I have tried to remove my drivers side front strut and because of the added thickness of the Helix camber plate I cannot (with all the strength I have which is considerable...movement of the car on jack stands had occured and it was at this point that I gave up) get the strut to come out of the pinch pocket. My delima is I do not have the tools to disassemble the control arm and steering arm from the hub. Does anyone have any ideas as to how to get around the use of the BMW special tools to disassemble the ball joints. I've tried compressing the spring but that does not allow enough room to slip the strut out of the pinch pocket so I have no choice but to take it all apart. Has anyone ever removed the control arm and steering arm from the wheel hub? If so how did you do it without the special BMW tools. If you did it with the special tools where did you get them?

Thanks in advance for any help

 

Take a deep breath and try again. You could also try unscrewing the two bolts (13mm heads) holding the outer ball joint to the steering knuckle, lift the knuckle from under the rotor, move the ball joint out of the way, and lower carefully. A screw driver can be placed in a rotor vein to keep the disc from rolling. This all assuming you are having distance issues and not because the strut body is stuck.

 

Well....Kal and I were deperate when we did my PSS9's late one night and used about 30 zip ties on the spring after we compressed the strut....LMAO! It worked on one but it wasnt a pretty sight when the zip ties broke and launched the strut out of my car on the other...

 

^ Bwahahahaha!

 

What was more funny is the slow-mo duck and cover action we did into the rocks...

 

I'm sure you were *much* faster then the killer strut...

 

I've used ratcheting tie downs to keep the springs a bit compressed, some not safe for photo techniques useing 2x4s and floor jacks. But k-huevo is one of the more detailed guys on NAM, so I'd suggest following his suggestion before trying what I did.

Oh yeah, there's also the technique of putting on boots and going to town!

Matt

Also, getting the control arm off the knuckle is easy. Two bolts and the ball joint just comes off from the bottom.

 

That's what I did when I installed my BC's. Sprayed a little penetrating lubricant all around the sleeve, came back in five minutes, took a deep breath, and put my foot to work. Popped out in about 4 tries that was with 35,000 miles on it.

Steve

 

Take a look at my "how to" for coilovers

The trick is to carefully place a jack with about a 1 foot wood extender and actuallu compress the coilover.

Or this ...I have some monster tie downs that I put on the springs when the weight of the car has the compressed. (drive car up ramps) then when you jack it up the unit is about 1 inch shorter and they will come right out.

 

here is the photo from the HOW TO

 

Easy and works like a champ. Thats how I ended getting my new struts on with camber plates.

 

I've found that it's easier and safer to use a board the right size to "thread" through the hole in the control arm so it is pretty much vertical, right beside the strut - otherwise the jack wants to shift badly... just watch the brake line when doing this.

 

I have had these struts off twice before with no problem at all. This last time I had the spring fully compressed and the strut still needed about 1/4" of hub drop to get the convex bottom of the strut completely out. It doesn't make any sense to me why now it's giving me difficulty. I even managed to pop the half shaft out of the transaxle and the strut itself was at about a 30 deg angle straight out from thr wheel well and still nothing would give. I'm going to try 2 things both could possibly cause damage to the suspension but hey that's what money is for, to buy more crap when break things while doing a repair. The first thing I will try is to go the same route as I have always done except when I push down the wheel hub I will use a steel long bar and with some leverage try to force that last 1/4" of drop. If that doesn't work then I will have no choice but to use a pickle fork to disassemble the control arm and tie rod ball joints. Yes I know this will more than likely destroy the ball joints themselves that's why I will have a set standing by when I try this again. I'm really leaning to the pickle fork method since I have concerns about additional damage (that I cannot afford right now) to the suspension that might be more costly than $150 worth of ball joints.

BTW my Mini is different than any other Mini on the planet as when I remove the 2 bolts from the control arm knuckle it not only doesn't fall out I cannot remove it even with a considerable amount of force. Something is definately working against me and I would take it in to the dealership to have them do it but they wont touch it since I have aftermarket parts on my suspension. This dificulty in removing this strut is compounded by the fact I even have the H-sport springs which are shorter than stock!!

