Ok, I hope I have this in the right place. I have had a steering/suspension problem for a while now. I feel I have eliminated the symptoms down to a possible steering rack or steering column issue.

What has been done: (all parts are either MINI OEM or quality replacement parts) This is all within about 5-10K miles. All items torqued to specifications given by dealership shop foreman. Listed from first to most recent.

Front suspension/steering parts replaced:

• New control arm inner ball joints (were very bad)
• Poly control arm bushings (were very bad)
• Strut mounts (M7 plates mounted on top of towers) (were very bad with mushrooming corrected)
• Front right wheel bearing (possibly bad however possibly debatable)
• Right hand inner tie-rod (not quite bad but not tight. smooth but loose operation. replaced because new was already sourced)
• Outer control arm ball joints both sides (no play found but they were loose. left grease boot damaged)

Front suspension/steering parts inspected and determined fully compliant:

• Checked both outer tie-rod ends (found them tight and smooth. torqued when reassembled)
• Checked left side inner tie-rod for play (smooth action with no play. easy to move(loose) considered acceptable and ruled out as point of concern)
• struts and springs inspected. (struts are worn but not in poor condition. springs are in good shape)
• The steering shaft universal joint bolt has been removed and re-tightened twice just to be sure. No play found.

Now, the problem: I have had a floating in the steering which has progressed to a consistent clunk. Even with all the pieces replaced above, the clunk still persists. The vehicle is a 2006 MCS with approx. 58K miles on the odo. The clunk can be noticed with the front wheels in the air and the passenger side wheel moved aggressively back and forth in the 3 and 9 position. The same sound can be produced when turning the steering wheel back and forth. It seems as though the wheels are not fully connected to the steering wheel, however, there is no binding what so ever. When the vehicle is driven, the car will wander around on uneven surfaces. Also the clunk can be heard prominently at low speeds over rough surfaces (pulling out of a driveway, uneven parking lots etc). At speed the clunk is not as prominent but can be felt.

I am leaning toward the steering rack being the culprit for the problem. I am looking for input on my determination before I pull the rack and tear it down. This has been so frustrating that I plan to take the rack completely apart to find exactly what is causing the symptoms. I am sure that I know the root cause for failure (damn potholes!) but can not seem to find the cause of the symptoms. I am about out of ideas and am hoping that someone has had this experience and found what is breaking.

My biggest concern is that steering racks are typically very simple. Usually they either fail completely or they continue to work. (broken tooth for example. wear does not seem to be a problem until they are very old) The consistency of the clunk and lack of binding seems to point toward a joint of some sort which has me stumped because I have checked just about every joint I can think of.

Any suggestions? Hints? please help. Thank you.

 

My 2005 MCS has a clunk on the right front.
It is the Front Strut mount.
Remove the cap over the Front Strut. With the wheels on the ground, have someone turn the steering wheel while you watch that threaded rod/nut. There is also a bearing (?). On mine, that assembly moves around which 'clunks' (especially when cold, for some reason) and changes the alignment.
B.M.

 

Most of us don't have caps over the front strut mounts. They are available as after-market parts, but to my knowledge were not standard on any R53.

 

Maybe he means the little cap that covers the bearing? Yeah, there were never any caps that covered the whole thing from the factory.

You symptoms could be indicative of really worn out steering column bearings.

 

Without the caps that cover the bearing in the upper strut mounting plate, debris etc. would get into the bearing and cause premature failure, so I'm betting that the cars did come with a cap.
I've got the Koni shocks installed, just need to re-install the wheel liners and I'll see if my 'clunk' is resolved.
-BM-

 

http://www.americanminimates.com/misc.html

 

Well I found the play! The steering shaft upper u-joint was beginning its end. Replaced the steering shaft and the play is gone!

Now the clunk is something different... The whole suspension will be completely taken apart and inspected AGAIN for wear and signs of metal to metal contact. I am thinking that the shrooms were not totally fixed and may be clunking on the new strut mounts. weird theory but possible. the other thing I will be pursuing is the sway bar bushings. I replaced the sway bar link on the passenger side (where the clunk is coming from) because I found a split grease boot. whether bad or not I replaced it. It did not seem to be bad yet though.