Alignment question?

[rmar93]

Just got an alignment today after switching to Tein Flex Z coilovers this past weekend. I noticed there’s some variance with the numbers in the front. Should I be concerned with the front camber?

[nocoolname]

Looks like a crap job of an alignment and they only adjusted toe to factory specs. The slight camber change in the rear from before to actual are from the toe adjustment. A decent shop or alignment guy would have at least adjusted the front top hats to even out camber and recommend lower control arms or camber bolts for the rear.


I'd find a different shop, bring the front camber to about -1.5 and bring the rear down to -2.0 or so with bolts or arms.

[churchx]

camber bolts for the rear for these cars? o_O

As for alignment, yes, to my taste -1.23 to -1.59 camber of left front/right front seems bad job. Flex Zs have camberplates front, he should be able to get camber within +/- 0.05 too imho, not +/-0.26. Toe seems much better. Yes, it's some PITA in ass to get everything right, as changing toe changes camber and vice versa, but skillful tech should be able to dial both right, and that's what i expect if i want to get performance alignment according to specs i wish. Such deltas might be acceptable by stock alignment ranges, but i'd wish for better.

BTW, if you'll visit some suspension shop for realignment, why not dial a bit more camber front, for less understeer? Imho nice to have at front extra 0.5 degree negative camber vs rear, or at least same as in rear.

[Mr.ac]

Did the alignment take 30 minutes or less?
Seems like the old alignment tech joke, "toe in, toe out". Meaning that adjusting toe is the fast and easy way to do a job.

[guybo]

Yeah more camber in the rear and it's all sloppy. You need rear camber arms

[ZDan]

They should be able to even up the front camber, for street -1.25 is fine, -1.5 or more if you're feeling sporty. I probably wouldn't go more than -2 for street only.

-2.25 ish rear camber is IMO fine for street as well, I wouldn't bother with trying to reduce it with aftermarket parts.

Having more camber in the rear is not in and of itself a problem. For a dedicated track setup, you would want a lot more front camber for sure (like -3.5), but for street it's more practical to run less for more even tire wear. Run minimal toe front and rear and maybe rotate tires every 6k miles or so and you'll get decent tire life despite a little "camber wear".

FWIW -1.25 front and -2.25 rear is what I ran my S2000 at for 10 years/200k+ miles on the street and at the track. That was the max adjustment at both ends (totally stock suspension). I would have liked more front camber at the track, but overall it was a good daily-driver/backup track car setup. I never bothered to reduce rear camber for DD use even though it was adjustable. Still got as much as 18k miles out of Extreme Performance tires without rotating (staggered wheels/tires).

[rmar93]

Thanks for the input! Definitely disappointed with how everything came out, considering that they specialize in suspension. I want to call and complain but now I don’t trust this shop and don’t want them near my car anymore.

I’m going to order some rear controll arms today and get it realigned after I install those. Any recommendations? Also, is it safe to drive my car with these alignment specs in the meantime?

[ZDan]

Totally safe, and you don't need control arms...

What will the car be used for, and what are your expectations for tire wear?

Before you go back you should get an idea of exactly what to ask for based on your wants/needs/usage.

[JustSomeGuy]

what would be ideal camber front and rear for daily street driven? i will bet getting front camber bolts with my coils and just wondering what to look for when i get my alignment

[8RZ]

Originally Posted by JustSomeGuy

what would be ideal camber front and rear for daily street driven? i will bet getting front camber bolts with my coils and just wondering what to look for when i get my alignment

I would say anything in the green (factory specs) is fine. If you do any spirited driving then maybe try -2 in the front and -1-1.5 in the rear.

[rmar93]

Originally Posted by ZDan

Totally safe, and you don't need control arms...

What will the car be used for, and what are your expectations for tire wear?

Before you go back you should get an idea of exactly what to ask for based on your wants/needs/usage.

Mostly used as a DD. Im looking for even tire wear. Would you recommend your s2000 alignment setup? (-1.25 in the front and -2.25 in the back). I've read some people go with -2 in the front and -1.5 in the rear also.

[ZDan]

Originally Posted by rmar93

Mostly used as a DD. Im looking for even tire wear. Would you recommend your s2000 alignment setup? (-1.25 in the front and -2.25 in the back). I've read some people go with -2 in the front and -1.5 in the rear also.

-1.25 front and the -2.1 to -2.25 you have in back should be fine. You will get *some* camber wear, but it's pretty minimal and shouldn't reduce tire life hugely. And you get handling benefits, much better lateral grip with some negative camber.

-2 front and -1.5 in back would be fine as well, but IMO no reason to change what you've got, just even up the camber a bit up front.

Toe looks fine, you might consider running a bit less in back, but 0.2° total isn't excessive. It's too much toe that kills tires fast, much more so than camber.

[tyler_win_photo]

Maybe you should try specifying the alignment specs you want. Otherwise, most shops will default to "toe and go" - which seems to be the case here.