Good topic timing.

I have been considering this for awhile now. It kinda irked me that the rear lower arms are an all or nothing affair. Well, I'm not buyin' it. (sorry, couldn't resist that ) There's a large selection of "generic" polyurethane suspension bushings available, but then of course it's up to the end user to make it all work out. Since I can machine parts in my garage, I wanted to pull the rear suspension apart, take some precise measurements, order some material, and make some choices (and parts!). My plan was to bore out the old material without affecting the aluminum part itself. (this, I can do). Of course, due to the nature of the original parts, it's a one way ticket once I head down that road.......

Anyway, my thought was to bore out the old material and make the replacement as a tight press-fit, but I would also need to make the part such that I can position the arm correctly in it's mounting location, and move as necessary. On one hand, I'm not real concerned about being able to do that, but then I am reminded of the saying: "Satisfaction is that feeling you have before you know all the facts." Or something like that.

But for 2 factors, I'd just dive into it this weekend -

1. My work schedule for the next 2 months and 7 days is brutal, and

2. I'd have to deal with "Honey, how long is the BMW going to be jacked up and in my parking spot in the garage?" This issue is because #1. precludes speedy resolution if I start.

So if you get to this and get it sorted, by all means plz post info. If not, I plan to pull mine apart and make my own polyurethane bushings from appropriate material, but this won't happen until after April. When I do, I'll so inform the group, and see whaddup from there.

Best,

Civdiv99