Hey guys! Sorry for not getting to this sooner. (I am trying to man a LOT right now. So thank you for the patience.)

Couple things have happened recently. On SOME not ALL rear ALTA control arms, we have noted some more than usual endplay in the rod ends. No reason for panic, but it may cause an annoying noise, and the mfr. of the rod ends will replace them free of charge if found to be an issue. So be SURE if you have both the control arms and PSRS from ALTA that the noise is truly coming from the front.

Now assuming it is from the front. You guys are not morons and have checked all the same things that I would have checked on my own personal car if I was having the same issue. So until I can duplicate it (the R53 and R56 mules are in Colorado tonight for the MINIS in the MOUNTAINS or I would have tried it on one of them. My personal car doesn't have it.)

Speculating why this would not be consistent comes back to two things (ion my mind only not official here) are the reference of the bearing in the rear mount and how they were pressed both in and out. I wonder if that can cause the issue. Can we get reports on settings guys with problems? Also what and how they were pressed in?

Jeff (ALTA2) is at MITM as well. I will get with him when he gets back.

Keep me posted guys! Thanks again for the headsup!

 

Thanks for the reply Adam. My install guy has spoken with Jeff. We will
proceed with a stethoscope/remote microphone analysis this coming Wedesday ( might do a CD version if we can get some backup singers )

 

YAY noise is fixed.
I tore the car apart and checked everything and it all seemed good.The chassis ears showed it was in the sway bar area.I took the sway bar mounts apart and greased them (even though the factory doesn't),re-installed everything and took it for an extensive test drive and NO NOISE.
I dont know if this will work for everyone,but it was what mine needed.

 

Thanks Wtadye. We disconnected the sway bar ( front), then test drove and got the same noise, so that is not our problem, but your info might
help one of the other guys here. Just to make it clear did you lub the front or rear bar?

 

The front bar.I too had disconnected it at the end links previously when trying to track the noise and it was still there.The only thing I could think is that the added harshness was making the bar move in the mounts and creating the noise.I dont know if it will help anyone else,but worked for me.

 

Very interesting Wtadye. We will definitely keep that in mind
during our forthcoming investigation.

 

Problem FIXED!

Tightened the set-screws again. Here is what I think happened. I think the flats of the control arm shaft were not lined up well with the set-screws (I did try). We were able to see some movement between the ss tube and the shaft of the control arm when rocking the tire front to back with the car on the ground. All the suspension parts MUST be loaded like it is on the ground so there will be very little load at the PSRS bushing enabling you to see if there is any play there. I had used blue locktite the first time so I was able to get the set-screws to move. It was hard to get to and to turn the screws. But that was the fix for me.

We have some really bad roads in Newport. The noise only showed up with slow speeds going over gravel / road seams and multiple small bumps. If there is anything loose up front I think you will feel it through the bushings!

 

Thanks Pmello. Once we get the car up on the lift ramp with the suspension loaded on Wednesday we will check this out. I thought we had looked at it
closely, but maybe not closely enough.

 

Great work guys. Thanks for keeping us updated. I believe this to be my next project and it's great to know what to check over before the project is done.
Good Luck on the search.

 

Well----it is fixed .

Thanks to Eddie @ E&L Auto in Orlando for the time in tracking this down
( using their advanced multi microphone system) and fixing it.

The problems area was the same as Pmello's. Although,during our installation we made every effort to get the set screws properly alligned and loctighted,
in our case the sleeve was eventually able to rotate enough to cause the set screws
to move on the flats.

I don't know how many Alta PSRS are in service or of those how many are
on track cars. On a track car you would probably never here the sound.
Further, I my opinion, this is not a safety issue because the sleeve was not
going to slide off.
The percentage of installations with this problem is probably incredibly
small.
E&L Auto ( my favorite Mini Maniac Mechanic) removed the lower A-arm,
and we removed the sleeve ( which is held on by set screws). We had the sleeve welded to the A-arm ( cost $5 at a local shop). Problem is now fixed
permanently.
Althought, I like I said, the percentage of the installations with this issue
is probably very small, if I were doing it from the begining I would weld the sleeves on. I understand that retailers want to avoid "welding suggested"
as this could scare off potential buyers. However this is not a big deal and you can walk the A-arm over to someone else's shop for the 10 minute weld job. Someone might think that they do not want to make a permanent
weld to the otherwise stock A-arm. However, in my opinion, the quality
of and the positive effect the Alta PSRS has on the handling of my car
is well worth the change.

