I slammed my MINI in to a curb tonight. It was at about 12 mph, and I hit the drivers side wheels, wheels knicked up a little, but drives a little bit out of alignmemt, to go straight, you have to have the wheel turned to about one o'clock. DO I get my wheels aligned, or did I really mess up my car??? Im pissed, I need to slow down.

 

I think you are in for more than just an alignment.

Better plan for a new tire & wheel, and maybe some suspension bits as well. Driveshaft may need replacing while everything is taken apart. Oh, and an alignment will be required too. While you are at it, have the steering rack and pump inspected.

As a general rule, curbs are not very friendly with MINIs.

 

The wheel is fine, the tire holds air, and gaaahhhh!!! Im so mad. I just need a truck to drive in the winter. If its bad, then I guess, that is what I save emergengy money for, will 1k cover the damage???

 

There is more to a tire than just holding air. The internal materials can be fractured and the tire will still hold air. However, at speed, the tire starts to come apart. Over time, you may have a situation like what happened when the tires failed on the Ford Explorers. Do you want to take that chance? To check for failure of the tire internals, you need to X-ray the tire. Based on the price of a new tire (~$150 - $200), I doubt it is worth it to try to determine if the current tire is not damaged. How do you know if the wheel is fine? Have you tried to dynamically balance it?

In terms of a budget, $1,000 is a start. It all depends on what is damaged. Take the car to a suspension shop (or the dealer) and have them do a comprehensive inspection of the driveline, steering and suspension.

 

Curbs aren't just bad for MINIs. We've had a snowy winter in Santa Fe. I took the MINI to my alignment shop for a preventative alignment and we agreed to wait until spring. He told me he wasn't hurting for immediate business as he had a lot of cars with suspension parts to replace. The good news, he was quoting costs, as if they were high, equivalent to replacing the fog light on my Saab.

Driving the MINI in snow is like driving the MINI on a dirt road. Very, very slowly. It will get through about anything, but very, very slowly.

 

If it was a low speed hit and the tire didn't get scraped, chances are you're fine with the tire and wheel, but have your shop check it out. That's the good part.

Alignment definitely, but you must check for bent suspension parts or chassis mounting points. I did the same thing (low speed hit) in my GTI years ago, all it needed was an A-arm that cost maybe $100 new, add the alignment at $65 and an hour of shop labor and that was it. $1k may be more than enough, but without seeing the car all we can do is speculate.

Go to a GOOD alignment or chassis shop - ask around, check with your local mini club, and find a good one, definitely not just the corner tire shop. You can get a cheap alignment, sure, and the car may drive straight, but if you hit something you didn't "back off" the threaded fastners used to align the car, you probably bent something. Replace the bent part first, then align.

To do that you'll need to check the suspension parts with a straightedge or other tool to see if they're bent or broken, and check the chassis mounting points to see what's bent and bring it back.

It is certainly possible, maybe "probable", that you "just" moved the mounting bolts/friction mount at the bottom of the one front strut, changing your camber - in which case an alignment would solve the issue - but measurements need to be taken to be sure.

Good luck! Maybe a tad slower next time... then you don't need to buy a truck.

 

if the tire doesn't bubble, you're probably fine. you likely bent something in your suspension though (something has to give in the impact). an alignment is a first step, if it wont drive straight, you need to identify what is bent and replace it

 

No offence to anyone, but I always get nervous when I hear things like "Probably" and "You should be OK if..." in mechanical threads, and you should probably be nervous as well - this sounds like a thing best handled "in the flesh" rather than online, methinks... Just have an estimate done by a dealer or approved BMW shop. You want to be 100% sure that the steering geometry hasn't been comprimized. No use getting a new wheel or tire only to have that tire wear out rapidly because the alignment's out of true, or, worse, having another accident because the car won't manuever properly.

Best of luck!

 

^^ +1 on ImagoX's post. Note the quote:
Get thine **** to a GOOD chassis shop, soon, and good luck with all that!

 

If your wheel is no longer straight then yes you've done something. What that is can't be told until it's on a lift & had an alignment. I'd guess that you have bent a tie rod. Get thee to a shop ASAP & drive slowly there.

 

The local TMA told me that they get a lot of BMW's in and it is always just the alignment. They told me they looked at everything, and they need to align everything and Im good, they just dont have the right tools there for BMW's, so they recommended me to an alignment specialist, who happens to own a classic Mini.

 

Sounds like you're in good hands. Hope that's all it is!

 

Same happened here,

Our damage was in the strut, the strut was slightly bent where it meets the hub,

victor

 

Several of you have replied to go to a good alignment shop. Why would you not want to take the car back to the MINI/BMW dealer and have them check the suspension and do the alignment. Wouldn't they have more expertise in the cars we drive than a local do it all shop?

 

Well... the local mini/bmw shop may not have a full chassis "jig", necessary for measuring whether the suspension pickup points are bent or misaligned. If they do, that's perfect.

BTW, I'm not talking a "do it all" shop, but rather a good body-and-chassis shop.

 

If you have an alignment shop you trust you're likely to save a bunch of money by going there instead of a MINI dealer.

 

The alignment guys told me TMA didnt know what they were talking about, and I bent something(Cant remember what its called) $150 for parts and labor, so I aint complaining

And the nearest MINI dealership is in Devver and I aint goin that far unless Im buying a Cooper s

 

Cool - glad it wasn't too major. Didja have them check the tire/wheel as well? Wouldn't be a bad idea to swab it all in children's bubble solution and leave it 5 minutes, check for bubbles... that way you'll see if there are any leaks and, as a bonus, when you're done you can clean the wheels... also CLOSELY inspect the section of tire nearest the "hit" to see if there are any significant cuts or bubbles in the tire. Any "bubbles" (little hills in the sidewall) means tire replacement, posthaste. Small cuts aren't much, but anything deep and you'll want to closely consider what to do with that tire. The sidewalls don't have near the protective belting that the tread has.

 

And, its fixed, came to 147.15. The guys Mini (classic) has a sweet $10,000 engine, and a british flag paint job. Its for sale for 20k.

 

I'm glad to hear you are now good to go. Not too much money out of pocket either.