pntbalmatt

I bought a 96 240sx this summer, and am concerned about the validity of some things I was told...

When I brake, i hear a distinct "click" in the front suspension. When I asked the seller why that was happening, he told me it was due to polyurethane bushings on the kyb shocks.

He also told me i had carbon fiber-backed brake pads, and changing the brake pads revealed a lack of any carbon or fiber. The spedometer is dropping off to 0mph randomly due to a loose solder joint somewhere behind the new gauge cluster he put in.

Because of all of these little things that the seller seems to have forgotten to tell me, I'm starting to wonder if my suspension should really be 'clicking'. Has anyone heard of polyurethane bushings clicking like that? If not, i should probably get under there and start replacing things...

Greaser

poly bushings will not click.

but bad steering rack bushings will. under braking is strange though. do you have 300z brakes or stock 240's? check your Tension rod bushings.(the ones right under the radiator that connect to the lower a arm.

if all fails, bring me the car......$20 an hr to figure it out.

pntbalmatt

gr, i just talked to someone else while i was out, and he said that polyurethane bushings DO click because they shift.

They seem to be clicking when i brake because weight is transferred onto the front suspension. it would make sense then, if the bushings do in fact click when they shift, and they are in fact shifting, that they would click.

Fabrik8

Carbon brake pads don't look like pretty woven carbon fiber. They use high temp resins or a metal or organic matrix, and are either black or dark gray. It's not easy to tell if they are carbon usually, unless you can see the front face of the pad. They won't look like organic pads, that's for sure..

Poly bushings do shift, but not enough that they should click. That would mean there is a lot of slop in the metal to metal parts of the bushing, and they are either really badly made or really really worn out. This click has everything to do with metal and nothing to do with polyurethane.

Greaser

whats the knowledge level of the guy you talked to? In my experience with bushings whether poly or metal shperical balls, they dont click and surely shouldnt "shift" the only place a bushing can be placed in the suspension is at the top to mount to the frame that surely shouldnt be moving and in the places where the arms mount to the subframes. There is no way a properly installed bushing will shift. You have to use a 20 ton press to get those things in there they're surely not going to move after you're done.

are you braking in a front line or while turning. If its during turning you have bad power steering rack bushings. If its while going straight you have bad tension rod bushings.

Jesus

I say Tension rod bushings also you might want to check the strut bolt of the strut. Mine was loose before....