[DeTomaso] Rear bushing woes, the saga continues

[bill gaino]

Great pics!  I pulled my parts FORD D16Y-18198-A  and compared it to the bushings from Maserasti Source. Same lentgh but the shoulder that the tool presses on is.. THIN. OUT of round and INFERIOR to the FORD part.. I see how they differ.. and suck too...bless your heart ASA.. Bill     pics to follow
-----Original Message-----
>From: Asa Jay Laughton <asajay at asajay.com>
>Sent: Jul 15, 2008 8:11 PM
>To: unlisted-recipients at null, null at null
>Cc: detomaso at realbig.com
>Subject: [DeTomaso] Rear bushing woes, the saga continues
>
>Nothing like chaos to  put a damper on your goal of being race ready in 
>time for a track day.
>
>In our last episode, we learned that I mushroomed the ends of a few 
>a-arm bushings while pressing them in.  So I order a few more from 
>Wilkinson and figure I'll try again.  I also ask if he'd send me a tool 
>to help press the darn things in so I'm not using my large six-point 
>socket (which most likely contributed to the folly in the first place).
>
>So today, I take all the new bushing and the new tool to the garage.  I 
>first figure I'll try this slick new tool on a bushing already installed 
>and see if I can maybe straighten things out a bit.  But the silly thing 
>doesn't rest on the shoulder of the bushing.  WTF?  I paid how much for 
>a silly piece of aluminum machined to fit the bushing properly and it 
>doesn't fit?
>
>So I check it against one of the new bushings Steve sent me.  Fits - 
>like - a - glove.  WTF  (only LOUDER).
>
>I put the new bushing up against the (older already installed) new 
>bushing.  Appears to be a difference here.
>
>For the gory detailed photos, go here:
>http://www.teampanteraracing.com/gallery2/v/asajay/pantera/rearsusp/
>
>The short story is;
>- I bought the first set of bushings along with the ball joints last 
>year from Wilkinson.
>- The replacements I got just this month.
>- The ones from last summer are a full eighth inch longer than those I 
>recently received.
>- The ones from last summer extend a good sixteenth to eighth inch 
>farther on the outboard side.
>- I'm not putting these in my car.
>
>Questions:
>- Are there differences in a-arm bushings based on the year of build?
>- Has anyone else run into this?
>- Should I extract the front a-arm bushings and re-do them since they 
>suffered the same problem but I muscled them in anyway?
>- Should I have gone with aftermarket poly bushings instead?
>
>I'll be giving Steve a call tomorrow to ask him what he knows as well.  
>This certainly won't do.  I'm guessing he didn't know about the 
>difference.  Both parts were labeled the same, but one is definitely not 
>going to work.
>
>Comments?
>Asa Jay
>
>Asa Jay Laughton, MSgt, USAFR, Retired
>
>& Shelley Marie
>Spokane, WA
>
>1973 Pantera L 5533
>[ASASCAT]
>    
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>http://www.asajay.com
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