Polyeurethane vs Rubber Control Arm Bushings

[Gatsby]

I have an E46 330i (ZHP) sedan. While I do not 'track' the car...I do enjoy driving (with intent).

My question for the faithful is....

Polyeurethane vs Rubber / Front Control Arm Bushings pros and cons for each...

please help so I can make a good decision.

[Avetiso]

Lots of info on this, but poly is more durable, stiffer, but usually costs you comfort.

We have a few great threads on this, if someone can link... I'm in class right now.

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[QC_ZHP]

Im @ work so no links, but my vote goes towards poly. To me the comfort difference is minimal but the performance gain is noticeable. Polys are much easier to install/remove as well.

I'm sure others who went OEM can provide their insight on rubber

[LivesNearCostco]

I vote poly though I do track the car a few times per year. I think mine started squeaking about a year after installation when the grease dried up. New grease fixed that, and re-greasing is easy if you remove the reinforcement plate. Only reason I'm not sure it was the FCABs squeaking is I also have poly front swaybar bushings and regreased those at the same time.

Poly should last longer but OEM will be quiet without needing any grease, at least until they fail again. I guess good OEM ones should last 3 or 4 years, depending on mileage?

[KevinC]

For a non-track car, I'd definitely go rubber/stock, and just replace them at reasonable intervals.

[Hornung418]

AKG 75D FCABs if you truly want to flog her daily. I had them in my old car. They performed brilliantly!

[stephenkirsh]

There's Z4M control arm bushings. That's what I have. They're solid rubber instead of the stock gel-filled rubber.

Better performance
No ride quality difference
Should last 2-3 times longer than gel-filled
Same or very close to price as stock

The only downside is that you might new an alignment as it will adjust your castor.

[Lanister]

I got a set of AKG Poly (Street) FCABs. They're great. Check my project thread for deets.

Posts #185 and #197

[blalor]

I installed Powerflex bushings on my coupé last night. I couldn't detect any additional noise or harshness over the stock (worn out) bushings.

[TomTomTuning]

I had PowerFlex bushings on my last E46. They solved my problem and I didn't notice any increased stiffness, so I'll probably use them again on the ZHP when ever the time comes. My question is, because the poly bushing are stiffer, does that but any strain on other suspension components?