On March 23rd I had my coolant expansion tank replaced due to a leak. Since I was pressed for time I brought it to INSKIP for service. $344 dollars later, it's fixed (including a cooling flush). It's the dealership, so I expect to get hosed on cost...

Driving home my car felt ever so slightly "loose" on the HWY especially through turns. Since my tank was nearly empty I figured maybe my weight distribution was slightly off and didn't think much of it.

Next day driving to work on the route 95 S-curves with a full tank of gas my car again didn't feel right. Normally my MINI is beyond planted and secure. I can't pinpoint the feeling but it's definitely not anywhere near the way it was before (and always for that matter). After work I decided to make sure both front Koni struts were adjusted evenly. No change. Checked tire pressures. 36F, 38R. No change.

When I turn my steering wheel when parked I hear a clunk going back and forth. THAT wasn't there before. I know my car like the back of my hand. What could that be?? Ball joint? Tie rod?

Every time I go to INSKIP my service advisor askes me on behalf of his Techs where I had my MINI tuned because they think it's one of the nicest tuned MINIs that rolls through. Okay that's a compliment I guess, but are they taking it for fast joy rides? Is that what happened? Tear a bushing driving like mad?

How do I resolve this? My car is out of warranty. It's modified but my suspension was PERFECT when I brought it in. It was aligned just last year at INSKIP. I don't want to look like a fool accusing them of damaging my suspension but like I said, I KNOW my car.

Advice? Should I go back and bring this up? Am I nuts??

Thank you

 

On March 23rd I had my coolant expansion tank replaced due to a leak. Since I was pressed for time I brought it to INSKIP for service. $344 dollars later, it's fixed (including a cooling flush). It's the dealership, so I expect to get hosed on cost...

Driving home my car felt ever so slightly "loose" on the HWY especially through turns. Since my tank was nearly empty I figured maybe my weight distribution was slightly off and didn't think much of it.

Next day driving to work on the route 95 S-curves with a full tank of gas my car again didn't feel right. Normally my MINI is beyond planted and secure. I can't pinpoint the feeling but it's definitely not anywhere near the way it was before (and always for that matter). After work I decided to make sure both front Koni struts were adjusted evenly. No change. Checked tire pressures. 36F, 38R. No change.

When I turn my steering wheel when parked I hear a clunk going back and forth. THAT wasn't there before. I know my car like the back of my hand. What could that be?? Ball joint? Tie rod?

Every time I go to INSKIP my service advisor askes me on behalf of his Techs where I had my MINI tuned because they think it's one of the nicest tuned MINIs that rolls through. Okay that's a compliment I guess, but are they taking it for fast joy rides? Is that what happened? Tear a bushing driving like mad?

How do I resolve this? My car is out of warranty. It's modified but my suspension was PERFECT when I brought it in. It was aligned just last year at INSKIP. I don't want to look like a fool accusing them of damaging my suspension but like I said, I KNOW my car.

Advice? Should I go back and bring this up? Am I nuts??

Thank you

 

I've noticed that both front springs don't appear to be seated properly with the struts. That's one thing I can't confirm for how long they've been like that. Can springs work their way loose over time? I tried taking a picture but there's not enough room. I'm so damn confused right now

 

How many miles were put on car during time at dealer?

 

There is usually a mileage in and mileage out on the invoices.....
I would not expect the car to have needed bleeding for a tank change unless the coolant level was very low....then driving would have been needed to warm it up enough....
But I kinda doubt anybody can beat on a car hard enough in 5-7 miles and not get arrested to mess up a car so badly.....
I'm kinda guessing it is just bad juck and a coincidence...
And knowing a couple of the cars that folks at inskip owns...I am pretty sure they were not impressed.... They were just making you feel better about your car....being 100% honest.

 

My service adviser had me write down who/where I had the tune on 3 different occasions. It's not how "fast" it is but how it puts its power down (smoothly).

Anyway that wasn't the main point. I brought that up as a possible reason for joy rides. How do they know how fast it is?? I honestly don't mind if they have a little fun on the test ride after service. Open her up, just don't beat on it. That is all.

Just about everytime I bring my car to INSKIP they break something on my car. They always replace free of cost. Last time it was my tire, the time before it was my intercooler intake piping, the time before that was damage to my wheel (Ultraleggera). Notice a trend? They can be pretty careless and break stuff a lot.

 

Maybe the springs moved when they had it up on the hoist? Just throwing a wild guess out there....

 

Sounds like to need to locate a new service vendor. I would not put up with service like that and I would have the car checked at another location and go from there.

 

I wonder if a bushing finally gave out when the suspension was at maximum extension when it was on the lift ? Just a thought

 

How the hell did they break an intercooler horn? Or a tire? Or wreck your rim??

Place sounds very shady.

