Coilover Adjustment Vs Alignment/Camber

[Azz86]

Hey guys. Big noob question here.

From what I have read already it seems like coilovers are a DIY adjustable part?
What I am wondering is if I lower the front end of my car will it throw the wheel alignment out or increase the camber angle.

I am running BC coilovers which have been aligned in the past at its current height.
The front is set higher than the back to eliminate tyre scrub.

Thanks in advance.

[u mad?]

that must handle like shit.

lower front then get another alignment done.

[hmetro24]

When ever you lower or higher the car, the car will be a out of alignment. So if the wheels scrub, roll the front guard and lower the car, than do alignment.

[u mad?]

or depending how low the car is already, might be better to raise the rear

but when ever you play around with height you should get an alignment done as said above.


pics of cbr

[Azz86]

So is it better to have the front lower than the rear?

[Azz86]

or depending how low the car is already, might be better to raise the rear

but when ever you play around with height you should get an alignment done as said above.


pics of cbr

Yeh might be an idea to raise the rear. Think the front is set to the maximum height.

Think I'll take both of your advices and get it aligned after dropping it. Good to know that it needs to be done.

Pic as requested -

http://i1055.photobucket.com/albums/s514/Azzle_01/IMG_0361.jpg

[senna]

Definitely get an alignment - the camber will be effected but mostly the Toe setting is going to be completely out after you change the height

[Azz86]

Bit of an update. The outer edge of the front tyres are wearing quicker than the inside.
Now thinking it must have been raised after an alignment.

Plan will be to lower it about 15-20mm. Then take it for a bit of a spin to see if it scrubs.
If all good I'll get it aligned at that setting.


When ever you lower or higher the car, the car will be a out of alignment. So if the wheels scrub, roll the front guard and lower the car, than do alignment.

Do you think rolling the guards will definitely be required?
Not sure if this has been done already. Is there a way I can check this.

Thanks guys

[hmetro24]

The outer edge could be positive camber or Toe, or maybe the tires are scrubbing with the guards.

Bit of an update. The outer edge of the front tyres are wearing quicker than the inside.
Now thinking it must have been raised after an alignment.

Do you think rolling the guards will definitely be required?
Not sure if this has been done already. Is there a way I can check this.

Thanks guys
That's depend on how low you go, and also depends on the wheels size. If you want to know if the guards been rolled before, put your hand on the edge of the guard and you should know.
http://www.mildtowildrestorations.com.au/images/touch%20up/thumbs/rolling.jpg

[IV73CI]

^^^^^As from what everyone is saying..

Once you lower the car, the gravity weight will cause your wheels to camber in.

to fix this - you will need adjustable camber kits.

to eliminate scrubbing - you will need to get your guards/flared rolled.

and when your done with the above - get a wheel alignment and toe in (+2deg) for the rears.

you will notice an incredible amount of grip in corners and the ride feel will be safer.

The downfalls are - depending on how much camber u got, your tyres will have uneven wear, and depending on how low the car is - you may have issues with clearing speed bumps, parking bumps etc and worse case annoyance from Big Brudda.

[hmetro24]

Also, put people in the car and see if it's scrubbing or not whenever you lower it

[senna]

^^^^^As from what everyone is saying..

Once you lower the car, the gravity weight will cause your wheels to camber in.

to fix this - you will need adjustable camber kits.

to eliminate scrubbing - you will need to get your guards/flared rolled.

and when your done with the above - get a wheel alignment and toe in (+2deg) for the rears.

you will notice an incredible amount of grip in corners and the ride feel will be safer.

The downfalls are - depending on how much camber u got, your tyres will have uneven wear, and depending on how low the car is - you may have issues with clearing speed bumps, parking bumps etc and worse case annoyance from Big Brudda.

Gravity weight? I think you mean "The front suspension geometry changes pulling the upper control arms in and down causing negative camber"

Also, toe in of 2mm is not necessary since won't make any difference to tyre wear - not that much anyway. Get a camber kit for the rear too and keep the toe setting as close to +0.5 as you can

[u mad?]

im ganna guess he's talking about the center of gravity? lol i dunno.

