In Need of Cradle Mount Bushings

Hey folks. Last inspection back in March of this year, the inspector told me about the Cradle Mount Bushings, on my '88 Riviera T-type, needed replaced in order to pass next year. Specifically, inner rear mount on the driver's side. It has deteriorated beyond it's usefulness. As of now, the Riv is garage bound with only short 1-2 mile trips. Both on the passenger's side are rusted, but still holding up. Either way I would like to replace those 3. Oddly enough, the outer on the driver's side looks brand new. Not sure how, but I'm not complaining.

So this brings me to my question. Anyone know where I can find them? I have checked eBay, RockAuto, GMpartsdirect, AdvanceAuto, Autozone, some place called Steel Rubber, Moog, even posted to the Riviera owners, Reatta owners, and Toronado owners on Facebook. My parts guy from EastCoastReattas doesn't have any of them right now and god only knows when he will. He isn't very responsive. I'm not sure how interchangeable these bushings are with earlier or later models.

The OEM parts are only available through the dealer, and unfortunately aren't cheap. See our Cradle Bushing Write-Up for a list of part numbers. Good luck!

Thanks Aaron. I just sent in a parts request to a Buick dealer near me. See what comes of it.

If you need any OEM insulator washers, I have a few extra here I'd be willing to part with.

Thanks, but I'm not sure what good they will do unless I get the new bushing. The new ones should already have that anyway, right? I'm just going to have the dealer install the bushings when they have them, if they can get them. I was told they aren't any fun to install without a lift.

You might also try GMparts direct. They used to carry some of the parts for the later Rivs.

Does anyone have any extra new cradle bushing parts they're willing to sell? I've been pricing out Delco parts for this repair and notice that some come in a pack that would either leave me short a part or two or over by 4 or 5.

Just figure to check here before considering other options.

Thank you!

Dorman sells the 2 bushing assemblies for the rear 2 mounts One for left and one for right.

The rest I had to source from GM or on Ebay or.....wherever I put the part number in and came up good.

So the 2 rear mounts are inexpensive from Dorman. Then the rest, the middle and the front are the ones you need to find. I replaced the whole front cradle with an A+ unit that cost me a shitload.

I did all this 6 months before my rear suspension rotted away and hit the ground. I watched it rot in the driveway for another couple of years before I had the junk yard take it away.

The worst mistake I ever made. I found a premium rear suspension support for $100.00. Just needed to drop everything in the rear and do what I did in the front, which was pay someone to do the work for me because my back is *ucked.

If you need P/n's for the front, I'll look and see what I may have saved. Warning, I've alreading started to purge my files for all the parts and mods that I did to my Riv.

In hindsight, I should have paid the mechanic/shop down the road from me to drop the front cradle with the rebuilt trans and a modified 3800 with only 130K miles. It was treated real well.
I assume the bone yard made a shitload off the car. It was nice but I was frustrated.

One other thing I want to say. I went by the parts book for all the bushings except for rear 2.

Everyone told me you must buy the various GM P/N bushings because the Durometer is different on each of them. And if you looked at the GM bushings I did buy, they were different colors in some cases. Otherwise I had to educated the guy doing the cradle install as to what went where.

If I had to do again I'd try and fit the Dorman Assemblies in all 6 holes and save several hundred dollars. Screw the durometer of the rubber. put in what fits and forget about GM if that's possible,
I DON'T know if the Dorman's will fit the middle and the front of the cradle because I didn't try. I was trying to be anal about the whole thing and I don't think that was absolutely necessary. I would replace the bolts when replacing the rubber and the cup washers. But the Dorman's came with the cup washers if I remember correctly.

Let me look in my files for the Dorman P/N and then you can decide what you want to do.

Timothy,
I found the front cradle folder. Damn, thought I threw it away out of disgust for what I paid to have that job done for 6 months of driving before the rear dropped out of the car and wasn't drive-able (again).
Anyway, Dorman P/N for the #3 position(rear) on the front cradle is 924-044.
I got them from Amazon at the time.
If you can still find them on Amazon I suggest you order 2 of them and then see if they will fit the middle and the front and if so, order 4 more.

They cost me a total of $63.98 for both of them. This was a few years ago, so the price may be higher or cheaper, you never know.

A few other things I did when I had the front cradle replaced was to install new front and rear engine mounts. Got those cheap from the aftermarket then filled the voids  with 3M Window Weld and let that cure before I gave them to the shop to install for me. Tube cost about $20.00 and each mount cost about $25.00 each.
It helped with the rocking back and forth of the drivetrain but did bring a little vibration to the throttle and cab, but not enough that I wouldn't do it again.

I also found brand new lower control arms on Amazon for both left and right lower sides that cost me no more than $50.00 each because I waited until each was available on sale from Amazon.
So while the lower cradle was out I had them install the new control arms just because they had poly bushings, etc. They were also Dorman products.

While everything was apart I bought poly sway bar bushings for the caddy sway bar I had mounted up front. That helped and they were greasable.

I got the FWD eng mount from Rock Auto for 26.79 at the time. P/N DEAA5427.

