10 posts
1991 nissan king cab pick up
montgomery al
5-20-2008
Anyone replace bushings on leaf springs?
8:32 AM 7/25/2008
springs on hardbody? I found energy suspension bushings cheap and they are 2 peice. Do they still need to be pressed? I hope not so I do not have to totally remove leaf springs. Thanks in advance for any help.
It's a lot easier to do this when the spring is removed, but it can be done without it.
Doing one end at a time, support the frame on jackstands, remove the wheel, and support the axle/spring assembly with a floor jack.
Unbolt the end you want to replace bushings on and lower the floor jack so the bushing is acceptable and the spring eye drops out of its mount.
If the bushings are totally gone, you can tap the center sleeve out. If not, youwill either need to drill or burn it out. Once you have the middle out, use a sawzall to cut the outer sleeve that presses into the eye. Make two cuts in this about 1/4-1/2" apart. Be careful not to cut into the spring itself. This makes it easy to tap that outer sleeve out.
The two piece bushings should push in by hand. Use a little grease on them to make it easier, and reassemble.
Apparently 2WD D21s always had the front side of the leaf spring with two piece busnigs, but the rear end of the spring either came with a press fit bushing or two piece bushing depending on the model or maybe even by the VIN range. Or maybe king cab vs. standard cab? In any case my standard cab had the press-in bushing, so that's what I ordered for the replacement. I'm hoping that I can pull the spring and use a 5" vice and some sockets or whatever I can improvise to press it out. Otherwise it may be time to buy a small hydraulic press at Harbor Freight, or use Desert Rat's sawsall method. (pretty cool idea by the way)
I am also planning on replacing all of the other bushings (upper link, stabilizer bar mount and end link, tension rod. etc) except for the ball joints, and the shocks next week when everything comes in. Then it's time to get the new tires put on and get everything aligned.
Heath
1990 Infiniti Q45 - AKA "Q2" 2005 Infiniti G35 - Sedan A/T FOR SALE 1997 Nissan Truck - XE - 5 Speed M/T
Update: I replaced my leaf spring bushing today. Talk about fun! I decided to pull the springs since I'm using OEM parts (including the press fit rear bushing) and needed the access to get the old realr bushing in and out.
I have done suspension rehab on my Q45's a couple of times, but this was my first experience with leaf springs. First, I jacked the back end of the truck with a floor jack placed on the differential. Then put jack stands under the frame and lowered the rear axle. It moved down a lot, so I decided that the spring would be more relaxed if I jacked the axle back up and supported it with two more jack stands. BIG MISTAKE! The springs are naturally curved... not flat. Found out the hard way as I took the last of the ubolt nuts off and it whacked the garage floor. I guess it didn't hit too violently and I was fortunate not to any body parts in the way. So I think the proper procedure would be to remove them with the axle hanging down and the frame supported.
Anyhow, the bushings on the right spring were very bad... left side were only slightly deformed. I guess that's to be expected. The two part front bushings, and upper shackle busings are super easy to get in and out. I had to carve off old solidified rubber off of the retaining bolts with a box cutter, but otherwise, nothing to it.
The press-fit bushings on the rear of the springs were a major pain. I tried pressing them out with a big vice and a 24mm socket, but they didn't budge. Desert Rat - YOU ARE THE MAN for suggesting the sawsall! I used it to cut the metal sleeve and then pryed them out using a couple of disposable screw drivers and a pry bar after I got them started. Not easy by any means, but saved me $80 on a press at Harbor Freight. If I were doing this again, I would do it during the week and take the springs to a shop to have them pressed out and in if I could find one that would do it reasonably.
I was able to press them in with the big vice, using a large socket at the end on one side to give the center sleeve room. I used some grease on the second one and it went in a little easier, but still a major pain. First one took me about 2 hours - second one about an hour...
I haven't gotten my new shocks, but my rears don't push out or retract in. You can still hear the oil in there - but I assume they're pretty flat. Maybe that's normal though... I guess I'll find out when I get the new ones. Either way they need to be replaced at 135K.
I think she will be... I haven't actually driven the truck yet, other than to pull it out of the garage and turn it around and pull it back in.
I started on the front yesterday. Tried to replace the upper link bushings, but they aren't budging, and I don't think they're bad anyway - no slop or cracking - so I just put them back in. Same for the lower link bushing that's pressed into the frame. The FSM says "use an appropriate tool" which in my case would be the sawsall, but I have no idea how I would press the new one in. So I'm just going to do shocks, sway bar bushings (including end links) and tension rod bushings and call it done.
It's pretty obvious to me that the right rear of the truck takes most of the abuse suspension-wise. Those bushings were absolutely destroyed, while everything else looked good for the most part.
I can't wait to drive this after the new tires and shocks are on and see if my back ache is worth it!
By the way, Desert Rat, are the shocks supposed to spring outward or pull inward? I know the ones on my Q pushed back out when compressed, even while leaking badly - but these just stay where you put them. I guess I'll have an answer on Wednesday when my KYB's show up - but since you've done this so much I thought I would ask.
Depends on the type of shock. The KYB Gas-A-Just compresses hard and springs back when the load is taken off. Other oil type shocks that aren't gas charged typically compress easy and pull back apart hard. They have valiving inside that allows oil to flow freely in one direction, but slowly in the other. It really doesn't make a difference which way they dampen. The gas charged shocks do tend to give you a bit firmer ride, but not significantly.
The KYB's I ordered are the GR-2s. I was told in another thead that they are a good compromise in giving me the ability to haul things (which I do occasionally) and ride/performance. They should arrive on Wednesday... hopefully early so I can toss them on and then head for the shop for an alignment and new tires. I assume changing shocks could have an impact on alignment?
The OEM shocks on my truck don't spring back or compress on their own . You can manually compress them or pull them out with about the same force. No obvious leaks, and I can hear oil squirting around inside them - but that doesn't mean that a lot of it didn't leak out and get washed off a long time ago.
I also figured out why my tires suddenly felt so bad! I found a nice bulge in the outer half of the treads in one area of my left front tire. Called a tire store, and he said it sounds like tread separation. Also mentioned that it's often felt as a wagging steering wheel at low speeds... bingo! Anyway, the last trip on those tires will be a very gentle drive to Goodyear on residential streets under 40 MPH with my new BFG Long Trail T/A's in the bed...
. You can manually compress them or pull them out with about the same force. No obvious leaks, and I can hear oil squirting around inside them - but that doesn't mean that a lot of it didn't leak out and get washed off a long time ago.