1st Gen R50 Cooper Most liked posts in thread: Control arm bushings on R50

If you are at the Dragon this year Helix and Detroit and the other vendor can do this for you.

I forget the cost but if you put OEM in or have OEM ones still in they have most likely failed already. At 46 K I bet the ones you are on have already failed.

***UPDATE ***

I looked up the bushing on the helix site and they are only $86.13. Not sure about install cost but you could call them. 267-335-4337

http://store.helix13.com/powerflex-lower-control-arm-street-bushings/

 

On mine, when the bushings were worn, I noticed that it tended to dart quickly in some direction on acceleration, and dart the other way when I lifted off the throttle. Look on youtube for videos on how to literally kick the front tire to see the looseness in the front suspension. Also, the MINI tends to self straighten after turning. With worn bushings, I had to straighten the wheel manually after making a turn.

At 93K miles, I'd bet your bushings are completely worn out. I had my bushings replaced under warranty at about 40K miles. I put in a set of Powerflex polyurethane bushings last September at 96K miles. I dropped my subframe, removed my bushing housings, took them to Way Motor Works and they pressed out the old worn bushings and pressed in a set of the Powerflex bushings. While I had it apart, I replaced both sets of ball joints, and the difference was amazing.

I live about only 90 miles from Way's Shop, so I took a Friday off and drove down to buy my parts. You can read up on the procedure in the Library and in my threads to decide if you want to tackle it yourself. Except for warranty work, I've done my own maintenance, repairs, and mods since '85 on all of my cars. The job is a little tedious, and a lot has to come apart, but all of it is pretty straightforward. You can do this with the car up on jackstands, but I have an EZ Car Lift which can raise the car 26". It's steady as a rock and very easy to use. If you're space constrained and have a low ceiling, it's a great thing to have in your shop.

My shop is a little small, and I'm a packrat, so I don't have space for a hydraulic shop press. Any shop with a press should be able to press out the old bushings and press in the new ones for a small fee. You can cut the old bushings out with a Sawzall and press the new ones in with a homemade rig with threaded rod and washers if you really want to save $40.

Read the articles in the Library (which are great), but if you decide to do this job, get the Bentley manual. It's easily worth every penny.

This CAN be done without dropping the subframe, but in my opinion, it's easier to just drop the subframe, and while you're in there, put in a new steering rack bushing, a set of ball joints, sway bar bushings, and change your transmission oil while you're under there. A new O-ring for the crank position sensor is also a good idea while you have the front end in Service Mode. It's about $2 and five minutes while the car is apart.

 

I had Blue Mohawk from Helix do mine at the dragon a couple of years ago. I didn't watch that close, but I'm sure he did not drop the sub-frame.

You are close to Detroit Tuned. You might want to head up there & have Chad install them for you.

 

The Blue Mohawk guy is Mike from Helix and Mike and Eric do all the work on my car.

Mike has the replacement of the LCB's down to a science and can do it without dropping the sub-frame. He did mine a few years ago at Helix.

 

I know Eric, but Mike's name escaped my memory. :crazy:

Great folks, I highly recommend them. Two arthritic thumbs up.

 

...... or, "Yo! $#!+head!"

 

If you don't mind more novice questions: What should I look for on the exterior, with the whole suspension still in place? There is a chance I'll end up putting Black Top up on jack stands Sunday afternoon and take the tires off to apply sound deadening in the wheel wells.

But seriously, I've changed <12 spark plugs in my life so I'm not going to start tearing down my suspension on a daily driver.

 

Look for torn rubber parts, oil or grease leaking on anything, and look for signs of any of the rubber dry rotting. Grab everything and give it a good strong shake to see if anything is loose.

 

I like my Powerflex bushings. I can tell no increase in noise, vibration, or harshness. I've used poly bushings in other cars, and could see in increase in NVH, but the MINI did not have that problem.

You'll get more precise steering and the peace of mind that they'll last.

While you're in there, I'd go ahead and put in fresh ball joints. Those things see a lot of punishing conditions, they aren't expensive, and they're right there while you're doing the bushings.

I'd also replace the steering rack bushing because the inevitable PS fluid leaks will deteriorate the rubber bushing material. I replaced mine with a Powerflex poly bushing because it was easy to get to while I had the subframe out and is more resistant to oils of various types. I can tell no difference in noise etc.

Let me also amplify what Dave said. Don't replace every bushing with poly. If you overdo them, you'll wind up with a rattling, creaking, buzz box.

Also, while you have the front end extended in Service Mode, put a fresh o-ring on the crank position sensor.

 

I did my teardown one weekend, and reassembly the next. If I had all the parts on hand, I could probably do it in 10-12 hours. That equates to $72.92-$87.50 per hour.

For that kind of money, you deserve top notch workmanship.

I'm an engineer with 20 years experience, and I'm responsible for maintenance, upkeep, and capital improvements for ~26 buildings and 16 enterprise sized data centers. I'm ashamed to say that I don't make that much.

 

i skimmed this thread...we charge 450 install plus bushings here at the shop. you need an alignment after for 125. if you wanted to lower it also that is a whole other job and requires other parts also. it all comes down to how much you love the car and are going to keep it as well as part cost and the end goal. some of the early r50s are going for 4K right now...you add bushings and lowering it and you have a 1500 bill (ish) to lover a 4K car. if it is mint ans your going to keep it makes sense, but if you going to sell it in a year..not as much. food for thought.

 

We have a few Mikes in our group so he goes by Marzo.

 

Soooooooo how much does a job like this cost?

 

I changed the bushings on my R53. Here are some threads I posted when I was doing it. Hopefully, something will be useful for you.

http://www.motoringalliance.com/forums/cooper-s/19434-got-subframe-out-now-what.html#axzz32xso8d2m


http://www.motoringalliance.com/forums/cooper-s/19487-subframes-goin-back.html#axzz32xso8d2m

 

Anyone care to describe the symptoms of bad bushings? Black Top has 93K on her and I would bet the original bushings are still all she has.