Gary,
Steering - I went with the Goodparts aluminum rack mounts
(www.goodparts.com). They are infinitely better than the stock TR6
mounts. No matter what I did, I could not get the stock mounts to hold
the rack dead still, the aluminum rack mounts took care of this. Also,
I did not notice any increase in vibration through the steering wheel -
and I have owned and driven this car in both Michigan and Pennsylvania,
neither of which are known for smooth roads!
Front suspension - definitely don't go with the stock rubber, unless
you're into originality for concours or something. I replaced my
bushings with stock rubber the first time, and they were falling about
within 5 years. I went with nylatron, again from Goodparts, and I love
them. Again, I did not notice any increase in vibration, but the car
is much more responsive. One note though - makes sure you lube them up
with some grease prior to installing, or they'll start squeaking in a
few months. If you don't want to go with nylatron, at least go with
poly. Also, make sure you inspect the upper ball joints and lower
trunnions when doing the rebuild, they'll likely need replacing. And
make sure you put some oil into the trunnions prior to reinstalling, to
keep things from seizing up.
Rear suspension: I went with uprated rubber bushings, but that's only
because I had not yet heard about Goodparts when doing this job.
Pressing hard rubber bushings into the trailing arms is a huge pain,
plus again they are rubber, and won't last as long. Nylatron or poly
bushings come split in the middle, so you just insert each half in,
rather than pressing an entire bushing through. It's much, much
easier. I went with the one-piece bracket type tube shock conversion,
sold through many vendors nowadays (I got mine through NAR Inc -
www.narinc.com). I have 205/65-15 tires, with no rubbing problems. I
went with Spax shocks, for both front and rear. But I hear good things
about KYB, and they are much cheaper. Also, if you are looking at
installing a rear sway bar, consider the Goodparts setup, these bars
are beautiful. A bit more expensive, but truly some professional grade
parts.
Differential - I relaced with stock rubber. Not sure if poly improves
things or not. While you've got this area apart, it might be a good
time to install the strenghtening plates available for the front diff
mounts, which are a weak point. This requires welding, so I put my car
on a trailer and took it to a local shop, who did the job pretty
cheaply. I got the plates from TRF.
Tim Holbrook
1971 TR6
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