Trying to get low

[992dr]

Glad to hear your safe man

Thank you, I appreciate that very much.

 

[PG01]

Thank you, I appreciate that very much.

See, nice guy.

Glad you and family are safe Sam....

 

[992dr]

See, nice guy.

Glad you and family are safe Sam....

Some times I wish I wasn't such a nice guy. There's some real pieces of sh*t trolling my neighborhood scamming the f**k outta people. I'm about ready to bust but, its bad enough right now and I cant afford to pay the consequences for doing something stupid.

Thanks Pete, I appreciate that. We're happy to be home

 

[992dr]

It's been a while since I updated anything. Really haven't done much since raising the front and getting it re-aligned.
Saw an old friend today, pulled over and chatted for a bit and he looked down at my front tires and said "you're going to need some tires soon"
Now, it looks like I'm going to need new front tires. I just don't get it. I never thought I'd have such alignment problems.
Looks like I'll be paying for another alignment AND two new tires, yay.

Has anyone else had alignment issues? Mainly them not holding spec?
Thanks

Have a great weekend everyone

 

[Rocket Man]

I haven’t but I’m only at 2/4. Spindles/ bell tech springs. Mines also an 02.

 

[992dr]

Went out and got a shot of the tires. Talk about negative camber, pretty ridiculous if you ask me.

 

[Rocket Man]

Went out and got a shot of the tires. Talk about negative camber, pretty ridiculous if you ask me.

View attachment 216007 View attachment 216008

Could be toe in too.

 

[992dr]

Could be toe in too.

Good point.

Looks like I'll be ordering some new tie rods and checking out rack to see if there's any play in that center section.

 

[NeverSatisfied]

I didn’t go back through the thread but did you add a camber kit?

 

[992dr]

I didn’t go back through the thread but did you add a camber kit?

G-d I'm trying to remember what the heck I did.
I know when I installed my suspension, I did not have any camber kits installed. That was roughly 4/6
Then I adjusted my suspension (to lower it) and installed the adjustable cam bushing. That was closer to 5 or 5.5 up front.
Finally adjusted again (to lift it back up) and removed the arms w/the alignment bushings and put new arms back in. That time the alignment was in spec or very close to it. Ending back at roughly 4".

Looking at the way it sits right now. I need to bring the front up another inch for it to sit fairly level. Or, remove the rear set up and install coil overs to lower it down to level it out that way. But, this is not really a priority right now so once I get the front situated, I'm hoping I will be able to set it and forget it for a while. I'd like to focus on the body this spring/summer and fix the damage from the jackleg who hit a few weeks ago.

 

[iamdub]

Could be toe in too.

Unless there's some serious caster issues, toe OUT would be the more likely culprit for inner shoulder wear.

G-d I'm trying to remember what the heck I did.
I know when I installed my suspension, I did not have any camber kits installed. That was roughly 4/6
Then I adjusted my suspension (to lower it) and installed the adjustable cam bushing. That was closer to 5 or 5.5 up front.
Finally adjusted again (to lift it back up) and removed the arms w/the alignment bushings and put new arms back in. That time the alignment was in spec or very close to it. Ending back at roughly 4".

Looking at the way it sits right now. I need to bring the front up another inch for it to sit fairly level. Or, remove the rear set up and install coil overs to lower it down to level it out that way. But, this is not really a priority right now so once I get the front situated, I'm hoping I will be able to set it and forget it for a while. I'd like to focus on the body this spring/summer and fix the damage from the jackleg who hit a few weeks ago.

Do you recall how the steering felt right after you lowered it and had it aligned compared to how it felt at stock height? There's a chance your alignment may be within spec when it's sitting on the rack, but when the suspension is cycling, the caster, camber and toe may be swinging much more than with the stock suspension. Have you used the same alignment shop and/or tech every time? They may be setting the camber and toe and calling it good. Get before and after printouts?

 

[Rocket Man]

Unless there's some serious caster issues, toe OUT would be the more likely culprit for inner shoulder wear.



Do you recall how the steering felt right after you lowered it and had it aligned compared to how it felt at stock height? There's a chance your alignment may be within spec when it's sitting on the rack, but when the suspension is cycling, the caster, camber and toe may be swinging much more than with the stock suspension. Have you used the same alignment shop and/or tech every time? They may be setting the camber and toe and calling it good. Get before and after printouts?

Yeah duh. I should have just stuck with toe lol.

 

[iamdub]

Yeah duh. I should have just stuck with toe lol.

I had a feeling you knew better. I mean, toe-out is rarely ever an issue. IIRC, most manufacturers spec a slight amount of toe-in for their vehicles.

 

[992dr]

Unless there's some serious caster issues, toe OUT would be the more likely culprit for inner shoulder wear.



Do you recall how the steering felt right after you lowered it and had it aligned compared to how it felt at stock height? There's a chance your alignment may be within spec when it's sitting on the rack, but when the suspension is cycling, the caster, camber and toe may be swinging much more than with the stock suspension. Have you used the same alignment shop and/or tech every time? They may be setting the camber and toe and calling it good. Get before and after printouts?

