I recall the bushes are shown on these with the prices. Haven't investigated what's involved in changing them yet, whether it's a case of dropping the wishbones off and pressing in the new bushes or if it's more complicated, so don't know what the labour costs are likely to be. Would be nice to know if anybody's done this and what difference it made? Cheers, Peter. __________________ VOC Member 19553 '03 V70 R AWD, standard, so far. '96 855 AWD, BSR twin outlet exhaust, Polybush engine steady. HID Dips. '98 V70 AWD. '98 V70 SE. '96 855 2.0 20v - Gone. '82 244 GLT- Gone, but not forgotten. '61 122S - Long gone!!

Sep 27th, 2011, 23:52	#6
Sprintman VOC Member Last Online: Mar 13th, 2023 22:39 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: East Herts	Hi all, just found the wishbone polybush fitting guide - http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showth...ht=poly&page=4 And from what's been said about steering & braking after fitting them it sounds like a good idea, now definitely on my "to do" list. Peter. __________________ VOC Member 19553 '03 V70 R AWD, standard, so far. '96 855 AWD, BSR twin outlet exhaust, Polybush engine steady. HID Dips. '98 V70 AWD. '98 V70 SE. '96 855 2.0 20v - Gone. '82 244 GLT- Gone, but not forgotten. '61 122S - Long gone!!

Sep 27th, 2011, 22:48	#5
ianbr WhyStillAnOptimistAtHeart Last Online: Nov 26th, 2022 18:26 Join Date: May 2007 Location: Middlewich	Fitted Powerflex a couple of years ago.Just the front bush in the wishbones. Transformed the car from unstable under barking with some disconcerting tramlining to the ultra stable car that I remembered from new. Havn't looked back since. Did the job myself and took about 1-2 hours per side. But then I am an amateur and was being very carefull. There is a good description on here somewhere (with pictures) including the what to wathc out for if doing it yourself.

Oct 8th, 2011, 17:48	#9
Sprintman VOC Member Last Online: Mar 13th, 2023 22:39 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: East Herts	V70 Front Wishbone Polybush Hi all, changed one of my front wishbone polybushes yesterday and came up with a problem in the process. The polybushes have a reduced diameter section in the centre bore to match the reduced diameter of the OE pins, however the pin on my wishbone was a constant diameter, and after discussion with Polyflex it would appear that my car has an aftermarket wishbone. Also the aftermarket wishbone appears to have the metalastic bush cast in, so unlike in the installation description above you don't need to remove the outer steel sleeve of the original bush. Polyflex suggested either boring out the reduced diameter section of the bush or reducing the centre section of the pin, which is route I chose by grinding down the diameter of the centre of the pin to fit the bush, leaving about 10 mm of the original diameter at each end. So, in short, when you come to fit your new bushes be aware that if you find you have aftermarket wishbones then you don't need to cut out the steel sleeve, just clean out all the bonded rubber, and you will need to modify either the bush or the pin. When installing the pin in the bush you'll need to make sure that it's lengthwise position to the rear bush is the same as original to ensure you can easily fit it back on the car, and you need to fit the whole wishbone back on the car in a horizontal position so the rear bush slots in easily as it's a tight fit in it's housing. Once you get yours apart and find you have an aftermarket wishbone the above description should become clear. Good luck. __________________ VOC Member 19553 '03 V70 R AWD, standard, so far. '96 855 AWD, BSR twin outlet exhaust, Polybush engine steady. HID Dips. '98 V70 AWD. '98 V70 SE. '96 855 2.0 20v - Gone. '82 244 GLT- Gone, but not forgotten. '61 122S - Long gone!!

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