Could just be a coincidence as drivehard says but sounds like it isn't.

There is absolutely no reason they need to drive your car for it to reach operating temperature, just need to let it idle for a few minutes.

If you have a jack I would crawl underneath it and have a look. If not you need to take it somewhere else!

 

Might be that they did not seat correctly on the upper and lower perch mount rubber. They are slotted to fit the spring tight. I would go back to them and point it out , possible its moved when they lifted it , but most of the time they dont move because the spring still pushes on them when lifted. , maybe they were binded and the lifting them made them slide a hair.

 

Thanks for all the responses. INSKIP isn't usually my first choice but I was pressed for time. According to the invoice they performed a 60 point inspection as part of the service. So at the VERY LEAST they should've noticed that my springs weren't seated properly on the struts. I need a good independent mechanic here in RI I can TRUST. I used to go to Banchwerks in Providence but unfortunately one of the co-owners had a bad motorcycle accident.

Anyone in the RI/ SE Mass area recommend one?

 

That seems to be a reasonable impression. That's what I'm thinking. I doubt there was any ''malice'' involved at INSKIP. It's usually something simple as that.

 

They installed your suspension wrong ?

 

Yea, thats my guess, i would just inform them, most MINI dealership are there to help if there was an issue.

 

So I brought the car in and the Tech who performed the work put the MINI up on a lift. He said it appears the springs were installed wrong, there's no way they rotated that much while up on the lift. The only way to resolve the problem is to disassemble the whole strut assembly, ~4.5 labor hours.

Lets be clear. This suspension was installed over TWO Years ago and the dynamics were ABSOLUTELY PERFECT until I got my car back on Monday. Prefect alignment, excellent ride and stability. Now it floats and feels loose. It just feels like crap. So what they're trying to tell me is I've been driving like this for two years and never noticed! I notice EVERYTHING, especially when it comes to handling dynamics.

To be honest I'm pretty tee'd off right now. Mostly because my gut tells me something is amiss but I can't definitively prove it. Let's not forget they performed a "60 point inspection". Well if they did they would've noticed the incorrectly installed springs. I was also there 2 weeks ago for an O2 sensor and in October for turbo oil feed-line replacement. They never noticed then either...

 

How many miles on your MINI? Are you on the original lower control arm bushings. Those don't last long & can make your car feel loose.

As Zippster said check the mileage in & out & ask hard questions if there have been a lot of miles put on your car.

 

If I am understanding you correctly, you're suggesting one of their techs spent half their days work mis-adjusting your suspension so it would ride crappy ? lol. That's a stretch....

How many miles on these struts since install iClancy ? When I had mileage on a few of my former sets of JCW struts ( last about two years @ 25K per year ), and the MINI happened to be fully extended after servicing I noticed a "floating" feel too....usually means the dampers are shot...not some vast-tech wing conspiracy.

 

+1
To assume that folks tear up your car EVERYTIME IS ABSURD....kinda paranoid actually....I know one of the parts people that work at inskip...and what you are saying WOULD NEVER HAPPEN. But reality is some folks are never happy, and are a squeeky wheel....
Know they had a couple of folks cars at greasys garage that they would not work on....funny thing is a couple of those folks were on similar lists at other places!! Makes you say hmmmm....some folks just get paranoid that folks have been touching their stuff...trust me...if you have a car that was special, the mechanics might smile, as it is different from the plains vanilla cars they work on, but it is just a job.....
2 years for struts on a lowered car is about it....
I think perhaps you just pay more attention to how your car feels after servicing....
Maybe your struts were dead, and putting it on the lift allows the weight to come off, letting the springs shift...it took a second for them to extend...and bam...there is your shift. The simplest explanation is usually the right on...not a huge conspiracy.
Springs and suspensions like yours not common...ever wonder why...think you just figured it out..."cup" suspension as opposed to coilovers are different....my gut says putting it on a lift with dead struts let it shift...just saying...why would anybody want to mess stuff up? Mechanics don't get paid for wasting time....

 

The dampers aren't shot, I'm still able to adjust rebound damping via the KONI adjustable ****. It doesn't bang over bumps and the ride isn't any harsher than before. Roughly 25 K miles on them. The one thing I've learned about cars is it could be anything.

And to EUROTHRASHER/ ZippyNH; I'm not paranoid. I had an awesome mechanic that I went to for 20 years whom retired recently (before the suspension was installed). He's worked on everything from when I had a 1978 e21 and gray market e30 in HS to my MINI. Going to the dealership just isn't the same. It's not their fault, it's a repair facility for warrantied cars which mine isn't. I go there because they obviously have OEM parts readily available and they're 5 miles from my house. My service advisor Darrell is a good dude. The people at the parts counter rock too. I give praise when due. But when my car feels substantially different when I get it back I have every right to find out why.