In all honesty, I don't recall.
I did use the same shop to do both alignments, not sure about techs though.
I think I still have the printout. I do haha.
Isn't that how they align it? Setting camber and toe? How should they be doing it?
Sorry, I'm not familiar with the process.

 

[kbuskill]

The top was when you brought the truck in and the bottom is when it left.

The camber is still off... only it shows positive camber which would cause the outside edges to wear faster.

 

[Tonyrodz]

The top was when you brought the truck in and the bottom is when it left.

The camber is still off... only it shows positive camber which would cause the outside edges to wear faster.

My outer edges are really scrubbed out from my alignment. I run 22's in the summer, so it took awhile for it to show up. Gonna try to get another alignment from a different shop.

 

[iamdub]

In all honesty, I don't recall.
I did use the same shop to do both alignments, not sure about techs though.
I think I still have the printout. I do haha.
Isn't that how they align it? Setting camber and toe? How should they be doing it?
Sorry, I'm not familiar with the process.

View attachment 216057

There are three dimensions to adjust for: toe, camber and caster. Well, there's thrust angle, but let's keep it basic. Toe and camber are the easiest to nail. Getting the caster set is a little more of a pain cuz it affects the camber when you adjust for it and vice versa. It can kinda be a balancing act. Also, if you have aftermarket control arms and/or spindles, the way the parts swing/tilt/articulate as the suspension is cycled when driving could be vastly different than with the stock parts. For instance, with the stock parts, the toe, caster and camber may only move out of their static settings a few tenths of a degree (just to throw out a number). With the aftermarket parts, the new geometry could cause the toe, caster and camber to swing more than a full degree(again, just throwing out a number) away from their static settings. This is why I asked if you felt a difference in the steering after it was lowered and aligned. A "drastic" (even as small as 1 degree or maybe less) change in caster and toe could very well make a noticeable change in the feel of the steering, especially when hitting large and shallow dips and humps on the highway.

Looking at the that printout, and as Ken pointed out, your camber is almost a full degree out with positive camber. I believe the stock settings call for a slight bit of negative camber. If so, you're almost a full degree out of spec on the camber.

Also, as Ken mentioned, positive camber would cause the outside edges to wear. I'm no expert, but that printout and your inner shoulder wear tells me that the tires are toeing out or cambering in as the suspension cycles, like there's a lot of extra movement going on.

I'd first make sure your parts are all good- no loose bolts, etc. and have another reputable shop check the alignment. There's a chance the first shop's equipment is out of calibration.

 

[Tonyrodz]

There are three dimensions to adjust for: toe, camber and caster. Well, there's thrust angle, but let's keep it basic. Toe and camber are the easiest to nail. Getting the caster set is a little more of a pain cuz it affects the camber when you. It can kinda be a balancing act. Also, if you have aftermarket control arms and/or spindles, the way the parts swing/tilt/articulate as the suspension is cycled when driving could be vastly different than with the stock parts. For instance, with the stock parts, the toe, caster and camber may only move out of their static settings a few tenths of a degree (just to throw out a number). With the aftermarket parts, the new geometry could cause the toe, caster and camber to swing more than a full degree(again, just throwing out a number) away from their static settings. This is why I asked if you felt a difference in the steering after it was lowered and aligned. A "drastic" (even as small as 1 degree or maybe less) change in caster and toe could very well make a noticeable change in the feel of the steering, especially when hitting large and shallow dips and humps on the highway.

Looking at the that printout, and as Ken pointed out, your camber is almost a full degree out with positive camber. I believe the stock settings call for a slight bit of negative camber. If so, you're almost a full degree out of spec on the camber.

Also, as Ken mentioned, positive camber would cause the outside edges to wear. I'm no expert, but that printout and your inner shoulder wear tells me that the tires are toeing out or cambering in as the suspension cycles, like there's a lot of extra movement going on.

I'd first make sure your parts are all good- no loose bolts, etc. and have another reputable shop check the alignment. There's a chance the first shop's equipment is out of calibration.

Question--so the shops shoo you out the door with your alignment still not right because the average person doesn't know squat about alignment specs? Actually more of a statement I guess.

 

[iamdub]

Question--so the shops shoo you out the door with your alignment still not right because the average person doesn't know squat about alignment specs? Actually more of a statement I guess.

Happens all the time, especially with busy shops. Their usual dog in the fight is that you have aftermarket parts and "that's the best they could do with what you've done and brought to them". Most shops are less inclined to spend an extra hour tweaking on a modified vehicle when they could be knocking out two alignments on stock vehicles in the same time frame. Pretty much every shop has a set price for their alignment labor, so a vehicle that takes twice as long isn't doing them any favors.

 

[Rocket Man]

Question--so the shops shoo you out the door with your alignment still not right because the average person doesn't know squat about alignment specs? Actually more of a statement I guess.

If they don’t give you a printout with before, after and stock allowable settings they probably don’t want you to know how they did.