Can someone please explain Wheel Alignment?

[SwissArmy]

Noob here. Lowered my car two years ago and did not align my wheels. So, I've gone through tons of uneven worn tires. Finally found a shop near me that has a wheel alignment machine that can work on lowered and slammed cars.

$80 later, the car feels and drives a HECK of a lot better.

Here are my results, can someone explain what each of the terms means? Thanks!

[Steeler]

Well I could be FOS but it looks to me like they didn't change much, so you may be still going through tires.

[inTgr8r]

Originally Posted by dbarton62

Well I could be FOS but it looks to me like they didn't change much, so you may be still going through tires.

I agree, especially with the added front toe.


If you google car alignment you will get tons of information that will explain the basics along with graphics to show what is being explained.

[SwissArmy]

The guy explained to me that the camber did not need (or "cannot" he had a thick accent) adjustment. Is he wrong? Did I basically have nothing but toe adjustment done to my car?

With my car being lowered, can I ever achieve OE camber/toe numbers? Should I be expecting the numbers as posted?

[inTgr8r]

Front camber has a minor adjustment if you pull the locating pins on the strut towers. (Many posts here on this topic)
The rear has cam adjusters on the lower control arms, but is very limited for correcting lowered cars.

That said, you also mention uneven wear.
Is there cupping etc or do you mean that the inside edge is worn (but worn evenly along the edge)

If you have what I call uneven wear such as cupping then you likely have other issues such as bushings.

[SwissArmy]

Originally Posted by inTgr8r

Front camber has a minor adjustment if you pull the locating pins on the strut towers. (Many posts here on this topic)
The rear has cam adjusters on the lower control arms, but is very limited for correcting lowered cars.

That said, you also mention uneven wear.
Is there cupping etc or do you mean that the inside edge is worn (but worn evenly along the edge)

If you have what I call uneven wear such as cupping then you likely have other issues such as bushings.

Inside edge is worn. Evenly.

I'll put the car on the hoist and check out the camber adjustment points

[Finnegan]

Originally Posted by SwissArmy

Inside edge is worn. Evenly.

I'll put the car on the hoist and check out the camber adjustment points

I wouldn't expect the front to have that much wear at -2.1. But expect more now with those toe settings. A small (minimal side of stock). toe would be better front. Stock negative camber front is -1.0 (-.7 to -1.3)

With -3.4 rear you're going to eat tires like crazy. That's extreme even for a track set-up. Stock is -1.6 to -2.1. You do want some toe-in rear, towards the "more" side to keep the rear planted. Here are the stock specs. http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...61&postcount=4

To get things back to a more stock setting you'll probably need these http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-35...reettrack.aspx.

There are many in depth discussions on this topic (and adjustable camber arms) to look though if you need more detail or pro/con here.

[SwissArmy]

Originally Posted by Finnegan

I wouldn't expect the front to have that much wear at -2.1. But expect more now with those toe settings. A small (minimal side of stock). toe would be better front. Stock negative camber front is -1.0 (-.7 to -1.3)

With -3.4 rear you're going to eat tires like crazy. That's extreme even for a track set-up. Stock is -1.6 to -2.1. You do want some toe-in rear, towards the "more" side to keep the rear planted. Here are the stock specs. http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...61&postcount=4

To get things back to a more stock setting you'll probably need these http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-35...reettrack.aspx.

There are many in depth discussions on this topic (and adjustable camber arms) to look though if you need more detail or pro/con here.

Thanks Finnegan. I'm going to give these guys a call and ask for a refund or re-alignment...

[Steeler]

You must really have it slammed to be at -3.4.
Is your car setup as in your avatar?

[Finnegan]

Originally Posted by SwissArmy

Thanks Finnegan. I'm going to give these guys a call and ask for a refund or re-alignment...

In all fairness to them they did reduce the negative camber rear and move towards a "stock" toe setting. I'm not seeing a lot they did "wrong" given the range they had to work with. They're limited by their knowledge of our unique car and the ability to adjust with the car being lowered. When we go outside of stock parameters the we need either a speciality shop or our own experience to guide them.

Lowering the car "adds" negative camber it's pretty typical to see a degree or even more change just due to the lowering. There's only so much adjustment available with the stock eccentric bolt rear and with moving the struts front. Mods always lead to more mods to support the earlier mods

Either the car needs to be raised a bit or you need those adjustable rear camber arms.

[SwissArmy]

Originally Posted by dbarton62

You must really have it slammed to be at -3.4.
Is your car setup as in your avatar?

Yup

Originally Posted by Finnegan

In all fairness to them they did reduce the negative camber rear and move towards a "stock" toe setting. I'm not seeing a lot they did "wrong" given the range they had to work with. They're limited by their knowledge of our unique car and the ability to adjust with the car being lowered. When we go outside of stock parameters the we need either a speciality shop or our own experience to guide them.

Lowering the car "adds" negative camber it's pretty typical to see a degree or even more change just due to the lowering. There's only so much adjustment available with the stock eccentric bolt rear and with moving the struts front. Mods always lead to more mods to support the earlier mods

Either the car needs to be raised a bit or you need those adjustable rear camber arms.

Thanks Finnegan. I'm glad to hear that they did do some work on the car. And honestly, I DO feel it. I love the ride height, so I will most likely invest in adjustable rear camber arms.

[Finnegan]

Originally Posted by SwissArmy

Yup

Thanks Finnegan. I'm glad to hear that they did do some work on the car. And honestly, I DO feel it. I love the ride height, so I will most likely invest in adjustable rear camber arms.