Hi, I am looking for some good advice!!
My 1988 Honda Civic apparently needs both rear suspension bushes replaced!
Does this cost a lot and what does it involve??
Any recomended repairers??
Thanks

 

I think the 1988-1995 rear control arms are pretty much the same (same part # for prothane bushings anyways). I can tell you about 96-00 rear bushings which in theory should be similar..

Rear lower control arm (LCA) bushings on the 96-00s are pressed into the lower control arms. Removing them usually requires removal of the LCAs and then burning/pressing out the old/pressing in the new.

Removing the LCAs is a straightforward affair IF the LCA and rear shock bolts aren't seized from excessive corrosion. If they are then a whole lot of labor is required to cut and/or drill out the bolts and a 15-minute job could easily be stretched to hours. Heat, penetrating oil and impact tools are the best way to get these bolts out.

As far as I understand it you'd need access to a shop press to install the new bushings. There may be some homegrown ways to get the bushings into place; check www.honda-tech.com for suggestions.

I am unsure about upper bushings (if there are any).

As for a recommendation all I can say is a mechanic that is familiar with Civic suspensions (most notably the corrosion issue) is the way to go. Barring the corrosion problem and need for a press this job could easily be done DIY; in fact you could always try to get the LCAs out yourself and then straight-swap them (bushings and all) for a set from a lower-mileage junkyard car...this could potentially be cheaper than having a mechanic do the work for you (if money is a concern).

-Trevor

 

bushes? ahh, the possible punchlines.... anyway, i assume you mean bushings. if you are looking to just get it fixed as cheap as possible, then see if there is a pick and pull type junkyard around you that you can just go get the whole control arm or whatever the bushings are in, then just replace it yourself. if you have some extra cash, then get a polyurethane bushing set and get them installed. you cannot just change the bushing yourself, it has to be pressed out by a machinist (well, you can do it yourself, but its a pain in the ***, i did all mine myself so far.) so if you change the control arm, you should be able to do it yourself, if you do the bushing, you should just take it somewere. where are you located, maybe someone here is close enough to help you.

 

nice...

They are a simple fix and pretty cheap if you find a honest guy.

 

damn hashiriya, we must have been typeing at the same time and said almost the same stuff. as for the corrosion factor, there is a penetrating lubricant called PB, its the best ive ever used. get some of that and spray it on the seized nuts or bolts, let em sit for 5 or 10 minutes, and then it'll bust loose.

 

LOL.

Yep I'll 2nd the endorsement for BP Blaster. That stuff seems clearly superior to WD-40, Liquid Wrench, etc.

Most all of my LCA/shock bolts were seized when I dropped my Civic. The first one snapped off at the head almost instantly when I used a breaker bar on it. I had to cut and drill out the broken shock bolt (took quite a few hours and drill bits). For the next one I hit it with PB several times in 24 hours, then heated the bolt with a propane torch for about 20 minutes, then tried it with an impact wrench.

The bolt still didn't give way so I did the heat/PB/Impact thing a few more times and finally the bolt gave way and came out. Thankfully the other bolts were removable (though the ones close to the frame are still stuck...but I didn't need to pull those to drop the car).

I post this horror story for the benefit of any folks out there who encounter the same problem I did. If you have a stuck bolt don't give up! Try heat and PB blaster. Make sure the socket is sitting dead flush against the bolts you are looking to remove (if the socket is just a bit crooked it can twist the bolt head off more easily). If you are using an impact gun be sure to try it several times; even if the bolt isn't moving right that instant it might the next time you try the heat/PB/wrench routine.

-Trevor