Front LCA Bushings - Energy vs Prothane & LGT vs WRX/STI

Hi everyone,

 

So a few weeks ago when replacing my front passenger side CV axle (yay for torn boots) I noticed that my rear LCA bushing was torn. I plan on replacing them when I also do my 105k mile maintenance since that is coming up quite soon.

 

Does anyone have any experience with Energy Suspension vs Prothane for these bushings? From what I've read they seem to be very similar to each other, but the Energy ones are supposedly a slightly lower durometer (hardness). Just want to clarify this as this is my daily, but I'm not worried about a slight NVH increase, but if one is going to be less than the other I would like to know.

 

Secondly, I want to clarify whether or not the front LCA front bushings are the same for the '05 LGT and the '08-'12 WRX and STI. I know that the rear bushings are the same, but I haven't been able to find much info on the front ones. My confusion is coming from looking at the compatibility list for these bushings, because Energy Suspension lists one kit for the '08-'10 WRX that is compatible with the Legacy and another for the '08-'12 WRX that isn't compatible with the Legacy. Knowing that the only variable here, given that the rear bushings are the same, is the front bushing, I went to Whiteline's website to confirm that the front bushings are different. This didn't seem to be the case there though, as the front bushings have listed compatibility for the Legacy and WRX/STI. Just looking for some input here as I really don't know what the truth is for this situation.

 

Prothane - Front and Rear (Compatible): https://www.energysuspensionparts.com/16303

 

Energy - Front and Rear (Not Compatible): https://www.energysuspensionparts.com/19.3102

 

Whiteline - Front Only: https://whitelineperformance.com/collections/all/products/w0506-bushing-kit

 

Any input on either question would be greatly appreciated as I am a bit lost, thank you in advance!

I have used OEM, Energy and now Whiteline bushings in my LCAs they all seem to have their pros and cons and I drive hard, very hard, autox, track, etc.

 

The OEM bushings are pretty durable but are probably best for low maintenance on a daily driver and NVH is the best. The pros are they are cheap, easy to replace if you have a press and last a long time as long as they are torqued correctly. Cons are loss of precision/feel compared to the more firm options. On a DD they are probably the best bet for comfortable ride. New ones will probably work wonders if just replacing neglected ones.

 

The Energy bushings are ok, they are hard and cheap with increased NVH which is not necessarily good or bad. But, I had a problem with the right rear popping out of the LCA and eventually a catastrophic failure of the right front one at the track, I had to limp home, it basically shredded and fell out leaving me with a very crappy drive home. So pros are firm and inexpensive, easy to install if you have a press. Cons are they are not bonded like OEM, can be prone to failure and require constant inspection and lube. Maybe ok for a DD with some spirited driving. I don't think they are designed well enough for repeated hard driving.

 

Whiteline feel softer than Energy and they are pricey, but firmer than OEM for sure. The rear is partially bonded (only to the outer ring, an important distinction) so less likely to need constant maintenance for that one BUT the front bushings are very similar to the Energy ones with the exception that the inner surfaces seem engineered to retain grease a little better. For the price, I feel like they aren't that much of an improvement over the Energy ones, I already cracked the left rear one and the center hole seems to be expanding as they wear, I have had them less than a year. The right front is already damaged too, because of how the LCAs are designed the poly bushings will be cut by the LCA by routine use. Like the Energy bushings, these require constant inspection and the front ones need lube.

 

For me, I am going to get a set of the Mevotech aluminum units from Rock Auto and see how they do. Maybe best bang for the buck for me is to put OEM bushings back on the OEM steel LCAs in front but also maybe try the Prothane ones in the back, might be a good combo for me for spares I can swap at the track. Or maybe even get a new pair of whitelines for the rear, maybe my cracked one was a fluke.

 

What I'd like to know is why the price difference between 20204AG011 and 20204AG01B. All my spare bearings are marked AG011, even the ones I bought as AG01B, makes me wonder what I am missing or why people are paying a premium for basically the same $12 bearings.

Edited September 17, 2018 by TonyF

Curious as to the difference between the Mevotech and MAS lower control arms from Rock Auto?

 

Price difference was about $18CDN, so I ordered the MAS units (MAS CB72053/4).

gonna give you an even harder choice, look into Group N front LCA bushings.

 

made by subaru in OEM castings and such but have a higher durometer for a bit more support.

I would avoid ES or Prothane, both are inferior designs for a part that needs to pivot a lot, the way it pivots it will eventually pop out too, which is what TonyF ran into.

