ALK and other bushing questions.

[coffeeman885]

So when I went to change my gear oil the other day I noticed that there was fluid leaking from the back of the A arm. After the rallycross yesterday I looked and it is really coming out now and there is some clunking coming from that side when I shift while accelerating hard. So I believe that I have completely trashed that guy.

A few questions about replacement:
1. Can I drive on this for a while without it messing anything up?
2. What exactly are my ALK options with this car?
3. Within the options available is there any that stand out. I am going to beat the hell out of it on the rallycross course so it needs to be stout. Since any non-metallic bushings are legal in my class I would like to get something that gives me some extra caster too.
4.How much of a PITA are the TL/ALK bushings to change out?
5. Are there any bushing kits (Prothane, Energy Suspension, etc...) that are made for newer subies that fit my car?

Thanks for the help in advance.

[jamal]

An ALK will change the toe by a pretty decent amount so you'll want to get it aligned or at least check it with wood and tape measurers or something.

Whiteline part KCA319A

The ALK part is the same for all 90-04 legacys and 93-07 Imprezas, but the ALK for the 02-07 impreza, part KCA359, includes a bunch of spacers for the subframe brace our cars don't have and costs more. Most online sellers don't list KCA319 but it is in stock at whiteline in the US so anyone who sells whiteline like rallysportdirect or turninconcepts can get it for you if you ask. KCA319M is the motorsports version with a super hard bushing.

It's a pretty straightforward install.

Pretty much all bushings for all subarus are the same except for the newer cars. So almost any bushing for an GC or GD will fit with the exception of the GD inner front control arm bushings because the subframe is a little different.

I have an ALK, all the turn in concepts rear suspension bushings. It's pretty good. Hardest thing to change out was the front trailing arm bushing.

[coffeeman885]

Will the KCA359 ALK work on our cars? I might have found one for a decent price. What about the Perrin PSRS ones? Any experience with those. I am going to try to search the forums for a bit before buying from a dealer.

[jamal]

yes, kca359 is the same part, just includes a bunch of spacers you don't need.

Whiteline's my favorite because they're the ones that actually did all the work and developed the part and did the analysis on the suspension geometry. All the others are a copy, and most of the imitators don't even know what the part actually does. Perrin, for example, claims their PSRS reduces front end lift, when it actually does the opposite.

[Legacy777]

I would agree with Jamal about Whiteline. They were the ones who did the design and know what's going on. I've got an old email from one of the Whiteline techs/reps talking about the ALK and how it actually takes the anti lift geometry out when compared to the stock piece.

For me, changing the rear trailing arm bushing in the hub was the worst. I had a shop do the front bushing in the trailing arm. I cut the old one out, but he had to fabricate a piece to get the new STi bushings in. If I had to do it all over again, I probably would have just gone with the poly bushings instead of the STi hardened rubber bushings.