I've had my classic for about 4 weeks, so I'm learning the quirks. At the risk of being skewered I'll admit it's a "72 upgraded to 94 specs" ....

I've got a rubbing sound, in the rear, when turning left quickly. I haven't been under there, yet, to look for rubbing in the wheel well. The car has 12in alloy wheels and the tires are sport variety, so a little wide, but clearances when standing still are large.

I just thought I'd mention it and see if anyone has experienced the same.

Thanks in advance

 

Is the sound from the tire on the inside of the turn or outside?

 

I guess I would check if it is rubbing first. When I autocross my mini on a big course both my fronts rub. I am not sure what I am going to do just yet.

 

If it's just the tire rubbing on the plastic flare, I would possibly raise the vehicle height a wee bit if you've got HiLos installed. If you can't raise the car height just watch it and make sure you're not doing damage to the tire. My Mini has a tire with the shoulder cut down from the previous owner lowering the car too far without addressing the rubbing problem. Now I have to buy 4 new tires even though three are in perfect condition since the tires are no longer available.

I would also check the CV boots just to make sure they're not cut. They can make noise under load. If they are cut there will be CV joint grease splattered up on the hub, steering parts, brakes, etc. Fix a cut boot _immediately_ since a replacement boot is much cheaper than a new CV joint (although the labor is the same).

Good luck!
Jeff

 

Thanks for the replies ... I'll be looking this over this weekend and report back if I figure it out.

2phun ... when I'm driving in a 'spirited" manner, the car is LOUD , so it's hard to tell if the rubbing is inside or outside. If I had to guess, I would say inside left, but it is just a guess.

jeffm ... I'll look over the CV joints closely, but I'm fairly certain the rubbing noise is in the rear, which really doesn't make much sense. The front end is stressed much higher during spirited turning, I would think.

 

Weird, I would have guessed it was the right rear tire that was rubbing the arch as the suspension compresses (especially if you're on the original cones). But if it's the left, that wouldn't make sense.

 

Just a thought ... it could be a bad wheel bearing. Jack up the rear and remove the right-hand wheel. Spin it ... does it make noise? If so, it could be the bearings. A bad bearing could make noise when subjected to lateral load during cornering.

Jeff

 

I'm old and my hearing leaves a lot to be desired ... it's definitely the right rear.

For one thing, there is a clearance issue of some sort. The rear corner of the right rear arch has a clearance of less than a half inch from the tire when sitting still. The left rear arch clearance is more like an inch.

And I had someone ride along who has good ears and she tells me the rubbing sound is definitely right rear when turning left, which makes sense.

I haven't put it up on jack stands, yet, to see if there is some way of adjusting it.

 

Oops ... it's not the arch with the clearance problem, it's the inner wheel well and that corner of the body.

 

When you have it up on stands, take some photos from underneath and post them up.