07 mini cooper s, 65k miles
ok so ive had my car a total of 3 weeks give or take, and after getting the noises fixed from the fly wheel and my possessed sunroof, i now have a slight front suspension squeak when goin over a bump that loads and unloads the suspension much louder when the windows are open. doesnt happen when i hit a good sized crack in the road. any Ideas? im going get underneath it tomorrow and see if i can see where its coming from but its really irritating and if its something big then i have to bring it back cause its still under some kind of warranty. expected from a used car so its not a big deal, this car is a keeper

 

It could be a bad ball joint, tie rod, control arm bushings, sway bar bushings, shock or strut bushings, coil spring seat ... I'd venture for the shock/strut bushings first.

 

Thanks for the advice, hes getting put up in the air at my shop tomorrow so i can check it out

 

So i found out that its the sway bar bushings in the front making noise they were squeaking so i sprayed a little lube on them and now there quiet atm but one had a little play in it.

If i replace them would it be better to go factory or aftermarket? options? do they make an upgrade for them?

 

Sometimes aftermarket ones are massively better than stock. One example is Pedders urethane bushings. I don't think Pedders makes them for Mini's, but MiniMania has ones by Powerflex (don't know them at all). The benefit you'll gain from urethane over rubber is a stiffer transfer of power/support. I'll see if I can find any other manufactures and post later on if I find them.

 

Whiteline (a line I'm familiar with) has replacements for the 22mm and 24mm bars. I'd trust theirs, but would not rule out the other too.

 

Know any reliable websites i can check out? and that would also mean i have to measure my current sway bar

 

I would have said Andy's Autosport ... but I just realized the bushings are for the R50 line, not the R56 line. Sorry about that. Still hunting.

 

Here's another brand I'm familiar with, but haven't used

http://www.powerflex.co.uk/products/...+2-2626/1.html

Here sells them too
http://www.outmotoring.com/mini-coop.../2-suspension/

You'll def. need to see how large your bars are as they seem to go from 16mm - 25mm.

 

lol its all good i already looked there also, i might just put the factory one's in depending on how much they are.