havesometo

So I replaced the bushings in my trailing arms and as I remove the shims I would wrap the set with tape and label it driver side outside driver side inside. And so on. I reinstall them the same way I took them out. Then I drove the car to the shop to have the rear aligned. I looked at it today and he moved all the shims to the inside and no shims on the outside. Is there any possible way that this could be correct?

briankeery

Sure.....if the toe-in was totally out of spec.

CA-Legal-Vette

Are both left and right t/a's the same? If so then no, it isn't right.

CaseyJones

It seems that that would give you so much toe out that the car would be a bear to drive, especially in a curve. How does it drive now?

havesometo

If you mean by the shims being the same then yes they are.

havesometo

I haven't driven it that much and its not that bad to drive.

havesometo

Is what got me looking at it is have a vibration now about 45 and I mash the gas. I do not remember it being there before I took it to him. Do you think maybe the trailing arms are pulling too hard on the half shaft causing the rear end to vibrate?

TimAT

If all the shims are on one side of the t/a and none on the other side of it, something may be bent. Or the alignment shop has a problem. You could maybe get the toe correct, but the thrust angle is way out there. Following you, it would look like a bad dogleg. Are both sides the same? All the shims on one side?

havesometo

All shims are on the inside none on outside of both arms.

my 76 ray

Did the alignment shop give you a printout of the settings?

havesometo

No they didn't and that was my mistake for not asking for one.

briankeery

:iagree

You may have actually found an aligmnent shop that did a proper job. Let's see the data.

JimT

I checked/adjusted my rear alignment prior to taking the car to the shop. I used two wheel dollies on the rear wheels (allows wheel movement), used jack stands to pull heavy string from the front of the car to rear the rear past the wheels and noted alignment differences between both sides. I added/removed shims to make both wheels align the same to the car. This gave me a base line. The alignment shop made only small adjustments and I feel confident the job was done correctly. You may have different shim counts on each side due to frame or trailing arm issues.

Easy Mike

Toe is set with the inner shims. Outer shims do nothing but fill space and keep the inner stack tight. Seems odd all the shims were needed on the inners, but you paid the alignment tech for his/her expertise.

TWINRAY

This is one reason I spent a full day doing a DIY alignment on both my front and rear. I figured, I could do just a good a job as any local shop I know and all I had to spend is my time - but at least the car didn't get out of my hands. Shops like to shortcut this job because it takes a lot of time. IMO, you shouldn't "force" a rear wheel alignment by shimming only one side. Shims should be taken out/put in evenly on each side. Of course, this is my opinion and I could be totally out of wack

How much did you pay for the alignment? I assume they did all 4 wheels - yes, no?

havesometo

Thanks everyone for your replies. I think I undo what he did and see if the vibration goes away. And then find another shop to align it again.

briankeery

Sorry, but if you already paid for the alignment then take the car back and tell the technician you have a vibration and want his setup verified - along with the printout. You may have lost a wheel weight on the way home. Don't assume because all shims are on one side the aignment is incorrect. Verify before you start tearing into this ........toe-in adjustments are very minor to be correct.