So I'm on my way back to my home in Ventura from Burbank Airport today when, all of a sudden, in the fast lane, the back of my car goes completely sidways. I gained control without hitting anything thankfully and quickly got over to the shoulder. I got out and took a look to see what had happened. I'm expecting to see a blown tire or something, but instead, my left rear tire was at about a 45 degree angle. I looked underneath the car and saw a clean break right in the middle of the contol arm . I probably scared the crap out of the guy behind me when that thing snapped. I totally lost control there for a moment. I'm glad I'm not dead after that happening while going at "Freeway Speeds" in the fast lane of the 101.
The good news out of all of this is that I still have 2300 miles on the warranty so the roadside assistance and the repairs will be free. And, the broken control arm was the only thing wrong with it; from what I could see. Also, this 'incident' happened, literally, right in front of a MINI dealership, so the tow truck driver just got off at the next exit and we were there .
So, I'd just like to advise anyone with a 2003 or older MINI: CHECK YOUR CONTROL ARMS! they are made of aluminum and look like a very flimsy design. You should check for any hairline fractures or any signs of stress and fatigue. Or better yet, replace them with some solid aftermarket ones.
Okay, thanks for letting me get that off of my chest. This fix should take the dealer no more than a couple of hours too fix on Monday. I'll let you know how it went.

 

I had the same issue but my upper one bent then snaped within a week after a bad dip on the track. prolly cuz I had aftermarket lower arms. It is a very weak part of the car and extreamly expensive to replace with the factory piece. It's much cheaper to go aftermarket in this case. Glad to hear nothing happened to you. lucky one you are. Mine gradually went out after a bad track day. FYI my car has 34000 miles and no more then 5 hours of track time i.e. 4-5 track days.

 

Actually, the oem rear control arms are stamped mild steel, but yes, not the strongest piece on the car.

 

My mistake, thanks for clarifying. But yeah, very thin and flimsy looking none the less. I guess the Very clean break suggested it was aluminum. All of the road dirt and grime made it hard to identify properly (and I didn't really have a magnet handy)

I wish I had a good picture of it. My wheel has so much of an angle on it, it looks like I'm about to do some serious drifting.

 

Man I am glad you are here to be able to tell the tale. You did extremely well to catch your car when the rear started to steer for you. Just WOW!

 

Wow.. sounds scary. Glad you got out okay. I've never seen the front control arms before, anyone have pictures of what that looks like?

 

I believe it was a rear arm that broke causing Ashley to have unwanted rear steering at freeway speed.

 

I had the same issue ... long ago.
Didnt remember anything to harsh but I crossed a railroad and the upper just collapsed.
The flat tire monitor did come right on so I did stop.

A tow truck took my car to the dealer....But they wouldnot warrantee.

I used 4 hose clamps ad a piece of 1' angle iron to drive from the dealer to my house after they REFUSED to do anything due to the suspension mods that I had

I have replaced with aftermarket.

The OEM arms have a hole in the middle, and as best that i can tell it is a "manufactured weak spot"

The design must be that if you hit something then the arm will give and not the rear spindle or its housing


NOTE:

If you change controll arms and have self leveling headlights ... take a look at my gallery for a home made sensor bracket.

 

I found my photo.

It did take a bit if "hit and miss" positioning to get the lights right.
But this does work.

Hope it is of help to others

 

so, if this fix isn't covered under the warranty like COR BLMY said. I wonder if some aftermarket control arms are cheaper than getting OEM. I could just get my car back from the dealer and fix that on my own. Hell, I'm a welder by trade; I was just considering taking it back to my shop and welding it back together. But, if this all gets fixed under warranty, then obviously I'll just do that.

 

DO NOT repair. If not covered under warranty just replace both bottom arms with aftermarket. Many good quality arms are avaiable from MINI vendors. It is probably all of about an hour job to replace.

 

+1

 

dont fix them .... I have 3 in my garage (upper and lower can be interchanged )

Or buy aftermarket...

some in this forum NOW

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=111249

 

Holy carp!!! Wow! Glad you were able to catch it and are OK. I'm glad I put some aftermarket control arms in my '03.

 

Well, they called me back today (tuesday evening) and told me that after an initial look, it looks like the upper control arm may have been bent as well from the shock of the whole thing. She said, there gonna look at it again in the morning with a little more detail and determine if they're gonna cover it under the warranty. She (a service advisor @ Bob Smith MINI) prepared me for 'worst case' and told me that it could cost about $1000 or so to fix. God, I really REALLY hope they fix it under warranty. I was told that the foreman will look at it tomorrow and determine whether it happend as a result of a part malfunction/part stress, or if its a result of hitting large bumps and potholes. I asked her: "Aren't bumps and potholes what cause the part to malfunction in the first place? and every single car on the road hits hundreds of bumps and potholes a day? How could this NOT be covered under warranty? She kind of 'copped' out and told me the foreman will make the decision. If they tell me tomorrow that I'm gonna have to pay for it, I'm thinking about calling MINI USA to appeal.
Whadda you think?

 

OMG!! That must have been SO scarey! I can't even imagine how you felt..

I cannot imagine that it won't be covered under warranty. Don't let the dealership bully you. If by chance, you don't get satisfaction from them, then yes, I'd be on the phone with MINIUSA in a flash...

Donna

 

Thanks for the support!

 

Wow, when that happens I hope I'm in a good position.... not the fast lane.

If they refuse to honor the warrantee, comment that you will post this story on the forum, might help you to threaten that.

 

Well, duh!! A) The part obviously malfunctioned. B) EVERY vehicle hits large bumps and potholes occasionally (except, maybe race cars that are 100% track). C) If they didn't take 'B' into account when designing the parts, they are idiots.

I realize the cars are not off-road machines, but any fool could tell them that the roads in the U.S. are crap, and getting worse by the day. It's impossible to dodge all of the potholes and bumps. This is not a part that should fail, ever, barring something like slamming the car sideways into a curb. Unless they can prove that that happened, they should cover the part without question.

 

I'm with MINI USA. I've passed this message on to a MINI National Customer Relations Representative who will be in touch with you soon.

 

Wow first time ive seen a MINI USA person in here, glad to see you are involved .

 

Wow! Thank you, My email is asotoole@yahoo.com.

 

Ashley- Any resolution to this?

 

Note that one of the White Roof Rdio dudes (forget which) had a similar issue and recommended that folks inspect their control arms.

I'm beginning to see a trend here...

If MINI won't work with you, there's always comprehensive insurance coverage. Of course that's always an ugly option with deductables, possib;le rate increases...

 

btw, I installed another set of non-OEM control arms and just left the heallight levelor off. Hasnt made any difference at all... although I thought it might. Simple fix it was.