now some subby questions

Rear
and in regards to the subframes upon removing my trailing arm bracket on one side the bolt was rusted so bad it had bonded with the nut welded on the inside and the nut snapped off, leaving me no choice but to butcher the bolt and the trailing arm bracket, is it possible to repair the nuts that i broke? and does anyone have a bracket laying around they want to send me? will pay postage and any costs....if at the right price

is it hard to rebuild the trailing arms myself? what specialty tools are needed?

Front
my upper control arms are dead.... seems rust and dirt has attacked them, how much are these to replace and are they worth getting seccond hand?

and how do i get the ball things out of my trumpets? can i use them in hi los or should i get new ones?

sorry bout the long winded post, but i dont post questions here too often and its time to start using this great resource. because as soon as my hsc finishes its full steam ahead on the mini because dads getting sick of my "crap" laying everywhere....so i have a source of funds

_________________
I have a problem.. apparently

Why rebuild 30 odd year old subframes?

Only as good as the amount of money you throw at them. How about Rover frames, front and rear? That'd be the path i would be taking. Only 50-80,000 kms on most of 'em.

They don't need rebuilding. Just chuck in some hi-los, some grease in the right spots and you're off and racing.

_________________
Cheap, Fast, Reliable. Choose two.

Its what i'm doing.

And theyre not that expensive.

Rubber mounted fronts feel a hell of a lot nicer to drive with, too.


As for your problems, you can get top arms fairly cheap.
THe knuckle joint cup pops out.
The knuckle itself "slips" into the trumpet (will require a BFH to remove, most likely).
Can't help with your rear subframe, sorry.

What needs doing ?

We did the ones on my clubby bushes were worn the kit to recondition is available the bushes need reaming though so it is probably best to take it to a mechanic / machining shop to get this done not too bad other than that the bolts used for the mounting bits for the trailing arms are quite likely rusted, mine were be sure to spray a lot of CRC / WD40 at them (there is a little cubby hole that fills up with dirt and muck )

_________________
---
Roads need more corners
A Deluxe(CG13DE), 2 Clubbies(998 and 1275) and 2 Morris 1100Ss

was just wanting to rebuild the arms while they are out...just get em back to new...

what are rover subframes worth? and do they just bolt straight onto my clubby?

_________________
I have a problem.. apparently

have heard that the rubber mounted newer subframes feel good for a while but get soggy when the mounts get worn a bit AND that the aussie solid mount ones are the best
Just what i HEARD though

To get the arms out you will have to deal with the mounting brackets I was talking about.. I thought you meant putting new shafts, bearings and bushes in

_________________
---
Roads need more corners
A Deluxe(CG13DE), 2 Clubbies(998 and 1275) and 2 Morris 1100Ss

yeah those brackets caused me a problem, i had to cut one up to get it off as i broke one of the nuts from its place and couldnt undo it....so i need to weld a nut back in there i think.... stupidly i broke 2 nuts....but one was easy to cut, the seccond was too hard to get the grinder into so i hade to butcher the bracket, so now i need a new bracket lol... and a welder i wanted to rebuild basically the wole arms.

_________________
I have a problem.. apparently

Rover frames... Bolts straight in, one large bolt in the tops, rather than the two 5/16 UNF. Small rubber mounts at the rear 'tails' of the front frame, kinda look like engine mounts. These need holes drilled into the floor, as the existing holes won't line up.

Soggy? Well, maybe if you're searching for that last tenth around your favourite racetrack or your super-fast road car, but for average road use, they are a much smoooother drive. If you don't like it, stick in some aluminium spacers, where the rubber used to be. Alot of the UK Mini places sell these kits. But the rubber mounts are half of the smoothness in a Rover, nothing much else changed. Still the rough old A Series...

_________________
Cheap, Fast, Reliable. Choose two.

I've rebuilt both front and rear as you describe on my hydro car, basically the same for what you're talking about.


Rear:
When you get the rebuild kit for the rear, you get the trailing arm axle in the kit, it goes right through the trailing arm.Generally it will wear in use as much as the bush and needle roller bearing.
The rear kit comes with the axle, nut, bush, needle roller bearing, and plastic tube.
Cheapest if you get it from the UK.

Because the bearing and bush can be pushed out at home (with some difficulty) give it a try, but the new bush once fitted will need to be reamed to size. That would best be done by an engineering shop if you don't know how, about 20 bucks ream both. Make sure he puts the plastic tube inside the arm before pressing in the bearings!! (there has been much sadness here..)

Front:
It's easy as with the rebuild kit. Less hassle than the rear.

_________________
SooperDooperMiniCooperExpertEngineering

All garage work involves equal measures of enthusiasm, ingenuity and a fair degree of irresponsibility.

Thanks for the help guys, hopefully these bits will be done soon. wjat does reaming involve? i have never heard the phrase before... aprart from on here lol

_________________
I have a problem.. apparently

Stuwey...good to see you supporting one of the businesses that is bringing Rover gear in, and good that they do....but lets just remember that 50K on european or british roads is a lot different from 30 years on Australian roads!!!

You could find structural rust has taken hold already....(hope Steve has someone looking out for tin worm as one of the criteria before he imports)

_________________
"Show me the Mini!"

Rubber mounted front frames suck!!!,,,it doesn`t take long & they go all jelly,,,add a little oil leak to the equation & they are just rediculous & start cracking up all your front panels

that`s why solid frame mount kits are avaliable , not "just" to maintain some sort of consistancey in the handling dept, but also to save your front panels from cracking up from all the exccessive movment created by wishy washy jelly rubber front frame mounts

yeah, nice & smooth for a while, but disasterous for longetivity

sorry, just my opinion/experience

Rubber frame mounts = YUK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

_________________
No offence intended here but--> anyone writing a book about minis 30 years ago may not have experienced such worn or stuffed-with components as we are finding these days.

You should put your heart & soul into everything you do.

yeah i have decided against the new frames, as mine are good, i dont even think ill rebuild the trailing arms anymore because they seem to look fine...is there any way to tell if they are dead... like what are the signs that they need replacing?, i need to replace an axle though cos i wrecked it in the process of getting it out, the fronts definately need doing, and im putting new bearings in the rear as well as new brake lines and new shoes and one new slave cylinder, need to make a big list and fax it to ome places for pricing

(who has had their frames sand blasted? $$ please)

_________________
I have a problem.. apparently

Reaming is a tool which will take a scrape of metal out of a bush or a hole.

It's kinda like a precision drill, only it's not a drill bit.....

The bushes when you put them in a deliberately smaller in diameter than the shaft that will be put through. The hole needs to be reamed out to make them fit.

To see if the trailing arms are knackered and need rebuilding, take a look at the bush once you have cleaned it up, it may be out of round. Also check the needle bearing, any damage will be in the form of jammed, rusty needles, or a damaged needle cage. The shafts will probably show damage as well where the bearings rub.

This will cause your mini to 'crab' as you drive up the road if it is too bad.

_________________
SooperDooperMiniCooperExpertEngineering

All garage work involves equal measures of enthusiasm, ingenuity and a fair degree of irresponsibility.