20 replies to this topic

[kennethravn]

1978 Mini 1000

 

Hi.

 

My mini is extremely bumpy, so bumpy that if you sit in the passenger seat with a suitcase on your lap, the suitcase jumps. This happens on completely flat roads.

 

It is most prominent when driving slowly, sort of evens out at higher speeds. 

 

It feels like it is just on one side, but moving the wheel around didn't seem to help much.

 

I have checked the tyre pressure, and it is fine.

 

 

Any help is greatly appreciated.

[dyshipfakta]

Check the condition of the donuts. They will probably be shot and the mini will be very low.

[mab01uk]

New rubber cones probably required.......over the years they go hard and settle especially the softer later cones fitted by BL.

 

"The compact design & durability/quality of the rubber cone helped make the Mini the classic that it is today. Designed in the late 1950's it was ahead of it's time. The only problem is that some may still be driving around on cones that could have been built in the early 1960's with a UNF thread. They are now Metric thread only. The design is good, not ever lasting. The rubber not only gets very hard but it also sags and loses it's ability to hold the car upright. It is not uncommon to have a cone sag so badly that it lowers the car 2 or 3 inches and it handles terribly. Like all rubber products, they only have a certain shelf life and being fitted equates to the same.
These might need replacing every 5-7 years depending on use and climate, but are usually good for at least 20,000 miles in the UK."

http://www.minispare...ic/FAM3968.aspx

[timmy850]

See how much room there is between the top arm and the bumpstop. If it is resting on the bumpstop it'll be a very bumpy ride

[nicklouse]

also check your tyres are round.

[greenwheels]

Somewhere, and I cannot find it just now, there is a dimension stated between the centre of the wheel and the top of the wheelarch, perhaps it's in the Haynes manual. That dimension tells you easily if your cones are sagging.

Find it somebody please.

[ings]

time for new shock absorber...

[cal844]

time for new shock absorber...

Shocks do not control ride height on a mini

[THE ANORAK]

No... they absorb shocks... maybe you should read the opening post again !!!!

[cal844]

No... they absorb shocks... maybe you should read the opening post again !!!!

 

 

Yes, however they don't do that much to damp the shock

[Steve220]

I'd be checking:

Shocks
Knuckles
Donuts
Tyres

In that order.

[greenwheels]

'Shock absorbers' do not absorb shocks, the spring (rubber cone) does that. They should be called dampers i.e. they dampen the occillations of the spring so you don't bounce down the road like Zebedee.

[mab01uk]

Somewhere, and I cannot find it just now, there is a dimension stated between the centre of the wheel and the top of the wheelarch, perhaps it's in the Haynes manual. That dimension tells you easily if your cones are sagging.

Find it somebody please.

 

http://www.theminifo...eight-standard/

[tiger99]

It is almost always mostly hardened cones but always replace the knuckles anyway. You will probably find that the cups have worn through and resulted in damage to the top arms, and the same with the rear radius arms, which in all but minor cases will be expensive scrap. The knuckles should always be replaced when the suspension is apart, as they do not last as long as the rubber cones, and are far, far cheaper than replacing damaged arms.

 

And why, again and again, people wrongly keep bringing up dampers is well beyond my comprehension. They have their part to play, but have no effect on ride height and unless badly adjusted to be too stiff on bump have no noticeable effect on suspension hardness. The rebound setting is however rather important, and the dampers also prevent knuckle joint disengagement at the rear with resulting suspension collapse, so never drive without them. St the front the rebound stops "should" be able to prevent knuckle joint disengagement, but they are frequently worn out, and there are freak dynamic conditions which will allow at least momentary knuckle joint unloading due to the inherent internal damping of the rubber cone.

[moolieferret]

I changed all my donuts, dampers,and knuckle joints 6 months ago; now my car sags on the rear offside so much it's touching the wheel arch all the time i had to come back home from Gaydon courtesy of the AA
i did not want the risk of locking up the back wheel while on the motorway. The donuts and knuckle joints were new from minispares. I hope it's just a one off bad cone I had fitted