 

I personally am running Whiteline's caster adjustable ones (KCA334) on my 05 LGT, have been for 5 years and 50k miles. Handling improvement over 100k stock ones was amazing, and NVH didn't increase at all IMO.

 

I recently replaced my '12 Outback's bushing this time the only real option was AVO (though hard to find) or SuperPro. I went with Super Pro's and I love them. They didn't increase NVH at all, and have pivoting built into them (like AVO's).

 

Once my whitelines wear out, I'm gonna buy SuperPro SPF2803K for the 05 LGT, plus they have lifetime warranty unlike KCA334's which are only 3 years.

Thanks, good to know, covertrussian. I am in an apartment with limited garage access so I went with the aluminum LCAs with built in bushings.

 

When this happens again I'll look at the SuperPros and hopefully I'll have a garage I can tinker with again.

Keep in mind that those built in bushings are still crap and will have to be replaced in a few thousand miles. It's a curse of our LCA design, it forces bushings to bend unnaturally, which is real bad and why 2015+ Subaru's switched from it.

 

So far only Avo's or SuperPro's are designed to articulate without binding or stretching the bushing, both Whiteline bushing kits have voids but they are not significant enough for the amount of travel stock suspension endure.

 

Now Subaru realized this too and newer STI's (I believe 2011+), have pillow ball bushings (ball and a socket). Which is also designed to articulate properly without overstretching, binding and ripping the bushings.

Now Subaru realized this too and newer STI's (I believe 2011+), have pillow ball bushings (ball and a socket). Which is also designed to articulate properly without overstretching, binding and ripping the bushings.

 

would those press into the 05 to 09 arms, or would it have to be a cut and weld to make work sort of deal?

They are much bigger in diameter, so cut and weld, alternatively the whole LCA might be similar enough to use since Subaru tends to keep similar designs (but that's an expensive way to find out).

 

Legacy GT LCA (Mevotech CMS80182) - Notice this bushing has no voids (I confirmed this in person too), which is bad and would cause binding and stress on aluminum it self, unless the bushing is really soft.

 

2012 STI LCA (Mevotech CMS801178) - Notice the big bushing difference

 

They look similar enough, but without comparing them side by side it's a guessing game. STI one seems to extend out further, which would actually increase track width and negative camber.

 

Just found pictures of the STI arms on 2011+ STI's.

 

It still has rubber voids, which makes it be a pointless upgrade.

http://image.superstreetonline.com/f/34842135+w+h+q80+re0+cr1+ar0+st0/modp_1011_05_o%2B2011_subaru_impreza_wrx_sti%2Bcontrol_arm_bushing.jpg

 

The mounting is actually pretty interesting, ours bolts to the body, this one is bolting to just to a flat bracket on the bottom. This seems odd and not structurally sound, maybe it's a cutaway from a display model?

http://image.superstreetonline.com/f/29231786+w+h+q80+re0+cr1+ar0+st0/modp_1011_04_o%2B2011_subaru_impreza_wrx_sti%2Bfront_control_arm.jpg

Edited September 22, 2018 by covertrussian

The mounting is actually pretty interesting, ours bolts to the body, this one is bolting to just to a flat bracket on the bottom. This seems odd and not structurally sound, maybe it's a cutaway from a display model?

http://image.superstreetonline.com/f/29231786+w+h+q80+re0+cr1+ar0+st0/modp_1011_04_o%2B2011_subaru_impreza_wrx_sti%2Bfront_control_arm.jpg

 

It mounts into the body of the car just like ours. This picture is from a drivetrain/suspension model. There is kind of a frame holding everything together instead of the body. They had one of these in the lobby of their HQ when I was there back in 2014.

Do they make group N LCA bushings for our cars? My ‘08 Outback daily is due and I’m considering just going OEM as I’m not really interested in extra NVH but would love something a just a bit more durable

Is there any consensus on the Energy 19.3104 front control arm bushings? Good , bad, ok?

 

There seems to be a negative opinion on the Energy - is it because they have no sleeve?

 

By the way it looks like SuperPro now makes a fully loaded control arm... not bad. Is this a good option? I'm not that concerned about the $260 price tag (from Vivid Racing) since it will save me some time dealing with a shop to press in bushings, I don't have a press.

https://superprousa.com/products/trc1058-control-arm-lower-assembly-kit

Edited December 3, 2021 by pjcampbell