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Glossary of terms used in the suspension on the mini. The Mini has consistently more than proven its capability in competition with very limited and cost-effective modifications based on the standard equipment fitted. Having first ensured the bodyshell (in reality little more than a complex bracket to hold suspension and driver securely in place) is well sorted out by removing all cruddy or rotten metalwork and into something like straight, square and strong we, maximising suspension stability and geometry pays dividends in the enjoyment that is driving a Mini. Understanding what the individual ingredients are helps in pursuing what you want from the experience. Smooth Mover Good, reliable, and consistent handling is dependent on a number of factors. At this stage, we’re concerned with clapped out or badly adjusted suspension components. Stiff, seized, partially seized or slack, sloppy, worn out suspension components will cause inconsistent, wayward, confusing and – more important

What you actually need for the disc/drum conversion is pretty straightforward. Disconnect the steering arms, top and bottom swivel-pins, CV joint, and flexible brake pipes at the subframe - that’s it. There are, however, a number of ancillaries to consider.

Basics

Basics Fitting discs designed for the Mini is easy enough. Just make sure you use CV gaiters for the disc-brake set-up - these have a different bellows shape to stop the gaiter rubbing the inside of the hub. The drum type will rub, then split, shedding grease all over the place. Moly grease is mighty mucky stuff to deal with and doesn't assist braking at all! A tip for racers - to stop the gaiters over-expanding when getting very hot and imitating the aforementioned, put either a decent sized split pin or (my favorite) a piece of very small bore pipe - as in the type supplied with WD40 aerosols, etc. - under the retaining strap on the drive shaft. This allows air to escape and return,

GEARBOX - How they work

Having decided on or even implemented a course of action to bolster the performance of your Mini’s engine, maximising it’s potential should encompass a good look at the gearbox.

GEARBOX - How they work

Having decided on or even implemented a course of action to bolster the performance of your Mini’s engine, maximising it’s potential should encompass a good look at the gearbox.

The red lights went out after a short wait and the 2005 season was underway. I held position and went early on the attack,

It seems remarkable, but a winter break of over six months is never enough time to prepare a racing car! The truth is, at long last I've completely refurbished the hall, stairs and landing at home. That concludes a 7 and a half year ...

Suspension - King Pin Offset

Adverse Effects of Fitting Wide Wheels part numbers: C-AJJ3359 Terminology used: KPI - King Pin Inclination KPO - King Pin Offset LSD - Limited Slip Differential In the 'Suspension - Terminology' section, I covered what KPI is, as it is an ancient but still oft-used term despite being pretty redundant. Not that it isn't attendant in current cars - it has to be. It's just that the mass car manufacturers have settled the angle at which it is set down to a fairly universally used envelope, and there's nothing the individual can do to alter it without entirely re-fabricating the hubs of drastic surgery on the existing ones. So is, to all intents and purposes, fixed. Even the most technically advanced race teams can do little more than keep a wary eye on what it is doing when playing with suspension set-up.

King Pin Inclination

King Pin Inclination (KPI) - the angle is described by a line drawn down through the top and bottom ball-joint (swivel pin) centres and vertical viewed from the front. Extended to ground level, the distance from here to the wheel/tyre...

FITTING INSTRUCTIONS

Mini oil pumps are susceptible to premature failure caused by excessive large particle contamination of the oil, mainly metallic debris created by the gearbox. The situation is not helped by the oil getting to the pump before being filtered. Mini Spares has developed components to help minimise this problem, including these in line magnetic oil traps. Their design allows easy fitment, as the adapter simply replaces the standard oil pick up pipe blanking plate on the back of the gearbox. It’s position in the oil supply gallery necessitates frequent removal of the trap to clean collected particles out, more so for the filtered version. Failure to do this will cause premature failure of the pump and possibly engine bearings.

There are no hard and fast rules for this periodic maintenance as vehicle usage will determine debris build up. Obviously a carefully driven road car will not need as frequent attention as a race car. Certainly clean it at e...

These rods have been produced to improve car stability when cornering and braking and to facilitate easy adjustment of caster angle. Manufactured from a high-grade material in a much bigger diameter they are less susceptible to bending than the standard items.

Remote Change

1. Remove original gearstick. Fit Quickstick with original plastic collar, spring and spring retainer, grease well and refit with new spacer. Place flange downwards using longer 5/16” UNC capscrews.

These are to replace the standard bottom arms to facilitate easy adjustment of camber angles.

To fit, pace car safely on axle stands, remove front wheels to ease access, remove tie bar bolt where it joins the bottom arm, break bottom hub ball joint on outer end of arm, then remove the inner arm pivot pin. Adjust the spherical rod end by screwing in or out to set it to a similar length from the centre of the inner pivot point to the centre ...

Mini Spares has now further improved it's quality one-piece forged adjustable bottom front suspension arm to be on-car adjustable and accept all types of non-rod-end (Rose joint) bushings by including a purpose-forged trunnion.

Safety critical, the one-piece forging is of the highest quality; far stronger and with ultimate integrity compared with the now-ancient method of cutting/welding on of adaptors – a process that demands the most specialised equipment and skill to be sure of component integrity. Manufactured from a new forge tool, the bottom arm inner joint boss has been extended to accept a tube-nut adjuster that accepts the purpose-forged trunnion.

The tube nut allows easy adjustment of camber without needing to jack the car up and disassemble the suspension; the trunnion giving all Mini owners an option previously only available to racers – the capability of having fully adjustable suspension without the need to use spherical rod-ends. The trunni...

REMOTE CHANGE

Remove original gearstick. Fit Quickstick with original plastic collar, spring and spring retainer, grease well and refit with new spacer. Place flange downwards using longer 5/16” UNC capscrews.

Having built one Cooper ‘S’ for Timo Makinen to use in Historic Rallying, in which he won two International Rallies, I decided to build another one with more power and less weight than the previous one.

One lesson I learnt the hard way building the first car, was that a reliable source of new parts with in-built quality, especially where obsolete parts were being remanufactured, was essential. Mini Spares of London...

Converting WET to DRY suspension The following is a practical way of converting your wet suspension to dry, acknowledging the fact that with enough skill, enterprise and facilities...

I attended a vintage race the other weekend and had the chance to talk to some of the Mini runners about many different subjects. The conversation started out talking about what was causing his Mini to get a little weird coming out of the fast turns. Of course there can be a whole lot of reasons for this, but this did lead our conversation towards "limited slip diffs".

Articles search results for ball joint

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