Hello,

A little information before calling dealer appreciated...

I had to lock up the brakes over the weekend to avoid being run over by a transport truck that made a quick lane change. I guess I was in his blind spot . I didn't hit anything, just slammed on brakes and had to swerve left in behind truck. Truck was in left lane and made change without signalling properly.

I have developed a subtle "wiggle" and pull to the right in the front end as a result. I wasn't travelling all that fast about 60km per hour (about 35 mph?).

I am hoping that I am not looking at a sizeable repair bill here! Any information that you have before I contact dealer would be appreciated.

Thx.

 

The maneuver shouldn't have caused any problem, as we would all have a wiggle; however, it may have shed some light on an existing problem. If you have a "wiggle", at the very least check to make sure your lug nuts are tight. If you have a pull to the right that wasn't there before, and when you are not on the brake you could possibly have a caliper sticking or other aligment setting out of whack. Either way, should be a warranty item or looked at for safety.

 

Which raises the question: How little does it actually take to put the car out of alignment?

I live in LA and I swear if there is a city with more or deeper potholes than here I will NEVER move there. I don't get how all of these Hollywood playas drive around in their Ferraris and Lamborghinis without simply destroying them.

I do a good job dodging and darting around them, but they litter every single route or alternate route to any destination . . . and the occasional impact is unavoidable. Last night was one of those occasions (blind, unlit corner), and I'd swear my prior dead-on-center steering now requires a slight correction to the left.

Am I just imagining this or did that pothole really do a number on my car?
I might've been travelling around 35 or 40 mph . . .

 

I am sorry but the S.F. bay area has the worst potholes. In fact they aren't called potholes; but instead, they rival foxholes that can hold two soldiers quite comfortably. Any time you see an 18-wheel tractor/trailer swerving to avoid a foxhole, you know things are bad. And of course, the tire & wheel dealers are loving life as the saying goes.... Business couldn't be better.

I am told that the standard MINI suspension is not adjustable for caster and camber, so the amount to which the alignment can be screwed up by road damage seems to be limited to toe setting. Although having toe out of spec can still result in premature tire wear.... The real costly factor is tire and wheel damage. There is a bit of a controversy about whether pothole damage is handled as collision (because you hit the pothole...) or comprehensive by the insurance companies. The problem is that there typically is a higher deductible for collision and you may get hit with a rate increase if youtry to get the pothole damage covered by the auto insurance.

 

Guess I won't be moving to San Fran . . . though what an awesome city, though.

 

did the tires actually lock? you might've made a flat spot on your tire then.

i would check the torque on those lugs first and check tirepressure.