to keep a long story short, a couple of nights ago i was driving to a friends place and when getting on the freeway onramp, someone in another lane cut me off. i swerved out of the way to the left and managed to dodge them but ended up hoping over the curb of the freeway onramp i am so blessed though ! i really should have not survived as a bush caught my car from moving perpendicular to oncoming freeway traffic ... !! needless to say my mini ariel survived with bent rims (s-lites) and a ripped off front lip/spoiler. now here is the frustrating part, i know i bent a control arm or something major because the driver side front wheel now sits significantly farther back to the rear of the wheel-well and looks like the wheel is slightly pointing to the left from where it was stock ( massive amounts of toe-out ? ). the passenger side wheel now look like it sits a bit more cambered than before, the driver side rear tire now looks like it sits higher than the passenger side. it seems my car is so out of whack !! it is so frustrating and makes me want to strangle that person who caused this all ( they didnt even stop !! ) i just need some suggestions of where to have this all looked at. no way do i want to go to the dealership and im in so cal. any suggestions of a GOOD reputable mini mechanic ? ariels suspension is stock and i have some enkei RPM2's wrapped with dunlop to reapair the bent s-lites. they are already installed and drove my car which has a humming noise coming from the driver front. alignment is wwaayy off as the wheel is maybe 12 degrees to the right to go in a straight line.


i know this was long but it felt so good to get this off my chest finally !! im so bummed and just need some support

 

Sorry to hear of the damage to your Mini. Where in SoCal are you located?

 

I know you don't want to hear this but your first stop should be a MINI dealer. Why? Because the damage may be far more than you suspect. The dealer can check the car's structural alignment very accurately (since MINI dealers use the same systems that BMW uses). Not all body, frame, suspension places are as well set up. Remember that you don't have to have the dealer do the work. But, you may be happily or unhappily surprised after they write your estimate.

Finally, no matter who does the work be sure to have MINI parts used on the suspension (everything, if I were you). So many independent shops recover their "lost" margin on aftermarket parts that they pay much less for, sometimes for good reason. Good luck.

 

I think that this would be covered under your insurance policy as an accident. Make a claim.

Tell them what happened and I don't think they will increase your rates or cancel you. But they may deem it an accident faulted to you.

But if the damage might cost you $2000 to fix, you should consider making a claim.

Good job in avoiding the accident with the other driver and recovering from something worse.

Always remember how bad things could have been and be thankful you are able to post in here, if you know what I mean.

Call your carrier, now.

 

t place to go to, you probably toasted a wheel bearing (humming noise) and bent a couple of things. It is probably an insurance 'thing' though :(

 

thanks everyone for your support ! i really avoided something that could have been worse im located in long beach cypress area but am very familiar with all southern california.

i was also thinking the idea of at least having a dealer look at it and telling me whats wrong with it and seeing if i cant get it done elsewhere.

i understand the insurance issue, but really would rather not deal with it because in the long run i know my premium WILL go up

i ran up the curb at maybe 20 miles per hour and the force of that i believe can offset a lot. i also suspect that a lot of the unevenness of the height is due to blown shocks right ? just a thought. most definitely control arms bent though ....

reputable mini shop ?

 

in my 10 years of selling parts and hitting a curb my self but not in my mini. I think yes you have bent a controle arm. But it is very hard to blow out a strut. If you had a shock i would say yes. There is something else probley going on. Now it is posible to have blown it but very rare at that low of speed. It would be a good idea to take it in were they can put on a list and take a good look. But the good thing is yes you did avoid something worse and you and your mini are over all ok. It can all be fixed.

 

DON"T DRIVE IT ANYMORE ! ! Get it to a shop asap.

You are only going to possibly cause more damage or worse have a part failure and cause another accident.

 

I also would recommend going through insurance, but it sounds like you don't want to do that.

Knowing that you're in Long Beach, I would recommend Johnson Wheel Alignment Service. They're located at 19056 Hawthorne Blvd
in Torrance, 90503. Phone number is 310-370-6301. These guys know their thing when it comes to suspension work. They not only do stock cars, but full on track cars as well. You will feel comfortable knowing that these guys are experts in their field, and your car will be in good hands.

 

glad to hear you are ok. I hope your MINI gets fixed soon.

 

thanks everyone again for the support.

i will most definitely check out that johnson alignment shop out. thanks for the tip.

i am laying low and not driving it @ all real bummer. but yes it can be fixed, and with every small accident i have ever hand, the car tends to come back .... better.

might as well just fix and upgrade everything on the suspension, even if it was not affected here we go, start of the project

 

Sorry to hear. Hope everything works out.