Subject: Duh ! scroll to the right ! - And - Adjustable dog bones? Author: erwin : member since November, 2007 : 880 posts Posted on: 2008-03-27 10:16:12

Ok, my bad. I didn't notice the picture was that big, and didn't scroll to the right.

So these are Meyle? They are completely different design than mine. I guess it's the difference between the 735 and 750 bushings. On my bushings, the inner part can slide right out, and there are rubber boots that seal against it, like on a tie rod end. The grease is inside the boots. From the pic, it doesn't look like your bushings slide at all.

I can post a pic of my bushings if you like.

The old bushings in my car are of the same design as my new ones, except the rubber boot on one end is longer than the other. But, now that I think about it, that could be the result of being in this position for 18 years.

The implication of the different designs is interesting. With your bushings, the left-to-right placement of the trailing arm is set in part by the bushing, and in part by the dog bones. It seems they would fight each other as the suspension goes through its travel (the end of the dogbone travels in an arc, so any position other than horizontal moves the trailing arm slightly outwards).

With the 750 bushings, the bog bones are entirely responsible for trailing arm placement, putting greater stress on them, but allowing the trailing arm to move freely.

I realized this this past weekend, when I was trying to decide why my new bushings didn't have a 'long' end. It occurred to me that if the dogbones place the trailing arm, then the length of the dogbone determines rear wheel camber. So, couldn't someone make different length arms to adjust the camber? Or going further, couldn't the dogbones be made adjustable in length? Changing the length would not affect rear toe, and since the rears don't steer, we don't have to worry about caster changes, and the wheelbase change would be minimal. It seems an ideal adjustment.

I'm sure I'm not the first to think of this, so the fact no one offers adjustable dog bones must mean there is something wrong with my thinking. Maybe there's not enough side-to-side travel potential in the bushings, to make a significant change in camber.

Does anyone know about this?

Erwin 89 750iL Lowered (a little)

Engine Wolf chips 19 lb, 4-hole (Design 3) fuel injectors PowerFlow Intake Air Filters Royal Purple 20W-50 In process: Custom Cold Air Boxes Interior Phone removed, replaced with cut-to-length dash wood trim on hinge E38 Shifter Knob, Console Plate, and Boot M-Tech 2 M-technic Steering Wheel - air bag deleted E38 Self-Dimming Mirror Audio BMW Business CD Player "CD43" Head Unit Refurbished factory amp w/equalizer Bass blockers (300hz/4ohm) on stock front kick panel speakers Rear deck speakers: Alpine SPS-13C2 5.25" 2 way 175 Watt with bass blockers Subwoofers: 2 JBL GTO804 8" 4-ohm subs Subwoofer install: custom sealed enclosure mounted behind ski bag opening Subwoofer amp: Alpine MRP-M450 400w MONO CD changer relocated to driver's door bottom pocket actuated by bio- mechanical arm controlled by semi-intelligent nut behind the wheel Suspension H&R Lowering Springs (1/2 coil removed from fronts) Koni adjustable front shocks Stock rear shocks (self leveling) Racing Dynamics Stress Bar Stock front sway bar Dinan rear sway bar - 21mm M5 aluminum lower control arms Front tires: 245-40-18 Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 on 8.5" EuroTech rims Rear tires: 275-40-18 Michelin Pilot Sport PS1 on 9.5" EuroTech rims Exterior 25% Side tint 5% Rear tint BMW Mud flaps - rears trimmed to tire width Rear fender lips rolled Smoked side markers Zymol wax Way too many paint chips touched up Brakes Front Rotors: 850CSi, 324 X 30 mm, cross-drilled and slotted Rear Rotors: stock size, cross-drilled and slotted Pads: Hawk Performance Ceramic (may switch to HPS) Stainless steel lines Racing Blue brake fluid

• Trailing Arm Bushings - 20 Tons is not enough (pic) - erwin 2008-03-24 01:34:20 (279 views)
  • Turns out you don't need tonnage, just a $30 tool, and some cold air (pic) (url) - erwin 2008-03-30 22:29:41 (144 views)
  • Thank You - kfister 2008-03-25 22:23:35 (60 views)
    • You're welcome - erwin 2008-03-26 01:30:14 (70 views)
      • BavAuto are OE bushings, sachs or something. - kfister 2008-03-26 03:03:06 (72 views)
        • Yes, I noticed the name difference - erwin 2008-03-26 10:54:23 (54 views)
          • I know bmwautopartsdealer and am surprised they export. (pic) - kfister 2008-03-27 00:16:29 (109 views)
            • I think we have some misunderstandings - erwin 2008-03-27 01:39:06 (60 views)
              • haha confusion. - kfister 2008-03-27 03:57:59 (59 views)
                • Duh ! scroll to the right ! - And - Adjustable dog bones? - erwin 2008-03-27 10:16:12 (71 views)
                  • Dog bones are just heim joints? Sure you could probably roll your own (pic) - kfister 2008-03-28 03:47:57 (106 views)
                    • 750iL Trailing arm bushing dimensions (pic) - erwin 2008-03-30 00:52:54 (101 views)
  • Re: Trailing Arm Bushings - 20 Tons is not enough - geerhed 2008-03-24 07:29:10 (65 views)
    • Um, about 30 deg positive camber, maybe 3.0 inches toe-out - erwin 2008-03-24 10:30:26 (94 views)
      • Re: Um, about 30 deg positive camber, maybe 3.0 inches toe-out - Isiah 90-735il 2008-03-26 04:52:52 (78 views)
        • Thanks, but they seem ok from the outside - should I break them apart? - erwin 2008-03-26 11:33:41 (59 views)
          • Dial indicator - kfister 2008-03-27 00:24:14 (55 views)
            • Thanks, I'll try that. (nt) - erwin 2008-03-27 10:18:18 (52 views)
          • Inner race is a two piece race (nt) - DG740I 3/93 2008-03-26 12:12:35 (53 views)