Classic Mini Tie Bar Adjustable Heavy Duty Pair

Classic Mini Cooper Suspension upgrades are numerous and very effective in improving the handling of any Mini built between 1959 and 2000. Technical information available on anything and everything Mini from the experts at Minimania.com

These rods have been produced to improve car stability when cornering and braking and to facilitate easy adjustment of caster angle. Manufactured from a high-grade material in a much larger diameter than the standard items they are far less susceptible to bending - both in use and where poor workshop practice is observed. The most common fault here is jacking the car up with a trolley jack sitting the cup up against the forward tie-rod mounting bracket on the front subframe. As the wheel droops, the tie-rod becomes bound hard up against the jack cup, the sheer force of the un-loading rubber spring causing the insubstantial standard tie-rod to bend. This effectively shortens the tie-rod, therefore increasing caster angle.

Having applied Hi-Los and some smart 165/60/12 profile tyre shod12 x 5-inch ally rims, discussions get around to just why does this combination cause the tyre to hit the front arch? Well, it's all a question of alignment - either subframe to body or suspension to subframe.

Despite the five main factors that control the front suspension geometry – kingpin inclination, caster angle, camber angle, track, and bump-steer – we are only really able to alter three of those easily. King-pin inclination is non-adjustable, as it’s a feature of where the swivel-pins are mounted on the hub at the factory.

The data on this page relates to all Minis unless specified. Major changes to suspension and steering are limited to the introduction of a new steering rack and steering arms for Mk2-on models. Mk2 steering arms have two `ears' to aid in the use of ball joint splitters; this is how they may be differentiated from Mk1 steering arms.

These rods have been produced to improve car stability when cornering and braking, and facilitate easy adjustment of castor angle. Manufactured from a high grade material in a much bigger diameter, they are less susceptible to bending than the standard items. The standard castor angle is 3° + ½°. This will change when the car is raised or lowered, and when adjustable or negative camber bottom arms are used (these tend to increase castor).