Z4M Roadster - OEM Alignment Suggestions?

[Dav3]

When I bought the car second hand the alignment settings felt superb as felt like I was on rails when going through the curves

However, I installed a new set of oem wheels (repaired and powder coated) with new rubber and had a new alignment done at the same time. The shop who did the alignment screwed the whole geometry up and after a few months had the dealership re-do it.

Now the car feels just okay but it certainly lost that superb handling I started off with and it has prompted me to set the car aside for quite a while.

I've done some reading all around and while looking at strut braces I noticed the camber pin removal suggestion. I checked my car and both pins where removed.

Educated guess leads me to believe that the original owner certainly fiddled with the suspension and I wonder whether he might have set up something close the CSL parameters that keep getting suggested.

This said, I'm not that great with suspension work. I somewhat understand the surface level material but really not enough to know what I should be asking.

Car is completely OEM in terms of suspension and wheels. Can anyone do me a solid and suggest a good set of parameters (camber, toe, caster) I can tell an alignment shop to follow and apply?

[kyriian]

It'd be hard to deduce the changes unless the original alignment spec was available, did the previous owner leave you any paperwork?

What is the current settings, did they give you any print out? It will show a before and after

What tire was on the car originally, and what's the replacement, a tire swap can have a massive effect on handling characteristics

Have you ensured your tire pressures are fine, because a few psi below or above standard is enough to make a difference.

I'd start with isolating the above first.

[jns_e85]

Agree with the above statement. Did you get different tires from what you previously had? That would play a bigger factor into car feel than suspension settings.

Fortunately alignment spec recommendations are also plenty available on the forums as well! My personal preference for my car (which is street, AX, and track driven) is as much negative front camber you can get on your suspension setup with zero toe up front. For the rear, I try to do -1 degree less rear than front, with no less than -1.8 degrees in the rear. I also do a touch of toe in (1/32).

Do your homework on settings, and find a lifetime alignment shop who has a tech that is performance alignment friendly so you can find a setting that works for you. Most local car clubs/racing groups have a social media presence where you can get recommendations for such a shop!

[Dav3]

Originally Posted by kyriian

It'd be hard to deduce the changes unless the original alignment spec was available, did the previous owner leave you any paperwork?

What is the current settings, did they give you any print out? It will show a before and after

What tire was on the car originally, and what's the replacement, a tire swap can have a massive effect on handling characteristics

Have you ensured your tire pressures are fine, because a few psi below or above standard is enough to make a difference.

I'd start with isolating the above first.

Unfortunately original owner left nothing

It originally had Continental tires, stock ones I believe, from 2008 (stayed on car for over 11 years with 20.000km). Car now has Michelin PS4, 5000km on them.

Tire pressure is fine, checked it

I see that many people suggest to get the CSL geo, but with the two cars being different, I wonder what exactly does that mean.

Does it mean, "Make alignment shop load CSL values" and try to the match them as close as possible?

I know Camber and Toe can be tweaked close enough but Caster won't

I've found this table as reference, and wonder if one couldn't just suggest the values manually? I don't know, as mentioned in first post, suspension is not my best game