Does Anyone Have Polyurethane Body Mounts?

[CrustyJunker]

I couldn't find anything juicy in the search function. Is anyone out there running polyurethane body mounts / body mount bushings?

My truck has a bad one where the steel inner core rotted out, now the passenger rear of the cab is drooping noticeably.

I was just gonna replace the one with a new rubber one, but I haven't seen anywhere where I can just get the one for that location. I also haven't checked the dealer, but I'm sure it's expensive.

I see a couple fair priced polyurethane body mount kits out there. Energy Suspension and Prothane. Anyone out there running one? How's the ride compared to before? Any obnoxious squeaks? Fitment issues?

Thanks guys!

 

[BeatUp98]

Interested in this as well because supposedly polyurethane mounts will be a stiffer and less forgiving ride and on these trucks there's a thread somewhere talking about the nnbs rear cab mount swap. I guess the swap makes the ride noticeably better and I know duramax guys do it and the nbs I can't remember if anyone commented about doing it on an obs. I would say longevity would greatly increase but the overall ride of the truck would stiffen some and you might feel more vibrations due to less dampening assuming polyurethane is indeed stiffer than oem rubber.

 

[1999gmc]

years ago I did polyurethane mounts on my lifted 1985 suburban. Definitely felt more vibrations from everything. I personally will never use them again. Seamed like there was more road noise too on the freeway after I did the mounts.

 

[El Tigre]

Found plenty of decent ones in salvage yard. Lowers are easy pickings with a breaker bar/ratchet... One needs a prying tool of some type to retrieve the upper mounts. Grill needs removed to get to the front ones..

 

[wingman]

Hey guys,
I fitted Energy to my standard cab stepside 2wd a few months ago. The biggest change for me was the huge reduction in cab shudder. Mind you, the original rubber mounts were really shot.....
Installation was easy, I was lucky in all the bolts came out without drama!
Probably more vibrations, but my truck is lowered and has always been a bit bumpy.
Helped the cab alignment, though the driver side still seems a bit lower, must do some measurements I guess.
No squeaks as far as I can tell, but the Flowmaster may cover that!
Altogether, pleased with the upgrade.
Very few yards for American trucks over here in the UK, so I have to ship mostly from US.
Hope this all helps! Paul.

 

[wingman]

Hey guys,
I fitted Energy to my standard cab stepside 2wd a few months ago. The biggest change for me was the huge reduction in cab shudder. Mind you, the original rubber mounts were really shot.....
Installation was easy, I was lucky in all the bolts came out without drama!
Probably more vibrations, but my truck is lowered and has always been a bit bumpy.
Helped the cab alignment, though the driver side still seems a bit lower, must do some measurements I guess.
No squeaks as far as I can tell, but the Flowmaster may cover that!
Altogether, pleased with the upgrade.
Very few yards for American trucks over here in the UK, so I have to ship mostly from US.
Hope this all helps! Paul.

And try removing the headlights for access to the front bolts, I did it like that.

 

[delta_p]

I just put the energy urethane kit no. 3.4123 on my C1500 and the ride feels pretty good, a little stiffer maybe. Original suspension was shot and I re-did the front and rear suspension and put these body mounts. It's an easy job, and as stated above removing the front light allows access to the bolt for removal. That's the only place that had a bolt and a nut to access. And the rubber will need prying loose off the upper washer mount.
I have been raising this truck from the dead and neglected recently
Truck is a bone stock '96 rcsb 5.7l w/158K mi which i have owned since new.

 

[CrustyJunker]

Thanks for the responses everyone! I think I'm going to just take my chances on the Energy Suspension 3.4123G polyurethane kit. Of all the research I did, (nothing specific to our truck applications) general consensus is...

-As far as durometer goes, Prothane's bushings are typically harder than Energy Suspension.

-Both Prothane and Energy Suspension have a color choice of red or black.

-Color difference? I hear the red ones are just pretty and black ones may contain trace amounts graphite to help keep the squeaking down.

-Both companies have their own recommended installation lubricant to eliminate the squeaks.

I'm not familiar with the world of polyurethane bushings, but I'd like to think squeaking is more common in a control arm or sway bar application than a non-moving/rotating isolator bushing.

-Prothane's website says "RATINGS ARE NOT AFFECTED BY THE COLOR," no specification on graphite content.

-Energy Suspension's website FAQ's read "Few of our selected black polyurethane components contain graphite to add a lubrication property." I don't know about you guys, but that tells me, "not all the black ones contain graphite." -which would help keep the squeaking down.​

 

[El Tigre]

Black are graphite impregnated,and red are not. At least when dealing with EnergySuspension...

 

[CrustyJunker]

Black are graphite impregnated,and red are not. At least when dealing with EnergySuspension...

Good deal, thanks!