clunky sway bar bushings..quick fix

[Chip]

My '03 Impreza's front sway bar bushings were making quite a bit of noise when going over bumps. I found a quick and dirty alternative to changing them,(because I'm cheap).

Jack up the front of the car so the front wheels are off the ground. You'll see quite a gap between the bushing and the bar. I cut pieces of an old bicycle innertube about 1/2inch x 1 inch and shoved it inside the gap. That's it ! It worked...no more noise.

[987687]

Good idea on the inner tube rubber.

I use that red plumbers gasket stuff for fixing clunks in my suspension. Much cheaper than ripping everything apart and spending lots of money on bushings...

 

Haters will hate, but this isn't a race car. It's fine for tooling around on the road.

[brus brother]

Good idea on the inner tube rubber.

I use that red plumbers gasket stuff for fixing clunks in my suspension. Much cheaper than ripping everything apart and spending lots of money on bushings...

 

Haters will hate, but this isn't a race car. It's fine for tooling around on the road.

I've started to notice the sound and see the bushing wear on my 05 OB with 110K miles. Would the pieces wedged in be expected to stay in place? Is there a downside to this "mod"? Haters responses welcome.

[Chip]

I don't know how long they rubber strips will stay there. I'm hoping they'll stay for at least several months.....It was such a quick fix that even if I have to re-do it in a few months, it's no big deal....(unless it's -35C outside).

I was wondering if the rubber strips were coated with rubber cement first if it would make them stay longer..........

[987687]

Buy a bag of zip ties. You should have a bag of zip ties that lives in your trunk anyway.... Then you can make anything stay in place