Hard ride isn't exactly how to describe it. They can make the ride a bit harsh and you can feel the bumps with a bit more "precision". This is due to them lacking the bit of compliance and compressibility that the rubber gives. It's common to fit poly to the front upper inner bush positions. The excuse here is that the modern supplied rubber bushes have a much lower service life than the original Volvo ones. It is also an easy job so if you have to replace the current rubber ones every 15k miles it's not a big chore. Yes I know you rely on a garage. These bushes when poly is used, on my estate when bought, do give a noticeable hard feel over sharp bumps but fans of them will argue that the steering feels more precise, especially if used in conjunction with a set on the anti roll bar and the vertical rods. Harsh feel at the back I can't comment about but IMO the Panhard rod should only use a poly bush at the axle end and not the body one as that can cause the rod to transmit the bump noise into the body. The P rod and the front ones mentioned use the same bush. Racing and rallying suits poly better as you aren't worried about noise and comfort so much, but if you're only doing a couple of k road miles a year I'd stick to rubber. New rubber all round should last at least 15-20k so that may be enough. Make sure the rubber is in contact with clean painted metal and not the rusty surfaces that the old ones are working against. Poly more expensive too if that is a factor.
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