i don't know what i should do about this!

 

You need a new strut top plate. It's not that difficult of a job. The strut needs to be removed & that plate swapped out. You can use an oem one or go aftermarket. I'd recommend Ireland Engineering fixed camber plates. They will replace the stock strut top with a beefier piece that also will add about -1.5 negative camber that will benefit the handling.

 

Thank you! I just ordered a set and can't wait to have this issue resolved, and with a bonus of better handling to boot!

 

You will like them. Remember to get an alignment after the install.

 

While it is definitely best to get an alignment. Many actually skip that step and just enjoy the the fix with better handling.

If you are getting adjustable camber plates then the alignment is more of a requirement.

 

When adding negative camber to a MINI you also add toe-in. Not great for handling or tire wear. You do need an alignment asap to correct the toe setting. Just my .02.

 

 

I didn't know that guys I'll make sure to get an alignment when I put them on tomorrow! Any ideas on what I need to do to install them? Someone told me I could get a spring compressor and I wouldn't need to take the suspension off the car. Anyone try that? If so, did it work? I don't have a set of torque guns or anything to work with at the moment so if I can get away without taking the suspension off, that would be GREAT!!!

 

It's easier to remove the suspension. Disassemble from the bottom up. Lube the knuckle/strut so it slides out easily. You should use a spring compressor to disassemble the strut.

 

 

well, i got the camber plates in on friday and installed them. went pretty easy and only took about an hour to do both. i noticed the alignment felt way off though. seemed like if i turned the wheel far left, it'd pull to the left, and then if i turned far right, it'd pull to the right. so i went and had an alignment done on saturday, and i noticed yesterday that it was still pulling to both sides depending on how far i turned the wheel. it definitely felt better than before i had the alignment done. this morning though, when i was backing out of my driveway, i noticed a very distinct "ca -clunk" from the front end and on my way to work on the highway the front end felt very, very loose. almost like when you're driving and a big gust of wind comes by, and then the car would pulling to the other side. when i replaced the mounts with the new camber plates, i only disconnected the strut from the mount and managed to slide the old plate out and slide the new one in without much hassle and i didn't have to take the whole thing out or even compress the springs. so i didn't unbolt much and everything was torqued down when it put everything together again. so what could be the problem here??? i don't feel safe driving it on the highway now.

 

Could be that the alignment shop did not tighten a tie rod enough. Could be the camber plate that you installed was not tightened enough onto the strut. First thing is to get the alignment checked again asap. Something is not correct, but you already know that.

Good luck & let us know what you find.

Edit.... Thinking about this I'd check that camber plate to strut bolt. I bet that is the clunking noise you are hearing.

 

well, i'm assuming i did something wrong since it started after the camber plate install and before the alignment. i'll have to see if i get a chance to check the strut and see if it's loose. they did tell me that the alignment was way off when i brought it in. i assumed that it was going to be, but i hope it's not something else wrong here. i'll see if i can manage to get a video up of the alignment issue with turning the wheel and it pulls to one side then the other. problem is i'm working 70 hours this week and don't have much time to actually do anything outside of work until saturday. i'm just worried because it starts shimmying a lot when you get past 50mph and it's a long ride to work not taking the highway. maybe someone out there had this same issue somewhere. like always, i'm open to all opinions on the matter.

 

Did it make that noise on the way to the alignment shop? Did it start after the alignment?

What are the alignment numbers that the shop adjusted your alignment too?

 

yeah it made a sound before the install but it never made the car shake at all, even going 100+mph and now i go over 50mph and is starts shimmying and car is all over the place. i don't know if it's a bad install or not. i have a picture of the alignment. sorry about the picture, i don't have a scanner so i pieced together a bunch of photos but you can read the numbers and everything

 

and i just noticed the paper says the right rear toe adjustment was maxed out. i don't know why that would be like that. never had any issues with the rear end before and my car's never been in an accident. never hit any curbs or anything either.

 

Those numbers look OK to me, but I am not an alignment tech.

How many miles on your MINI? I'm wondering if the change in alignment is now making a worn part become evident.

 

A LOT! About ~114k or so. I bought it at 80K and have had the car for 2 years now (almost to the day!) and I've had my share of problems, nothing big until now though

 

i'm starting to wondering if the wheel bearing might be shot and the new camber and alignment is showing it now. what would be the way to check that without pulling everything apart. i only have limited time during the day so anything quick to check would be helpful.

 

i have 3 videos of it i just uploaded. there is a lot of distortion but you can here the sound of what i'm hearing in the background bass. it's kinda like a "woah-woah-woah-woah" sound. you'll see a few times i hold in the clutch and you can hear it better then. the first video you caan hear it all right. the second video about 3:45 into it you can hear it pretty well. and the 3rd video i'm going slower and you can hear it too. you'll notice it isn't quite as fast as the other 2 videos. and at the end of the 3rd video i'm taking an exit off the highway and you'll hear stuff if my car rattling a lot, so that's not the sound of what is going on, lol. you'll see me correcting the steering wheel a lot. i was on a straight section of highway where i wouldn't need to be correcting the wheel at all. again, there's a lot of distortion and if you listen on a laptop, you'll have to listen VERY carefully. if you have a speaker system, you should be able to here in the back ground bass. it'll be the only consistent sound in the background that you can pick out of the distortion. hopefully this will help out. i'll try to get another video of the steering problem when i cut the wheel and straighten it out.

 

sorry it was brought to my attention that the videos were listed as private. i fixed it so it should work fine now for viewing