I previously had megan tension rods, there were no bushings it was pillow ball type. The ball end was angled too much which is what we think caused the creaking (metal on metal). Regardless mine were bent so I went with the powertrix. If you're going to replace bushings you might as well just get new rods altogether. After parts and labor replacing bushings on oem parts doesn't seem worth it if you can just upgrade to aftermarket for a similar price.