[Resolved] Leaf Spring Bushings = $$$$

I fell off my chair and pooped my pants when I checked the price of these things. From the dealer they cost between $35 and $49 each, and there are 6 of them. What makes them so expensive, and do they wear out?

 

They're rubber and last a long time.

So I'll ask, how is it your bushings are worn and your leaf pack is still good?

Just asking out of curiosity.

 

Yesterday I was checking out Timmy's videos and looked at one where he replaces the leaf spring bushings on an earlier (1985 or so) truck. The ones he replaced were torn.

I have a little problem with side-to-side sway on the interstate and thought that maybe my bushings were tearing too. It was too cold outside to crawl around under the truck so I just checked the prices instead and was really shocked.

 

Side to side sway can be attributed to multiple other things.

Wheel bearings good?

Control arm bushings good?

Steering rack bushings good?

You can tell if your leaf pack is good or not just by looking at them from outside the truck.

 

Are the sway bar links broken?

 

OEM is "going* to be expensive, especially for a 23 year old truck. Honestly, they'd probably be selling you new old stock that's been sitting on the shelf for 20 years.

And yes, they do wear out. Everything wears out eventually. But they do tend to last a long time.

If you shop aftermarket, you'll have way less poop in your pants.

Say what you want about the energy suspension poly bushings, but for $50 for a whole set, that's pretty good. People say they squeak and whatnot, but at least with what I've experienced, proper lube goes a long way to quiet springs.

 

I have 98 Rwd and the bushings on front of leafs are larger than the 4 rear in the shackle....
I replaced the front with the expensive oem ones and went poly for the 4 rear.....
Its the top shackle ones especially the black rubber ones that wear out first...

I'll probably never replace the front again....just the rear every 150k or so....

For 1995-2009 Toyota Tacoma Leaf Spring Bushing Rear 96911RH 2000 1997 2004 2002 | eBay

You just got to double check your sizes....after market shakles have different inner shaft diameters....I had to shim my lowers with silicone tube sleeves to fit the poly bushings....

Sometimes the press-in shakle shafts come loose or wallow out, play at high stress...then the whole shakle set needs to be replaced.....

 

First of all I would like to thank all of you for your comments and help.

@Kwikvette:
Wheel bearings and control arm bushings are tight. I have been to three different places to have those items checked. There are no squeaks or other noises, and there is no movement from those items when the wheels are moved vertically or horizontally. I've been told by the mechanic at each place that they are still okay.

Sorry, I can't tell that the leaf packs are good or bad by simply looking at them. When I bought the truck new they were arched just like they were on the other eight or nine 1998 TRD trucks that were on the lot, and that's how they look today.

@b_r_o:
The sway bar links are not broken and their rubber cushions are new. (And the steering rack and bushings and sway bar mount bushings were replaced a year ago.)

@jbrandt:
I'm not sure that polyurethane bushings will help because I don't think that they provide the same amount of flex as the oem rubber bushings. And (this is my opinion only) I think that if polyurethane bushings were somehow "better than" rubber bushings then Toyota would use them.

@O'Silver_Taco:
I went to the dealer yesterday. The man in the Parts Dept. looked at his computerized parts book and verified that the bushings that go in the front and rear of the spring are identical. Then he showed me what he was looking at and I agreed with him. Same part number.

The link you provided clearly states that the parts are for a 2000, a 1997, a 2004, and a 2002 Tacoma. Mine is a 1998. I went to the site just to verify and this is what I received:

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Is that parts.toyota.com or a dealer site? The dealers all have a separate system. I'd check on the official Toyota site with your vin number and see what you get there.

 

"better" is subjective and depends on many factors. King or Icon coilovers aren't "better" if your criteria is longevity with zero maintenance, and cost.

If you want a "smoother" ride and little to no maintenance, the OEM rubber bushings are better. But if you want more precise suspension and not to limit suspension articulation, then poly is better.

There's also the issue of cost and design criteria. Toyota doesn't by any stretch of the imagination put the "best" of anything on these trucks (again, depending on what your needs are). None of us would be able to afford them if they did.