Arash Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Dear all members Recently I changed my strut mounts (suspension), strut seats, and stabilizer bar links along with rack&pinion assembly (steering gear). I then took my car for an alignment because the steering wheel was so off center and the car was almost undrivable. They told me that they can't do it unless they install camber kits. Is this really necessary? any suggestions would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Did you change the ride height? If the car is any lower or higher they will probaly have to install some 'spacers' or something to even it out or you will wear down the tires Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arash Posted August 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Alignment question not alirnment question. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Hehe.. look under the car and see if the arms are straight across (level) with the body.. that's how it should be.. if they aren't then it's possible someone installed somethign wrong.. I can't see how it could be so far off that it drives horrible unless something was improperly installed or the wrong part #, etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arash Posted August 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 I just did the normal procedure for replacing the strut mounts, just according to the factory service manual. I don't think I've changed the ride height. I didn't install anything special also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 On mine we have to grind out the lower hole on the strut to change the camber :/ and if that doesn't work we have to have a spacer type thing between the strut and the knuckle .. Hope it's not like tthat on yours Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arash Posted August 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 arms? you mean the control arms where the bottom of the spring sits on? I think all the parts and and installation steps were done correct, at least lets assume for now. In addition to strut mounts, I also replaced the rack and pinion which contributes to the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 I don't see how rack and pinion has anything to do with CAMBER ? Camber is the 'lean' of the tires to one side when they are straight if you look at them dead on from the front, positive camber is the wheel tilted to the left, and negative the opposite.. maybe your original struts were grinded out and the new ones you put on don't have enough room to move around so they need to be grinded or a plate put in.. if the camber was fine before I don't think you need a kit or anything special. Negative camber is good for better cornering if you constantly drive fast and are doing tons of turns but most people don't do that and use highway a lot in which 0 degree camber would be most efficient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arash Posted August 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 I actually didn't change the struts; I only replaced the strut mounts. My wheels were also balanced before I attempt to work on the suspension components, so based on that I assume the camber was fine. I opened both front wheels and checked the front suspensions again. It seems nothing is wrong or misplaced. I also checked the repair manual. The only way to change the camber is opening the two suspension to knuckle bolts. In the front wheel alignment section the manual speaks about alignment bolt that I couldn’t find. There are just two big bolts that, when I loosen them, I was able to change the camber significantly. I really suspect how the alignment technician detect that it needs camber kit, without even opening the wheel. It seems I have to get it to dealer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Take it somewhere that has a decent alignment system. Some of the NTB's and Tire kingdoms have them and some don't.. I'm not sure I'd take it to the dealer but if you can adjust it significantly then you should be able to do it yourself very easily. You can use a leveler with a degree measurement to get very close although not as good as the laser ones. Should be good enough though. Even a regular level is pretty good just level up the wheel so it's perfectly vertical on both sides by loosening those bolts.. make sure you hold the other end of the bolt with something so it doesn't spin off the little spikey things on it (kind of a lock washer type thing if yours has those) . I can tell you pretty much everything you need to do in order to fix the alignment yourself but you still won't get as good as one of those laser things can do (it's like a hunter 900 or 9000 or 7000 or something i forget) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arash Posted August 14, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2004 Thank you very much for your advice Today I took it to the dealership and they aligned it without camber kits. The car rides much better and 90% of the problem is solved, but the car still pulls to the right a bit. I told this to them and they said that our alignment system is perfect and the problem comes from my tires. They told me that my tires have been damaged due to running the car for a long time without alignment. They recommended me that I rotate my tires and this will cure the tires.They also told me that my left front hub is worn which I knew. Before I replace the rack, my left front tire was playing when I pushed it in and out by grabing the top/buttom and left/right. The left/right movement was major and due to the inner tie rod which is cured now, but I still have the slight movement in top/buttom, which is due to the hub. The top/ buttom movement is not significant for now since they've been able to align it with the faulty hub. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted August 14, 2004 Report Share Posted August 14, 2004 I'm glad you have what seems to be like a decent dealership. There isn't much you can do about the pulling.. that depends on the tires and the road mostly as long as the steering alignment and toe are correct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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