Tranny Bushing Review

[Dan12GT]

Got mine the other day and did the install in about 10-15 mins. The part that took me the longest was getting the car in the air.

My review of the part:

* Definitely stiffened the tyranny up, some noticeable extra vibrations coming through the floor boards but nothing excessive.
* Definite improvement in shift responsiveness.
* Overall it feels solid and more fun to drive.

I highly recommend this part. Also I am completely stock as far as the shifter goes and to be honest right now I think i'll keep it that way. I've done a few high rpms shifts and it feels good no lock-out.

Thank again Vorshlag, a great product indeed!

[emery2483]

how much was it?

[modernbeat]

how much was it?

Link to the part: Whiteline Positive Shift Kit for MT82 S197 Mustang [KDT928] (http://www.vorshlag.com/product_info.php?cPath=141_142_264&products_id=617)


Including tax and shipping in Texas it runs right under $40. You can also pick one up in person at the shop.

Bonus, you get to meet Terry!

http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/Product-Pictures/Whiteline-Suspension/i-vBHkJsk/0/M/_DSC0125%20copy-M.jpg

[03MachMe]

Picked mine up at the shop today. It will be going in this weekend with my other parts

[46Tbird]

I stopped by on Friday to get one. Terry wasn't there, he was working out at the gym while his crew were at the shop busting ass. The V8 Miata is going to be badass and the Chump C4 is going to be DQ'd!

The bushing works as advertised, but the vibrations in the floorboard at ~2500rpm are gnarly. I've driven solid engine mount cars for years and they don't make the chassis groan like this thing does. I'll probably pull it out for daily duty, it's a bit much for that. But it's cheap, very effective, and since it takes about 5 minutes to install it I'll just toss it in when I know I'll be working it hard. Great mod, especially for the price.

[DirtyD]

I stopped by on Friday to get one. Terry wasn't there, he was working out at the gym while his crew were at the shop busting ass. The V8 Miata is going to be badass and the Chump C4 is going to be DQ'd!

The bushing works as advertised, but the vibrations in the floorboard at ~2500rpm are gnarly. I've driven solid engine mount cars for years and they don't make the chassis groan like this thing does. I'll probably pull it out for daily duty, it's a bit much for that. But it's cheap, very effective, and since it takes about 5 minutes to install it I'll just toss it in when I know I'll be working it hard. Great mod, especially for the price.
A lot of people figured out that if you cut the center section off the bushing, the floorboard vibrations go away about 95%

[Grandpa]

I stopped by on Friday to get one. Terry wasn't there, he was working out at the gym while his crew were at the shop busting ass. The V8 Miata is going to be badass and the Chump C4 is going to be DQ'd!

The bushing works as advertised, but the vibrations in the floorboard at ~2500rpm are gnarly. I've driven solid engine mount cars for years and they don't make the chassis groan like this thing does. I'll probably pull it out for daily duty, it's a bit much for that. But it's cheap, very effective, and since it takes about 5 minutes to install it I'll just toss it in when I know I'll be working it hard. Great mod, especially for the price.

Thanks for the review, Danny. I'll skip this mod. If I wanted a vibrating shitbox I would have stayed with foxes. lol.

[GunsUp]

Good review. Thanks for the info Danny

[Fair]

I stopped by on Friday to get one. Terry wasn't there, he was working out at the gym while his crew were at the shop busting ass. The V8 Miata is going to be badass and the Chump C4 is going to be DQ'd!

hehe, agree with you on that last bit!

The bushing works as advertised, but the vibrations in the floorboard at ~2500rpm are gnarly. I've driven solid engine mount cars for years and they don't make the chassis groan like this thing does. I'll probably pull it out for daily duty, it's a bit much for that. But it's cheap, very effective, and since it takes about 5 minutes to install it I'll just toss it in when I know I'll be working it hard. Great mod, especially for the price.

I'm not sure why some cars/people notice a bad vibration and others don't see this. We've nailed it down to two possible causes:

1. Installing the bushing insert backwards. We've seen it done, and it takes talent, but if you follow the included instructions you can't screw it up. It will go in from the wrong direction but you have to force it in and it doesn't fit right. To install this kit correctly you have to DROP the transmission crossmember, and we think some folks are trying to short cut this step and shove it in from the wrong side.

http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/Product-Pictures/Whiteline-Suspension/i-PB4tXTQ/0/L/_DSC1571-L.jpg (http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/Product-Pictures/Whiteline-Suspension/i-PB4tXTQ/0/X3/_DSC1571-X3.jpg)

1. A. Some folks cut the center tip off of the insert to reduce vibrations, but we haven't needed to do this yet. and that piece is a big chunk of the bushing insert.

2. Other parts in the driveline that are already amplifying the NVH. Aluminum 1-piece driveshafts might be a culprit, but I suspect it is aftermarket shifters. Many people use aftermarket short shift kits, which generally replace the body mounted shift bushing (with poly or metal), remove a bushing in the shift arm (going to a solid shaft), and some other parts are made metal - to the point that MOST shifters already add some buzz. Maybe this WL bushing kit added to a few brands of shifters causing "too much?? Don't know, because of the dozen or so we've installed on '11-14 Mustangs, many of which had shifters, we have yet to see one buzz. ???

http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/Racing-Events/NASA-ECR-Nov-110213/i-xLc3PgR/1/L/_DSC9511-L.jpg (http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/Racing-Events/NASA-ECR-Nov-110213/i-xLc3PgR/1/X3/_DSC9511-X3.jpg)

All I know is that I noticed a tiny bit of added NVH but felt a LOT more connected to the shifter when rowing the gears. Recently we installed some aftermarket "Race" poly motor mounts, too. No massive NVH increase, to me. I drove the car around town recently, and it is generally pretty quiet under 4000 rpms, I could barely detect a vibration. In a typical race weekend I might make a few hundred shifts and I've had no missed gears or issues since adding the Whiteline KDT928 kit + a Steeda rear shift bushing (95A poly), and recently race poly motor mounts. But I still use the stock shifter, and gladly.

http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/Projects/Vorshlag-2011-Mustang-GT-build/i-Rp2HMf9/1/L/_DSC9107-L.jpg (http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/Projects/Vorshlag-2011-Mustang-GT-build/i-Rp2HMf9/1/X3/_DSC9107-X3.jpg)

Your Results May Vary.

