16 replies to this topic

[mpihornet]

the nose on my hydrospastic hornet has been drooping since i got it, and its been riding on its bumper snubs for a few years. yesterday I had the brainwave of taking out the helper springs, not realizing they are in tension, not compression! i looked in my pile of junk and found another helper that was shorter and way stiffer, and put it on one side, and i'm getting closer to ideal ride hight. Does anyone know where i can get these things? does anyone have any spare? my other brainwave was to slap a shock mount in the front and go with additional shock absorbers of the gas type, but i don't want it to be too stiff and I dont want to be putting in dry suspension.

any help appreciated

Richard

[mab01uk]

I had hydrolastic Mini's in the 1970's and standard practice to improve handling was to fit front shockers/dampers (the standard type will not stiffen the ride too much) and the large competion rubber bumpstops front and rear. The rear helper springs came in 2 different strength types for early and late Mini's, not sure of year change point but my '65 Mini was the early type and I upgraded it to the later Hydrolastic system off a scrapped '67 Mini.

Edited by mab01uk, 06 July 2010 - 11:59 AM.

[mpihornet]

I had hydrolastic Mini's in the 1970's and standard practice to improve handling was to fit front shockers/dampers (the standard type will not stiffen the ride too much) and the large competion rubber bumpstops front and rear. The rear helper springs came in 2 different strength types for early and late Mini's, not sure of year change point but my '65 Mini was the early type and I upgraded it to the later Hydrolastic system off a scrapped '67 Mini.

Thanks. I just hit the somerford mini site but tehy are out of stock.

I consider my options to be:

0 replace knuckes or at the very least the nylon cups. my guess is tehy are done, but i bet the balls are fine and wont want to come out of the displacers.
1 helper springs (i have 2 week and 1 strong. if i could find 1 extra strong, i would be there)
2 shim the knuckels
3 kyb's up front as the extra gas pressure usually gives you a mm or so.
4 dry all round and some good shocks.

I don't want to take out my subframes because thats a pita.

with the repairs and shimming, i may as well get a hydrolastic pump because its going to be such a load of trial and error. I cant be driving it around flat or shimmed and its 16 miles to nearest hydrolastic pump and i dont want to get it wrong and have to do it over and over and over at 30 pounds a time.....

I guess the mpi doesn't help for body roll as its got a lot more torque than the 998 and probably weighs a tiny bit more too.

[mab01uk]

If you do convert wet to dry this link below is useful, but do keep it wet if you can, a much smoother ride, pretty rare to see hydrolastic on a Mini nowadays and so will be a unique feature to have in future years!
Click Suspension, then wet to dry:
http://www.calverst.com/cc110f.htm

Edited by mab01uk, 06 July 2010 - 06:48 PM.

[GraemeC]

Surely, if you want it raised just get the hydrolastic pumped up?

Than, as said above, shocks on the front to improve the handling.

[midridge2]

http://www.minispare...=...4788&title= thats the kit, as graemeC says have the suspension blown up.

[mpihornet]

If you do convert wet to dry this link below is useful, but do keep it wet if you can, a much smoother ride, pretty rare to see hydrolastic on a Mini nowadays and so will be a unique feature to have in future years!
Click Suspension, then wet to dry:
http://www.calverst.com/cc110f.htm

I would love to keep it wet, but the parts are so rare now and i don't have access to a machine shop to make missing parts. I have 2 good spare displacers and one that i would likely toss in the bind. Corrosion at the bottom of these things looks like a huge problem.

This is a road car, a daily driver, and right now, the ride is pretty poor, but only because the hight is down and its sitting on its snubs in the front. either way i go, its going to be expensive, either i get a pump and fettle it till its right, or i switch to dry and never really have to deal with it again.

first things first though, its due an MOT, and its a 66 so there will be something wrong!

Thanks for the link, it was very very informative.

[mpihornet]

Surely, if you want it raised just get the hydrolastic pumped up?

Than, as said above, shocks on the front to improve the handling.

Yeah, I agree, but it's a question of order of operations, and how many times do i pump it up...

If i go just for a pumping, but as before it went ass up nose down, then its pointless. Im closer now with the tougher helper on one side in the back, but would prefer another harder helper as I only had one. My local guy minimart in fife doesn't have any and generaly switches to dry. sumerford minis doesnt have them, they just dont exist.

Before i go pump it, i need to change the knuckles, but if they are stuck fast, it will have to be displacer in the vice and a lot of banging. I would prefer not.

If i do knuckles and its not enough, then i will be wishing i had washered it up first.


So realistically, i think i want to get a hydrolastic pump and do it myself till its right. every deflate/refil costs me 30 pounds, 3 or for shots and I'm at hte cost of a pump!

[mpihornet]

http://www.minispare...=...4788&title= thats the kit, as graemeC says have the suspension blown up.

Thanks, i was looking into the components individually, but its probably cheaper by the kit. Besides, those bolts look like replacements without drilling arms....

This is another option i was considering....

http://cgi.ebay.co.u...e#ht_706wt_1054

This way i could individualize the displacers like an mgf or metro.

THere may be a way I could do both..... cut hydro line, install a coulple of ball valves or needle valves in each line, open them , fill system, kick car to correct ride angle with jacks, close valves..... so fill from one service point per side, and then have each displacer isolated.

the beauty of this idea is that if i put two ball valves per side in, i can tremove the pipe between valves and in that section try different orifices and valve combinations between front and rear, or just go individual for less cash than those individual schraders.

Edited by mpihornet, 07 July 2010 - 10:42 AM.

[midridge2]

what parts are you missing, there is not a huge list of parts needed to build up a system.
the helper springs do pop up on ebay some times, what colour band is around the bottom of the helper springs for the stronger ones as i have a spare pair that are orange.

[mpihornet]

what parts are you missing, there is not a huge list of parts needed to build up a system.
the helper springs do pop up on ebay some times, what colour band is around the bottom of the helper springs for the stronger ones as i have a spare pair that are orange.

I think i am after one green, but I will need to check. There are noticeable differences between the hard one and the soft one, as the soft one is really soft and has a 5 inch rod that connects to the radius arm. the harder one is like a garage door spring, and has a 3 inch radius arm rod. Im after the one with a 3 inch rod.... if you have 2 of those, that would be awesome. been checking ebay, but nothing yet. called minimart, he doesnt have any, and neither does anyone else.....

THanks

RIchard

[midridge2]

just been out to the garage and the spare ones are the 5" ones.

[mpihornet]

just been out to the garage and the spare ones are the 5" ones.

well, thanks for looking! I'll figure this out somehow at some point. the main problem will be MOT and after that its more fettling. car runs strong and handles OK and stops well, so im not too fussed and its not a racing car, its a daily driver so it will work out somehow

[mpihornet]

im still looking for the stiffer spring, I only need 1. I've been checking ebay, but nothing there.

any suggestions? any info? I understand there were two springs available, green and is it orange? does anyone know the hooks value for these springs?

thanks


Richard

[mab01uk]

Did a search on Minimail as I know he does used parts and found this:
S/H = secondhand
http://www.minimail....p?q=hydrolastic

HELPER SPRING - HYDROLASTIC . PRE 1966 . S/H
Product Reference: U.21A1566
£9.00
HELPER SPRING - HYDROLASTIC . REAR . 1966 ON . S/H
Product Reference: U.21A1806

http://www.minimail.co.uk/