Thank you to Eddie, Adam and Jeff ( aka the Alta boys)

 

Thanks guys! I will note this in the file so we can inform other non NAM members if similar happens to them.

Thank you!

Adam

 

P.S.==== I forgot to say, if anybody has any high tech questions about this
Eddie can be contacted at 1FastMINI.com

 

I just found time to work on my track MINI with the psrs and with strange noises. I can now confirm the same issue as others. All set screws were loose. Once tightened again, the noises are gone. If red loctite didn't do the job, I'm not sure anything short of welding will. I'll discuss this with my mechanical guru. At least I now know exactly what was causing the noises.

 

as you tighten each one, it pushes against the others. One loosens, then all are worthless. When I check into mine I'll just use two set screws. And if you are really into fasteners, you'll know that there are many tuypes of set screws. I think for this we want one that has a sharp point, not the cup. I think that would do a better job against the hardened shaft of the control arm.

I may just get the sleve welded on like, was it Gnatster?, did. That's a one time solution....

Matt

 

I found that after re-tightening, the set screws worked loose quickly and the noise returned. I had the sleeves welded and so far, no noise after 100 miles or so and a DE. I expect that this problem is now solved for good.

 

but the sound returned today. We'll see if it's the welds, or what sometime in the next couple of weeks.

Matt

 

Need to change the bushes in my car, and been looking at these, but read a post somewhere that these won't last that long in harsh conditions. Any truth in that as theyre twice the price (in the UK) of thr replacement bushes I was considering.

Cheers

 

if you deal with the welding of the metal sleeves.

Matt

 

That was a quick reply, thanks! Which sleeves are these?

 

is the bushing replacement that holds a delrin (I think) sphere with a hole in it. There's a steel sleeve that goes over the end of the control arm that then goes into the delrin sphere. This sleve is "locked" in place with 6 set screws. Many have found these set screws loosen (even with the loc-tite red) and then you get noise from the sleve slapping on the control arm. Many have had these slevels tac-welded onto the control arm shaft to eliminate the problem.

Matt

 

Right see what you mean thans

 

So what have you found out Matt?

 

A question for ADAMSALTAMINI...you wrote about rear control arms at the top of page 4. My experience has shown that the lower inner connection point - technically called a point of restraint - absorbs the brunt of the forces compared with the remaining six. If I were designing control arms today, that rod end would be bigger than the other six...and the control arm itself might actually need to be somewhat beefier at that end. These details add cost, but as few here know, I had one fail - not Alta - on track at 90mph. I was very lucky, and so was the car.

 

Hi guys,

Had the Alta PSRS for over 2 weeks ago now and got an annoying rattle. Took it back and paid for the Sleeve's to be welded to the control arms as me and the fitters agreed after reading this thread it was the most likely cause.

Unfortunatly it's not changed anything :( Noise is still there. Was hoping for some suggestions from you guys as these are the first I know of to be fitted in the UK.

I've had uprated anti roll bars fitted previously and we greased them when fitting them with some silicone stuff (or whatever it was your supposed to grease them) but that was 10months ago. Plus the rattle seems to be to loud to be something that needs greasing

Like other people at first it only occured on rough services at speeds below 30mph, however since the welding its got a bit louder and occurs at higher speeds.

I'm thinking it could be the anti roll or the brackets being loose, but any suggestions would be welcomed

 

Struts: Top bolt, pinch bolt, end-link bolt, upper strut guide plate bolts.
Brakes: Caliper carrier.
Sway bar: Bushing bolts, lower end-link bolt.
Control arm: Ball joint stuff.

I THINK that's all.... My guess, try the top bolt on the strut.

Matt