After several searches I couldn't find anything that match my problems so here it is:

My 04 Cooper S has recently developed what I would refer to as a "wander".
Keeping the wheel straight and putting in very little input in either direction, the car feels like it is constantly moving around. Just driving down the highway it feels like I might be tracking several inches either way constantly.

It took a little bit to get a good feel for this, 30 mph wind on the road feels about the same.

I have had some intermittent power steering issues, but it seems to be working fine lately and doesn't seem to be connected to what I'm feeling.

Tires are good, inflated properly.

I want to say it feels like driving an old pickup truck sometimes, but I don't feel the slop in the wheel that would be reminiscent of that.

any thoughts?

 

Have you checked your ball joints lately? Do you get a shimmy or clunking at times?

 

Control arm bushings ?

 

That's what I was thinking. My car had more severe syptoms than just a wander, but it could definitely be the cause.

 

nope no clunks or noise, pretty nice solid ride.

I put on a ton of miles this time of year and did about 2000 last week when I noticed things were feeling different.

I thought about ball joints and bushes but really didn't know what I should be be looking for.

 

Jack the car up, one side at a time. Grab the wheel/tire at the 12 and 6 position and try wiggling back and forth. If there is movement there, it is most likely a wheel bearing issue.

If it's solid, grab at the 3 and 9 position and wiggle again. Keep in mind it will move a little bit, as the steering will have some play. If the wheel moves more than the little steering play, then you most likely have a ball joint issue.

Try each side of the car if you can and let us know what you find.

 

co03per

thats the sort of thing I needed. I'll get it up tonight and give everthing a good shake.

Thanks

 

I think I may be in the same boat. Does yours also seem just fine when on some roads, and wander like crazy on other roads?

 

seems to wander everywhere now, fast slow. rough smooth. I thought i was riding on edge of a groove in the highway from the trucks at first, but found I was getting this everywhere.

today for the first time I felt a clunk in the right side suspension when I drove through a parking lot and hit a small crack in the pavement.

the more I read now and understand, it sure sounds like a control arm bushing.
now the question is sub-frame or no sub-frame removal to replace them.

It doesn't look that complicated other than doing a ton on quality time lay on the cold garage floor.

 

No subframe removal... that's the good news.

Not sure where you're from, so I'm not sure if rust is going to be a big issue for you or not. I replaced my ball joint two weeks ago. It took me all day, but if I have to do it again in the future, it should only take a couple hours.

I would still lift the car up and give the wheel a wiggle and see what part is actually 'loose'. My guess is that you have a bad Lower Outer Ball Joint (connects the control arm to the bottom of the hub). Let me know if that's what you find and I can help you out some more if that's the case.

 

Looks like its the control arm bushes. I did about 400 miles this weekend, so I had lots of time to get a feel for what was going on.
You really have to be on your toes when driving this thing. Strong pull to the left under acceleration, and strong pull to the right when you let off the gas.
from what I feel and the clunk I heard over the weekend, I pretty sure the right one is far worse than the left.

I guess the question is, I'm pretty sure the bushes are toast, should I go ahead and do ball joints while I'm in there.

so the bushes are on the way and temps should be in the 60's on sunday, a perfect day for concrete crawling

 

The only thing you have to take off would be the wheel, so if the ball joints aren't bad, there's no reason to replace them early.

 

Does the wander feel like it's sticking in a direction when you turn the steering wheel? The lower portion of the column has a u-joint that can stiffen up. Some symptoms include; steering feel that is like the intermittent pump failure, steering goes from low resistance to high resistance while turning, and steering does not recenter.

 

I got one side replaced last week. The bush was toast.

Control arm almost fell off when I took off the two nuts. The guts were shredded.

It was a bit of fight to get the old bush out. I used an air chisel to break it loose but the darn thing would not give up its grip on the housing. Finally got out out though.

Install was tough as the extraction, but using several blunt objects it finally popped in the hole. I was able suck the control arm into position using short piece of tie-down strap and ratchet.

I really didn't have the time or strength to start on the other side. But it was still nice an tight.

I drove just over 700 mile on Saturday and car drove great!

So the next warm day( or two) I'll attack the drivers side and change out the other bush