Which Rear Shocks Should I buy for a 7.2 T 2.4 Targa?

IAN · 02-22-2005, 02:38 PM

I have the engine out of my car for a clutch replacement and a bunch of other stuff.

I'm getting more tempted to replace the rear shocks. It just look so easy with everything out of the engine compartment.

2 Questions:
1) Which shocks do I want. I don't take the car on the track and the engine is stock.
2) Are there a bunch of rear bushings that should also be replaced?

Thanks,
Ian

Rot 911 · 02-22-2005, 02:42 PM

Bilsteins either Sport if you want a firm ride, HD if you want more of a stock ride (which is still more firm than most cars). Replace your spring plate bushings and sway bar bushings (if you have a sway bar) Some may say replace your banana arm bushings, but that can be a major pain in the ass to do.

Bobboloo · Bobboloo's Garage

Bilstein are a favorite here on this board. You should get a shock that matches the spring. Assuming you have stock springs (torsion bars) I would think anything firmer than HD would be a mismatch. Bilstein can inform you on this. I'm by no means an expert.

Replacing bushings is great but it's a slippery slope. The control arm bushings are easiest. Go either with stock rubber or elephant racing poly/bronze.
The bushings that usually need the most attention however are the radius arm bushings and they are not an easy job. You can't remove the radius arm with the TB attached and there in lies the biggest obstacle. They get stuck together and are really tough to get seperated. All I can say is if your replacing fender flares is that then would be the time to replace those bushings because then you could remove them as one piece.

If you decide to try and tackle the radius arm bushings then Neatrix or Elephant Racing is the way to go. For me, I would use nothing less than Elephant because the extra money is worth every penny. It's equivalent to the foundation of your house. Not a place you want to economize in my opinion.

IAN · 02-22-2005, 03:32 PM

How does one remove these bushings? It seem to me that the entire assembly would need to remove towards the rear of the car to get the access on the sides to slide them out...

Thanks.

Ian

Bobboloo · Bobboloo's Garage

Radius arm bushings are removed by removing the wheel. Unbolt the radius arm from the control arm. Mark the angle of the radius arm. Then unbolt the radius arm cover. Now comes the hard part. Pull the radius arm off of the torsion bar.

Once the radius arm is removed you have to then cut the rubber bushing off of the radius arm.

What some people do to save money is switch the left and right radius arms because the top of the bushing is what carries the load and is the side that wears out. Personally I consider my time to valuable to take such a shortcut.

To remove the control arm bushing you need start like you did with the control arm. Remove wheel, unbolt control arm from radius arm. Disconnect brake lines. (You should change them and rebuild the calipers while your at it. Change the fluid as well. All easy and inexpensive to do.) Now you can unbolt the the control arm from the torsion bar tube. Remove control arm and extract the bushing. When you reassemble. Install the bolts from outside in so that the nut is next to the tranny. This way if you need to get back in there you won't have to remove the motor and tranny.

That's the short story version. Check the Pelican Tech articles for a more in depth version.