My track bar bushing is gone. Are there any aftermarket ones that are better than stock?

 

Yes - the LazarSmith zero-deflection trackbar bushings eliminate the OEM soft rubber bushings' compliance without transmitting NVH like billet would. They are also available with offsets to compensate for front end lifts.

 

What is the installation process like?

Is a hydraulic press needed to install these?

 

I got some of these and they are AWESOME. But I tried to install them using a vice and sockets at home, even put a pipe on the vice and bent the handle. Ended up taking them to a friends shop and using his press. Getting the olds one out HARD, getting the new one in, Not so bad.

Worth every penny.

Or you could just buy a Thuren trackbar from ThurenFab which will be easier, but ALOT more expensive. I think the stock trackbar is a good piece with the right bushings.

 

The install is pretty straightforward - takes about half an hour in the shop, from drive in to drive out. Could be twice that if you do a few sets of 12 ounce curls in between.


Penetrating oil on the old bushings works wonders, and you can use a BFH, large vise or press... some folks have a torch handy and are prob'ly closet Pyros, so they melt out the rubber and the shells drop out pretty easy - but I don't like to hold my breath that long.
The new bushings go in much easier, after cleaning the trackbar bushing bores with sandpaper.


We even have a multiple-use tool available on the website now for R&R'ing the trackbar bushings!

I used it on a customer's truck a couple weeks ago at the office - all you need is a couple of wrenches, hammer and a concrete floor. I took an order for Sled Bars from a puller up in IN while I was doing it...

BTW - if you use a vise, here's a handy tip: after putting the right size sockets/sleeves/etc. on either side of the trackbar end in between the jaws, clamp down with the handle as much as you can and hit the vise jaw towards the body... works wonders, especially if you grunt when you smack it!

Of course, an extra pair of hands helps a bunch for the vise method; we can swap both bushings in less than 5 minutes on the he-man shop vise.

If you use a press, be sure to use a plate (read: at least 1/4") to distribute the load evenly upon insertion.

The stock trackbar is a stout piece, it just came from the factory with the wrong bushings!
You can also get a complete trackbar kit, which comes powdercoated in your choice of color with bushings installed and drilled & tapped for 304SS zerk fittings - some folks just gotta have something to plug their grease guns into - it helps them feel better after they can't find the one on the front driveshaft ()