[DirtyD]

So which direction is backwards?

Instruction show to insert the bushing from the front of the cross member (facing the back of the vehicle). I can't insert it the other direction because of my Stiffler's DS loop.

[BERT]

Y'all have these in stock now, right?

[modernbeat]

So which direction is backwards?

Instruction show to insert the bushing from the front of the cross member (facing the back of the vehicle). I can't insert it the other direction because of my Stiffler's DS loop.

Correct, it is inserted from the front. I suspect that some of these aren't getting inserted all the way and the flange that sticks out then contacts the aluminum crossmember and transmits a LOT of vibrations then. When you insert it make sure it's completely home and it should ONLY touch rubber. If it touches the aluminum crossmember it will vibrate.

Y'all have these in stock now, right?

Yes, we still have some in stock.

[BERT]

Correct, it is inserted from the front. I suspect that some of these aren't getting inserted all the way and the flange that sticks out then contacts the aluminum crossmember and transmits a LOT of vibrations then. When you insert it make sure it's completely home and it should ONLY touch rubber. If it touches the aluminum crossmember it will vibrate.



Yes, we still have some in stock.



Well if y'all still have some in a couple of weeks when i'm in town i'll stop by.

[46Tbird]

Installed mine from the front. I took the crossmember and trans mount out, then used lube and a vise to make sure the bushing was seated all the way. I verified it wasn't touching the crossmember before installing back in the car. I'm pretty particular about suspension and drivetrain parts being installed correctly.

I'm also a wuss, so it's been too cold for me to get back under it and see what's up. I might trim the whole center piece out like some have to see if that makes a difference. If it does, I'll report back. In the meantime, banging gears like a madman has been fun.

PS - I have some generic poly bushing "shifter bracket" in the car. Otherwise the drivetrain is 100% stock.

[46Tbird]

Figgered it out.

Took down the trans mount and it was immediately apparent that the lower/wider section of the WL bushing was protruding through far enough to make contact with the crossmember. It was obvious where it was rubbing.

So I grabbed a razor blade and trimmed off the part that protrudes through the trans mount, about 3/8", all the way across. Some people whack off that whole lower section of the bushing, but that seems drastic.

Took it for a spin and NVH-wise I can't even tell anything is different than stock, but high rpm shifts are precise as before. This is how it's supposed to feel.

Pic of the remnant below.

[03MachMe]

Figgered it out.

Took down the trans mount and it was immediately apparent that the lower/wider section of the WL bushing was protruding through far enough to make contact with the crossmember. It was obvious where it was rubbing.

So I grabbed a razor blade and trimmed off the part that protrudes through the trans mount, about 3/8", all the way across. Some people whack off that whole lower section of the bushing, but that seems drastic.

Took it for a spin and NVH-wise I can't even tell anything is different than stock, but high rpm shifts are precise as before. This is how it's supposed to feel.

Pic of the remnant below.

Sweet! I'll have to trim mine once I get the time to Jack the car up again.

[DirtyD]

Figgered it out.

Took down the trans mount and it was immediately apparent that the lower/wider section of the WL bushing was protruding through far enough to make contact with the crossmember. It was obvious where it was rubbing.

So I grabbed a razor blade and trimmed off the part that protrudes through the trans mount, about 3/8", all the way across. Some people whack off that whole lower section of the bushing, but that seems drastic.

Took it for a spin and NVH-wise I can't even tell anything is different than stock, but high rpm shifts are precise as before. This is how it's supposed to feel.

Pic of the remnant below.

Awesome! Thanks for that update!

[Dan12GT]

To be honest the vibration is not bad at all. I feel people who complain about it are a bit on the picky side but it's your car and you are entitled to that view point.

I defiantly noticed some vibs but nothing crazy. It's obvious why the void was there in the first place to increase driving comfort and lesson vibrations. When you start modifying the car these are some of the to be expected items to anticipate. Especially if you are putting a hunk of rubber in an area by design is not supposed to have anything there.

I like the vibs, because race car!! :)

[03MachMe]

I agree Danny it's not bad at all in my car but if I can cut just the end off and it gets rid of it but still does its job why not lol

[46Tbird]

I defiantly noticed some vibs but nothing crazy.


Then we definitely did not have the same experience. The sound and feel inside my car was pretty outrageous, to the point I had two people ask, unprompted, what was wrong with it.

Now that I trimmed an unnecessary 3/8" of material off the bushing, it works as designed and the "vibs" are minimal.

[Dan12GT]

Then we definitely did not have the same experience. The sound and feel inside my car was pretty outrageous, to the point I had two people ask, unprompted, what was wrong with it.

Now that I trimmed an unnecessary 3/8" of material off the bushing, it works as designed and the "vibs" are minimal.

Interesting... I wonder how we could have such a drastic difference. Maybe some variations in the construction of the bushing during manufacturing...

[GreggASmith]

I agree there is a noticeable change in NVH, but I haven't been locked out of 3rd on a corner exit since installing it. It plain and simple works!