Remember this is all for a 98 Riv, may fit others but I don't know. I'll keep looking if you want. I'm sure I have more than this that I did when replacing the front cradle.

Good luck to you.

p.s. I could mail you all the data I have if your dealing with a 98 or 99. I'm not sure about 97 or earlier though. But I'll ship it if it's of some value to you. I have the exploded views of parts, GM P/N's, aftermarket P/N's, prices, etc.

Hey Rick, thanks for the tips and for sharing your unfortunate experience. Before going full AC Delco, (thanks for your anal comment for real) I figure why not ask around here first. Since there's already a full writeup on this that I've read, I'll just mention here that the rear subframe bushings come up on Rock Auto as AC Delco # 10397249. That said, I did find the Dorman part as well as SKP (never heard of the brand until now) part # SKM4052 on Rock Auto. All of it waaaay cheaper than going full Delco which was what I thought to be the only solution.

Speaking of part numbers, I have looked a little bit and did not find an engine mount with the part number you gave, but I did find a DEA/Marmon ride control part #A5427 under transmission mounts. Is this what you're talking about?

To empathize a little, my Riv's frame rails are looking pretty rusty and gnarly and I have gone through another '97 already that had crippling frame issues. The driver side bushing fell right out and the unibody crumbled around it due to extreme rust. It sucks to read about your situation and I feel the pain. Thankfully, through building relationships in my area a unibody specialist has agreed to work on it and has directed me to get the bushings in order to get the repair going. Your story is helping a lot in making a thorough, wiser decision.

With all that said, here's hoping all the parts are reasonably priced and the labor is planned strategically. I mean, if all that work is happening underneath I might as well try to get as many bases covered as possible.

I would like to know, Rick, did you ever get redeemed with another Riv or has it been a wash?

Timothy,
I have used SKP products in the past. I believe they were all engine mounts and such. So I wouldn't worry about that product line.

The trans mount #A5427 is most likely the exact part I bought. When I posted the numbers last night I was looking at my receipts and they can have extra letters than what was actually on the box.

Shortly after buying my 98 when it had about 80K miles on it I had the Trans fluid flushed at a shop. What a mistake. I started having serious problems with the trans to the point where I didn't want to drive it. I had the trans rebuilt at a shop where I knew the mechanic and was GM trained. But at that time there was no aftermarket trans mount available so I had to pay GM $600.00 just for the part. OUCH. It was the whole assembly including the steel part of the mount. Now you can buy just the rubber part and replace it in the steel part for short money as I mentioned above.

I couldn't find the aftermarket Name and P/N of the front mount in my records but I know I found the number on this forum and got it at my local auto parts store for not a lot of money. I used the window weld which I bought at my local auto parts store also on both of the mounts and as I said it stopped the drivetrain from rocking forward and back when accelerating and decelerating.

If you have the latitude with the shop doing the cradle drop and mount change for you, where they will drop the cradle and let you see if the Dorman rear mounts will fit in the middle and forward positions, then I certainly would do that. Then you will be able to order new bolts, if needed also.
I also had 2 captured nuts that are in the frame rail just in case they got seized up and needed  replacement. There are only 2 of them. I didn't end up needing them. If I can find them I'll send them your way, but it may take me a little bit to find them if I can at all. They were/are GM parts and would require cutting some sheet metal to get to them. But you just never know and again I was being anal and didn't want to hold up the shop over a couple of captured nuts. So I bought them and had them on hand. But they weren't needed after all.

As far as your last question, NO, I did not get redeemed with another Riv.
As I mentioned, I should have paid the shop down the street to drop the front cradle with Engine and trans and all the new frontend parts including the steering rack.
They could have put it on a pallet for me and I could have looked for a car that needed all that for cheap money and paid this shop to do the swap. It would have been cheaper than buying a new vehicle or patching together another old vehicle.

But, by the time I decided to have a junk yard haul it away I wasn't in my right mind and was so tired of looking at the Riv rusting away in the driveway I just said screw it. Took the $300.00 he offered me and tried to forget about it. Hell, the stainless wrapped headers and high flow cat were worth more than $300.00.

I just need to forget about it though. In my previous life, when I was able to turn wrenches and crawl around on the ground and under vehicles for fun I would have taken care of the car and robbed all the parts or just replaced and welded everything back together on the one I had.

Sorry for rambling on. Please don't hesitate to ask if there's anything I forgot to tell you about. You can PM or Email me anytime. I'm willing to help as long as I'm conscious.

Best regards,

Rick

It's good to see you back Rick!

Jack the R wrote:

It's good to see you back Rick!  

Thanks Jack,
It's good to be back and hopefully able to help someone that is in need. I know I've done the work before and kept good records of what I did or had done, so I'm more than willing to share.
It's funny that I logged on and saw this post right at the time that I was pulling all the folders from my filing cabinet to throw away and make room for the next vehicle.
I won't be doing the kind of mod's on this one that I did on the Riv. But I'm glad the timing was right and I have been able to offer something to the forum and another member.

