The front and rear stabilizer bar bushings had seen some better days, but after 13 tough New England winters they were loose, worn, and dry-rotted, which all combined for some nice clunks over bumps.
Decision was made to put in some new ones.
Easy job in the back of the car, where one bolt per side gets removed to remove/replace each bushing.
In the front ..... well ..... Subaru had a different idea.
Apparently, blocking access to the bolts/nuts that hold the front bushing brackets in place with some long subframe connectors that each is secured with EIGHT long bolts, apparently that was the winning idea of how to arrange that area under the car.
So yeah ... lots of penetrating oil, lots of swears, lots of time backing out each bolt a little, screwing it back in, cleaning up rust off threads, spraying more penetrating oil, and more out/in with each bolt.
Couple of hours later the new bushings were in and I was ready to do the rears.
The rear bushing replacement was not originally part of the plan, but thanks to the "awesome" computer system that the local auto parts store has, we ended up with rear bushings when we asked for fronts. So, in the middle of working on the front, I had to take a quick run over to the local Subaru dealer for actual FRONT bushings.
A blessing in disguise, as it turns out, since upon removal I found that the rear bushings had basically become petrified rubber, that had rust caked into it by this point.
A picture's always worth a gazillion words, so here's an old and a new front bushings, clearly showing how worn the old one had become, compared to the tight new piece:
And my favorite ... one of the rears shortly after removal, next to its bracket, with some of the rust that I brushed off from inside the bracket and off the old bushing:
So, new bushings installed, the car rides beautiful, nice and quiet again, with newfound cornering prowess, totally fooling anyone that just looks at it as just a 14-year old wagon.
And after the engine rebuild I did on it a year ago, it seems ready for another 180,000 miles.
Do YOU have an older car you keep wrenching on?
