Edd China has been struggling with getting this poor Mini’s suspension system ready to race for far too long. With parts issues, some old car issues, and more, it has been a bit frustrating when the original plan for this project was to spend a couple days wrenching on it and getting it ready to rock on the dirt. Unfortunately that didn’t happen and the work just kept piling on. To make matters worse, the final bit of parts should have gone on quick and easy but because of some failed threads in a control arm it all came to a screaching hault. Ugh.
In this video Edd is going to look at the stripped hole, see what is going to be required to fix it, and figure out which thread repair is best for this high load area on a race car. This kind of thing can be horrible frustrating, is not something you want to have to do twice, and can be downright dangerous if the repair isn’t done well enough to survive the rigors of racing this sucker.
Luckily, Edd has some ideas and he’s going to walk us through them to see if they can FINALLY get this mini on the road and on the way to racing again.
Oh, and there is some other funny stuff in this episode too, so watch to see James May roasting Edd.
Video Description:
Will installing thread inserts to replace stripped threads in cast aluminium suspension arms actually be strong enough to go rallying with? Well, first of all does torquing up the big bolts give us a nice click or another horrible bang? Edd China’s Workshop Diaries 28: 2007 R56 BMW Mini Cooper S Suspension Upgrade Part 6 This week we try to fix the broken thread in the aluminum rear trailing arms using Time-Serts from Wurth with help from my mate Stephen at Langley Components (Maidenhead) but only time will tell if they survive Neil’s rallying exploits. Neil and I also get to grips with replacing the standard rusty brake pipes and squishy rubber brake hoses with far more sporty stainless steel braided brake lines and I try out a new way to cut the hoses to stop the ends splaying too much. The long haired fop, James May also roasts one of my cars and I disagree, obviously!
