Axle Shenanigans

So the warranty replacement for my first $130 axle broke at MoHud’s last event of the season, October 4th. (Outer CV broke at the turn before the finish lights on my second run after a spin during my first: I finished 4th in class with a decent time for a second run that morning. Go figure. The MINI likes that ACC lot, but the lot does not like cars – there were other casualties, including two half-shafts on one scoob.)

I AAA’d it back home once again. I was promised a refund for the cheap axle (still waiting), and after a call to The Driveshaft Shop, I learned that they do indeed have plans for R53 MINI axles. They’re still $100 less than OEM and feature beefier CV joints, supposedly rated for 450hp. I ordered one on Monday and got it installed Wednesday.

Seems fine, but there’s a slight vibration I’ve never noticed before under heavy acceleration in 1st and 2nd. It’s not really a CV joint noise though, and I can’t recreate any clicks or clunks under any driving to indicate another bum axle. The car is sitting at 63k miles, and they’ve been hard miles, so it’s time to start watching wear items like wheel bearings and bushings carefully. I’m confident this vibration doesn’t indicate an imminent failure though. I’m just pretty paranoid about any new NVH at this point.

To make sure, I decided to check out an autocross Saturday put on by the car guys at RPI. The night before I was able to get my Kumho XS mounted at their community supported auto shop, so this was a chance to break in the tires too.

Saturday was a fun, friendly atmosphere, but I didn’t get much driving in. After two runs, the car began making a clicking noise. Jacking up the car, I found (stick with me here) the inner CV joint boot’s clamp on the new axle had been catching on a bracket for a wheel sensor mounted on the a-arm. The beefier joints on the new axle have less clearance with this bracket, which I noticed while installing. Under normal driving, it wasn’t an issue. With lateral loads on the car, however, the bracket moved upward enough to snag the clamp. Halfway through my cautious drive home, the clamp was pushed off, but the boot stayed on so no loss. Today I’m going to see about filing that bracket down a bit. I’m going to head to a shop on Monday to see about putting a new clamp on the boot, as I can’t get the old tweaked clamp anywhere near tight enough with ordinary pliers.

I’m definitely glad to have caught this small issue in Troy yesterday as opposed to Lime Rock Park next Saturday. I can’t help but feel anxious whether or not the car will have any issues there, even though everything has been checked and all preparations made in recent weeks.

Most disheartening is the weather forecast for next Saturday. There’s a huge cold front coming from Canada, making its way through practically the whole country, hitting our area this weekend. Day highs in Lakeville, CT are supposed to reach the mid 40s, with a 50% chance of morning precip in the form of rain or, yup, snow. I’m not sure I’ll mind taking it extra gingerly as it’ll be my first visit to the track. Nicer weather would have been appreciated though.