[IV73CI]

Gravity weight? I think you mean "The front suspension geometry changes pulling the upper control arms in and down causing negative camber"

Also, toe in of 2mm is not necessary since won't make any difference to tyre wear - not that much anyway. Get a camber kit for the rear too and keep the toe setting as close to +0.5 as you can

yeh thats the word i was looking for but couldnt get it out.. lol

ive got +2 deg toe-in on my rear and found cornering alot sharper on both of my rides (civic & AWD Fozzy) ..

my experience anyways ...wgaf about it.. LOL

[senna]

Check your trailing arm bushes - if they are soft you might find that under load the alignment is moving around anyway - so you 2mm toe in is getting closer to 0 total! :thumbsup:

[IV73CI]

Check your trailing arm bushes - if they are soft you might find that under load the alignment is moving around anyway - so you 2mm toe in is getting closer to 0 total! :thumbsup:

Whoop thnx man..

All my bushes on the em1 have been changed to hardrace.. Even the end links, and got the buddyclub camber kits frnt n rears all installed now..

Thats prolly why it feels like sex when going 80klms on a 50 corner lol

[Azz86]

Hmmm. A lot of things to think about here.

Are you sure I will need a camber kit? The BC BR coilovers have a camber adjustment at the top. If not will a tyre place like Jax know how to adjust it for me?

[IV73CI]

Hmmm. A lot of things to think about here.

Are you sure I will need a camber kit? The BC BR coilovers have a camber adjustment at the top. If not will a tyre place like Jax know how to adjust it for me?

You can adjust the camber on the camber top of your BC coilovers. But its not the best way to do it.

If its off by only a few degs etc go for it.

[senna]

On Ep3r the top mount is really the only way to adjust the camber.

Btw my comments about upper control arm is not correct for your car.

Just take it to a suspension specialist and let them do their thing.

[lil_foy]

You can adjust the camber on the camber top of your BC coilovers. But its not the best way to do it.

If its off by only a few degs etc go for it.

Please research before you go giving advice... Ep3r runs mcstrut design and unlike dc2,ek,em1,eg,etc the camber is adjusted via the tophat of the coilover (fronts only), if the rear has too much camber you'll need a rear camber kit to suit the car, provided you want to pull the camber out. And FYI a "few" degrees is a huge range of adjustment to be playing with.

AZZ take the car to fulcrum, goodyear, bridgestone, etc. Book it in for an alignment and they'll set it for you, should cost you like ~70ish, I don't suggest diy as if you move the camber you will probably alter your toe which will induce wear on the tyres. Also don't stress about thinking having any camber will give you inner wear on the tyre, as long as you have your toe set correctly you will have almost no troubles with camber wear.

[Azz86]

Thanks again guys. Really good info.

I'll post up some before and after photos if there is much difference in ride height :)
Most likely won't go for DIY after hearing all about this.

[euRo_noob]

Sorry, I just wanted to know is it better to try get as close as possible to 0 toe or is it better to set the toe at a specific number? My car is fairly lowered. I do not track my car.

[senna]

If your car runs a fair bit of camber you can put a little toe in - like 2mm total - this will help with stability and also slightly off-set the camber wear on your tyres. It will not substitute for a camber kit.

[euRo_noob]

If your car runs a fair bit of camber you can put a little toe in - like 2mm total - this will help with stability and also slightly off-set the camber wear on your tyres. It will not substitute for a camber kit.

Yes, my rears when I last got it aligned were -4.5 and -4.6. Fronts were -1.5, probably -2 now as this time, it's even lower so I'm expecting it to be even more. I know some of you guys might hate it but I like the dumped look and I can't run anything less. So you'd suggest around 2mm?
Thank you.

[senna]

I'd suggest a camber kit! lol

Yeah, 2mm total toe in will make it a bit more stable to drive and less tramlining on uneven surfaces...

[euRo_noob]

Would a 1 arm rear camber arm do? So I'd just adjust up to 1 degree? Because I have to run negative camber to fit my wheels in the rear at the height I'm riding at. Also, it'd make both sides the same amount of camber so it's not uneven.

And will do, next alignment I'll ask about the toe.

Thank you

[senna]

You really need the toe arms also you can get the alignment correct - when you adjust the camber the toe will change and more than likely the factory toe adjusters won't have enough range.