Hope all is well with you buddy and hope to talk again soon.

Yes, I'm still alive,
Rick

New car?

No, I was going to buy new with a hefty deposit to keep the monthly nut low but came across a used Pick up with low miles in very good shape with a lot of options and nice wheels and stainless exhaust.
It's a Chevy Extended cab, 4X4, 4 door, black with tinted windows, etc.
Able to pay for it outright without a loan. Happy about that.
Was able to put it on a lift before buying it and have good look underneath and all looks good and runs real strong. Brought it the mechanic down the road for a second set of eyes and he gave it his blessing. It was a real good deal with excellent maintenance records. Doesn't need a thing.
Except I may have the trans pan dropped and filter changed. That's it. Oil and filter is freshly changed before I picked it up.
It was almost $2,000.00 below dealer retail. That helped seal the deal for me.
Has the 5.3 LS engine which is just as bullet proof as the 3800 V6 is. If you take care of them.
Very happy so far. My BIL is willing to do a bunch of work we need done around the house but he doesn't have a truck so I thought it would be handy for now.
Can always sell it next year and at least get what I paid for it or more based on book value.

Nothing wrong with a truck!

Hey Rick, I do have a few questions regarding the cradle bushings. It looks like even on the GM website to buy direct it says some parts might be wrong. In the write-up there's a parts list and I'm not sure if it's legit because of what the site says. Do you have any experience with that parts list?

I got a full set of parts through Gmpartsgiant.com, I found a list(s) for the parts in posts from the past.
I believe between Abbadon, & AA there were lists/info that I got enough info to order the parts.
They were installed this spring.
I will look and see if I saved that list tonight.
There are 3 types of rubber bushings listed, but I could only find 2.
I  think I used the same part number rubber in the 4 rear positions & the other in the front.

(BTW, they do seem to vary some depending on year, yours is not listed)

Jbird

Cool, thanks Jbird I appreciate that. I took a screenshot of part #'s on the write-up and when I look up some of the numbers the site says they're not for the Riv. Next, some parts seem redundant or just don't make sense to me. Maybe I'm missing something but I'm not sure.

If this install goes smoothly I think this is the repair that could keep it from going to the junkyard.

https://i.servimg.com/u/f30/19/36/90/90/img_2012.jpg

Timothy,
There is a Riviera Parts List on this site somewhere that shows the illustrated parts blow-ups with all part numbers for 95-99 Riv's.

I remember Aaron (AA) posting this for reference to be used by all of us. I just can't find it.

Maybe you can PM AA and see if he remembers where he put it.

I was able to print the page of the front cradle with all the GM Part Numbers that helped me order the parts that I couldn't find in the aftermarket.

Has all the pic's and covers all years for the 8th generation Riviera's.

Maybe Aaron will see this post and direct you to the link.

Rick

EDIT: Timothy, If Aaron doesn't find the link to that document, I just found my original one.
I thought I gave it away, but it appears I kept the original and mailed a copy to someone.
If you can't find the one on this forum quick enough for you, let me know via PM or Email and give me your full name and mailing address and it will be sent out to you. This document will not only be helpful for your current front end work but for any other P/N's and illustrated blow-ups for anything on the car. It's nice to have OEM numbers even if they are obsolete when looking for parts.
Rick

R1V 1T UP,

So, I guess yours is a 97..
It looks like you have the list from AA's post I worked from.
this is where the post is located:

Subject: Write-Up: Subframe/Cradle Mount Insulators & Bushings - Page 4 Tue May 10, 2011 11:18 pm



I will still gather the list from my order when I'm home.

Jbird

Yeah mybad if I didn't say the year earlier. 97 it is. Thanks for the post, and for the link to the thread. Searching on here seems tricky sometimes.

jbird wrote:

R1V 1T UP,

So, I guess yours is a 97..
It looks like you have the list from AA's post I worked from.
this is where the post is located:

Subject: Write-Up: Subframe/Cradle Mount Insulators & Bushings - Page 4 Tue May 10, 2011 11:18 pm



I will still gather the list from my order when I'm home.

Jbird

JBird and Timothy
Appreciate the link to the Subframe Cradle Mount thread, But what I was referring to above is a GM Parts Document with GM Parts Lists for everything on these Buick Riv's from 95-99. I mean everything, not just the front cradle parts. It's a very helpful document.
I can't find AA's post with the multiple pages showing everything. Maybe he will chime in with a Link.
Thanks,
Rick

p.s. My Printer/scanner copier is broken Otherwise I'd scan and post the several page GM Parts List. Sorry, I can only mail it to whoever needs it for now.
I will be buying a new All-in One machine next month maybe. I haven't had much of a need for one.

EDIt Again: The document has 15 pages, just for your reference.

Rick,
that is under "information" from the Dashboard.

Jbird

jbird wrote:

Rick,
that is under "information" from the Dashboard.

Jbird

Dammit,
I've been searching the Index, where I expected it would be under a relative section.

Stupi me for trying to use logic.

Thanks a lot Jbird. I've been working myself up into a frenzy looking for that darn thing.