 

If you're talking about the outer ball joint mount bracket, place a piece of wood on a jack pad and lift up against the rotor, but not against the the rear shield, raise about an inch, insert a thin blade screwdriver between the bracket and knuckle to pry free, working from one side to the other a little at a time. A word of caution, keep the knuckle supported at all times

If the drive shaft is already removed from the gear box, you won't need to pop the inner ball joint, just remove the bolts from the mounting bracket on the subframe and swing the bracket around. I don't see why you would need to go that far however.

BTW, you did disconnect the stabilizer bar drop link?

 

If what you ment was, did I disconnect the front anti-sway bar end link from the strut cartridge then yes I did.

I agree I don't see any reason why I would have to disassemble any more than what I have in the past, but that route isn't working this time. I will disassemble as much as need be to remove it and not any more than that.

BTW would you happen to know which ball joint will offer the most drop? I'm thinking the outer control arm joint but that's just a guess from what I've seen in the movement of the hub assembly.

 

Damn this site is slow on a dial-up connection.

Depending on the amount of movement the camber plates will allow, the outer ball joint disconnect is the first thing to try.


The knuckle and strut can be removed together if that doesn't work. Disconnect the brake caliper and place out of the way, remove the wheel speed sensor, support the knuckle, and separate the tie rod end ball joint.

Unbolt the strut mount at the tower and pull the knuckle, drive shaft, and strut out. The subframe and other stuff is gone in this photo also, but you get the picture.

 

Where did you get the tool in the second picture down?!!!!!!!!!

I'm looking to sell this Mini once I get it fixed just because I cannot locate the right tools and BMW will NOT sell any of thier specialty tools. I've tried cross referencing the BMW part #s but haven't come up with anything. If there was a source for these tools then I would gladly keep the Mini cause I love the drive. But if I can't work on it myself I don't want it.
Can ya help me out?

 

harbor freight sells a tool very similar to that - I haven't tried it on a MINI yet...

 

I purchased the ball joint seperator (KD 3916) from NAPA, it is available as a part of their suspension free loaner kit along with the outer ball joint seperator (KD 3918).

Harbor Freight has a kit with these types of extractors in it, and the KD kit can be purchased on-line from a variety of tool suppliers. Unfortuantely, the KD 3916 will not remove the inner ball joint while on the vehicle, only when the bracket is unbolted from the subframe and the arm lowered.

I've purchased OEM tools from Classic MINI, my local BMW/MINI parts department, and Samstag sales. Morristown MINI will sell OEM tools but I've not purchased from them. I would not suggest buying the OEM extractors, although they are of high quality German construction, because the cost is extremely high, and they don't fit any better than these Asian versions.

A tool that comes in handy of you plan on installing aftermarket struts or do this type of thing for others is a spreader tool (31-2-200). Insert this in the lower strut retainer opening and turn sideways to spread apart. A 1/4 inch sqaure drive extension turned 45 degrees will work the majority of the time.



You might try using a 1/4 inch extension on your strut before resorting to other extreme measures and see if that will provide extra wiggle room to get it out.

 

K-huevo

I've never met you, have seen your posts all over NAM and your help is VERY appreciated!! I'm not sure why you have taken the time to help me but you truely have restored my faith in this fantastic little car. Words truely cannot describe how much it's appreciated. You hit the nail on the head for the info I was needing.

If there is anything I can help you with just let me know.

Thank you!!!!

 

You're very welcome. Please inform us of progress or if you hit another snag.

 

I will definately do that!! I'm not savy enough to post pics of it but you already know what it looks like.

Take care and happy motoring

 

Dood....I just use a rubber mallet....

 

Justin...how effective do you think a rubber mallet would be on the internet!!!

 

Strut has been removed!!!!!!! Broken off bolt in Helix adj camber plate removed via machine shop with threads intact!!!! Ready for the Koni yellows to go in!!!!