Rear differential bushing failure
 

Is the old fluid residue I'm seeing basically the fluid coming out of the bushing?

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i1...4_231734_1.jpg

Yep. Looks like it.

Well ****. I feel a bang esp when I change gears so I guess this is the cause. Could this in any way relate to bad handling by chance?

Also, it looks like my front sway bar has moved a little bit towards the passenger side, any ideas what would cause this and how I can fix this?

Yes

It looks like it gave birth lol

Thanks, i ran across that diy earlier so ill be going by that this week for sure.

Do i have to remove the rear end to get to that one bushing?

Yes. Rear end needs to come down to do the bushings. See the DIY (it's my car in it) and let me know if you have any questions

Sweet, thanks for the write up. I'll order the bushings in the morning

The front bushings are being a bitch to get out, so I'm just going to cut them tomorrow. Something I noticed is that the white line front bushings are 2 pieces? Does the larger go on the bottom of the differential?

It is a sign that you have appropriately driven your Z. Upgrade to Whiteline.

Well I'm definately not easy on it. I have the whitelines sitting on my counter as we speak.

if your going to pull the diff to replace the bushings, might be the best time to look at diff upgrades or even just the diff upgrade kit from Z1

Yes, i read all the things I can do while its out. It took me 2 hours to get it out on my own with no with no air tools. I am not going to turn a $100 bushing job into a $3k differential and gear job over 2 hours worth of work.

Yes, its pretty straightforward. But for people without the tools or technical knowledge who would be bringing it to a shop it can be well worth it to do it all as a package. When I skimmed the replies I missed that you were doing it yourself. My bad.

I should of upgraded the bushing when I had nissan put in my quaife. The bushing was horrible to get out and since I did the SPL solid bushing it was a pain to put in too. I needed two people and a grade 8 fine thread bolt, a persuader, and a few grade 8 washers. He whiteline should be a breeze. Just make sure the rear bushing is flush before installing the diff as if it's a c_nt hair off the two forward bolts will not go in!

Is the bushing another weak link on our car much like the CSC? :confused:

if you bang gears often, then apparently yes. it was the same way on the 350z/G35C as well...

but ive had my G since 2004... no issue. same or similar 'weak' factory csc.. no issue either.

Yes, if you drive it like a rental car or race it.

could just be fluid venting out of the diff also

The rear and one of the front bushings was a bitch to get off. I'm putting everything back together now but have a question.

I know the top hats go on the top, where do the little rubber circles go? Or do I not reuse them?

The two front bushing were a little hard to get out. There were in there tight. I used a big socket and a 16oz hammer at first. The bushing sat there and laffed at me. I then wen tot my gym and grabbed my 20lbs dumbell and gave her one clean wack. I showed it!

As for the rear bushing, it's not bad if you plan and have space. I read as much as I could about it before I did my install. Get the back end as high up as possible, and remove as much of the center part of the OEM bushing out as possible prior to cutting the outside ring. The rubber binds the blade and makes it hard for the blade to cut. I used a bottle jack to push the middle out after I drilled a bunch of holes. It worked beautifully as shown in my videos. It took me a few hours because I was working mostly in the dark (I didn't start untill evening).

I did not use the little rubber disk that was on the bottom of the 2 front OEM bushings.

YzGyz

Thanks for the good info. One more question, on the top of the front bushings where the "top hats" are. Do the top hats go in with the petruding part facing down or up?

When I removed the diff, the "hats' had the protruding bump things up, touching the fram of the car. I reinstalled them the same exact way when I put it back together.

YzGyz

Got everything back together. I know the bushing was bad bc there was no fluid at all in it. But the car is still making a clanking sound when I shift.....

Does it still shift fine? Anything other than the clunk? Check clutch oil? heck, check all the oil.

No fluid issues. Shifts fine, just a clunk when I gas it. It is not a continuous sound. Just a clunk when I initially hit the gas

Humm... maybe it's not the drive train but loose something in suspension? Hard to diagnose from a pc screen.

I am 99% sure it's not suspension related bc I have looked it over way to many times. Chexk out this thread I just made in the repair section.

http://www.the370z.com/nissan-370z-w...ml#post3099039

Its probably the clunk that comes from the rear axle splines, remove the rear axles from the hubs, clean the splines and put some grease on the splines and re torque the axle nut back on. As per nissan the axle nuts are one time use but I reused mine just fyi if you wanted to get new ones.

Whiteline Diff bushings... not whiteline sway bar... just for reference.

I replaced the bushing and mine was in fact bad. But what was causing the clunk noise was actually the axle nuts on the driver side wheel being loose. I appreciate everyone's help.

Awesome glad you found it,the same exact thing happened to me. I installed the diff bushing and still had that clunk and then I found the axles to be the cause.

Well... This sucks! Only 35k on my 2015 and discovered the bushing is leaking. Time to order a replacement and spend a Saturday underneath the "Z"...

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4458/...af4f10_z_d.jpg

Z1 now has a bushing puller that actually works on the Z34. If you're willing to pay for it or can borrow one, it makes quick work removing the OEM bushing. Otherwise, plenty of people have cut out the busted bushing with a saw-z-all.

I ordered that too... :tup: I don't plan on taking a drill and sawzall to my subframe..

Once done with it I will sell for a discount to another person in need...

I don't track my car and have only done a handful of semi-hard launches, so this is rather disappointing. On the other hand I don't mind an excuse to spend the day working on the car... ;)

The Z1 bushing removal tool doesn't make it easier. I purchased it and used it but would have been easier to cut it out. It took my son and I one pulling and the other using their foot for enough force to push it out using Z1's puller. You can't use an impact on it either causes too much heat.

Interesting. I'll report back on my results. I've got a breaker bar and some tubing for leverage if needed, although the space to work will be limited. I also have a sawzall if needed.

Would it be a good idea to hit it will some penetrating oil?