4 replies to this topic

[english bob]

998 Mini special 1989 lhd

what should i be checking and changing at front end, the engine is out and i can get at all the areas that normally cause pain!

how can i tell which bits are worn

roads round here (rural france) a bit bumpy, so don't want rock hard race rally mods, just good suggestions as to which bits really make the most difference on bog standard 998 mini. she gets good regular exercise in bends etc just want less bounce and more control for low cost.

before comming off road for overhaul, she had become quite bumpy up front end (new shocks 18 months ago) and handling not so great.....should i be cahnging engine mount rubbers, subframe mount rubbers, not sure please advise....

thanks
bob

[rozzer1275]

998 Mini special 1989 lhd

what should i be checking and changing at front end, the engine is out and i can get at all the areas that normally cause pain!

how can i tell which bits are worn

roads round here (rural france) a bit bumpy, so don't want rock hard race rally mods, just good suggestions as to which bits really make the most difference on bog standard 998 mini. she gets good regular exercise in bends etc just want less bounce and more control for low cost.

before comming off road for overhaul, she had become quite bumpy up front end (new shocks 18 months ago) and handling not so great.....should i be cahnging engine mount rubbers, subframe mount rubbers, not sure please advise....

thanks
bob

I will keep my advice for low cost high result

front sub frame mounts can be very loose, to check them its best with the engine in but as its out i would change them anyway they are well priced.
to check them get someone to turn the steering half a turn left to right quite fast while you look under the bonnet, if the tops of the towers move a lot left to right with the steering, change them. emagine what the sub frame is doing under heavy cornering.

front sub frame
solid front subframe mounts are great for handling i would go for them, but make the car a bit more noisy (esp the solid metal rear mounts),
or at leased go for a medium to hard poly tower and front mounts with standard rear mounts and is cheaper.

on engine mounts
keep the flat plate one as there are
the top one is the one that wears out, as its off you should see it (to test it with the engine in the car grab the rocker cover and try to rock the engine if it does change the top and bottem mount bushes)
renew the top engine mount bushes with standard rubber or medium to soft poly same on lower engine mount
poly ones are good but the one that is bolted to the cylinder head tends to set a lot, prob due to the heat.

supspension arms
lower arms change the bushes to medium to hard poly
tie bars replace the bushes with poly hard on the outside and soft to medium on the inside of the mount, this helps unwanted movment under brakeing and still alows the tie bars to move. do not use solid nylon tie bar bushes.

bumpy front
if you have adjustable shocks make sure there not set to hard. It probably due to the front cone colapsing and the top arm riding the bump stops, best to replace the front cones they only last about 5 years max on the front, requires removing the top arm alot easyer with the engine out. Use rover rubber cones only, cheap ones do not work (or coil replacments at extra cost), short term fix is to fit hi los and raise the front supspension a little, but it will not be long before the cone springs are completly ruined and pressing on the top of the tower mounts with hard suspension again.

[english bob]

998 Mini special 1989 lhd

what should i be checking and changing at front end, the engine is out and i can get at all the areas that normally cause pain!

how can i tell which bits are worn

roads round here (rural france) a bit bumpy, so don't want rock hard race rally mods, just good suggestions as to which bits really make the most difference on bog standard 998 mini. she gets good regular exercise in bends etc just want less bounce and more control for low cost.

before comming off road for overhaul, she had become quite bumpy up front end (new shocks 18 months ago) and handling not so great.....should i be cahnging engine mount rubbers, subframe mount rubbers, not sure please advise....

thanks
bob

I will keep my advice for low cost high result

front sub frame mounts can be very loose, to check them its best with the engine in but as its out i would change them anyway they are well priced.
to check them get someone to turn the steering half a turn left to right quite fast while you look under the bonnet, if the tops of the towers move a lot left to right with the steering, change them. emagine what the sub frame is doing under heavy cornering.

front sub frame
solid front subframe mounts are great for handling i would go for them, but make the car a bit more noisy (esp the solid metal rear mounts),
or at leased go for a medium to hard poly tower and front mounts with standard rear mounts and is cheaper.

on engine mounts
keep the flat plate one as there are
the top one is the one that wears out, as its off you should see it (to test it with the engine in the car grab the rocker cover and try to rock the engine if it does change the top and bottem mount bushes)
renew the top engine mount bushes with standard rubber or medium to soft poly same on lower engine mount
poly ones are good but the one that is bolted to the cylinder head tends to set a lot, prob due to the heat.

supspension arms
lower arms change the bushes to medium to hard poly
tie bars replace the bushes with poly hard on the outside and soft to medium on the inside of the mount, this helps unwanted movment under brakeing and still alows the tie bars to move. do not use solid nylon tie bar bushes.

bumpy front
if you have adjustable shocks make sure there not set to hard. It probably due to the front cone colapsing and the top arm riding the bump stops, best to replace the front cones they only last about 5 years max on the front, requires removing the top arm alot easyer with the engine out. Use rover rubber cones only, cheap ones do not work (or coil replacments at extra cost), short term fix is to fit hi los and raise the front supspension a little, but it will not be long before the cone springs are completly ruined and pressing on the top of the tower mounts with hard suspension again.

great, will check through this today,
how much more noise do solid front sub frame mounts?

[Guess-Works.com]

Don't go Poly mounts.... total carp IMO... either use std rubber ones, or go solid ( metal ), and do they increase road noise... no not really, do they improve handling, yes buy a huge amount...

Infact all round, go for a hard shore rubber over poly, the advantage of rubber over poly is that rubber degrades progressively over time, poly don't degrade, they fail and split usually unexpectedly.

[jaydee]

i have mine solid mounted, noise increase isnt so relevant, as i've used this kit for the tower mountings:
http://www.minispare..... IMPROVEMEN...
this kit uses a poly bush beetween subrame and bulkhead to reduce noise