[NJP]

After hitting an enormous pothole, I managed to damage one of my front tyres and took the car back to the dealer to get it checked and a new tyre fitted. They suggested that I take the car to an independent garage to get the alignment checked, and bring it back if they found any problems.

The independent garage (Protyre) have checked and adjusted my front wheels, so at least my steering wheel is straight again, but they reckon that my rear wheels are also out and these can only be adjusted by the dealer.

The rear measurements are:
Camber left: -0deg37' right: -1deg01'
Toe left: 1.6 right: -0.6

Do these sound like they're worth getting looked at? The MINI dealer mentioned that it might cost hundreds to sort out if a problem was found.

The car's only 2 weeks old, so I'm gutted if it's going to cost a lot of money to fix (tyre was £195 alone!), but I want it to be right.

Any suggestions?

[DerekH]

NJP if this pothole was on the main highway take a photo and location and send photo of damage to the local council that is reponsable for road maitanance as this happens to often and they will try to fight it but it is time with the amout of tax we pay we get the roads up to decent standard.
I would make sure your car is handling fine and keep a close look for uneven tyre wear on rear and if you see inner or outter wearing or middle quicker get done or will lose money on tyre's hope this helps

[NJP]

Thanks for the reply Derek. Unfortunately, the pothole was in the middle of a busy London street, so I couldn't stop and take photos. I live in Chepstow, so I suspect it would be fixed by the time I had chance to go back. I've sent an enquiry to Transport for London, though, who are responsible for the trunk routes, because it was practically impossible to avoid, and very dangerous. Looks to me like someone forgot to replace a manhole cover

[grodenglaive]

Quote: Originally Posted by NJP (original)

The independent garage (Protyre) have checked and adjusted my front wheels, so at least my steering wheel is straight again, but they reckon that my rear wheels are also out and these can only be adjusted by the dealer.

Unlike the previous MINI, the rear Camber on the R56 IS adjustable and it's really easy to do if you have a camber gauge (I just did mine 2 weeks ago). Any wheel alignment shop could do it and the toe too. Protyre doesn't know what they're talking about.
Assuming nothing is bent it can be fixed for less than $100. You left-rear camber and toe are off quite a bit and are worth adjusting.