Caster Issues
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 154
Likes: 5
From: Colorado Springs
Caster Issues
So I put a borgeson box in, coilovers and at the time removed my a arms to paint them. I had already rebuilt the front suspension years ago and it was in good shape. I dropped it off at the alignment shop today and they tell me they can't align it. Both sides have -2 degrees caster. We don't see anything unusual so I don't know were to start.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 3,114
Likes: 598
So I put a borgeson box in, coilovers and at the time removed my a arms to paint them. I had already rebuilt the front suspension years ago and it was in good shape. I dropped it off at the alignment shop today and they tell me they can't align it. Both sides have -2 degrees caster. We don't see anything unusual so I don't know were to start.
Their should be more towards the rear mounting point vs the front mount point of the upper arm
2026 Loser of the Year
Joined: Sep 2013
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From: New Or-leens Loo-z-anna
MAYBE the shop you went to didn't want the hassle of aligning a Corvette.......some shops are not capable of doing the job correctly, but they don't want to admit it.
Also........after I rebuilt and aligned my own suspension on my '68 project, I can understand why some shops won't touch the alignment on a Corvette......rusted bolts/nuts/shims take hours to loosen before the alignment can even be done.
And on top of all that.........all 4 wheels need to be aligned
Also........after I rebuilt and aligned my own suspension on my '68 project, I can understand why some shops won't touch the alignment on a Corvette......rusted bolts/nuts/shims take hours to loosen before the alignment can even be done.
And on top of all that.........all 4 wheels need to be aligned
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 2,793
Likes: 1,194
From: Canberra Australia
2025 C3 of the Year Finalist - Modified
Yes would be interested to see the shim count.
My 71 with similar setup and I have 1 of the thinnest shims in front and as many as I could get in the back bolt giving me around 4 degrees positive. Also gave me a fair amount of camber but .....
Drives much better but am about to pull the front suspension again and fit Global West upper and lower arms to get even more caster with camber better under control.
I agree lots of alignment shops now find cars like the vette with shims etc etc a pain to work on and don't want the jobs as they don't get a good margin given the extra fiddling needed and can't charge for all the time.
More money to be made on quick alignments than ones that need extra effort.
My 71 with similar setup and I have 1 of the thinnest shims in front and as many as I could get in the back bolt giving me around 4 degrees positive. Also gave me a fair amount of camber but .....
Drives much better but am about to pull the front suspension again and fit Global West upper and lower arms to get even more caster with camber better under control.
I agree lots of alignment shops now find cars like the vette with shims etc etc a pain to work on and don't want the jobs as they don't get a good margin given the extra fiddling needed and can't charge for all the time.
More money to be made on quick alignments than ones that need extra effort.
Racer
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 269
Likes: 7
From: carpentersville ill.
MAYBE the shop you went to didn't want the hassle of aligning a Corvette.......some shops are not capable of doing the job correctly, but they don't want to admit it.
Also........after I rebuilt and aligned my own suspension on my '68 project, I can understand why some shops won't touch the alignment on a Corvette......rusted bolts/nuts/shims take hours to loosen before the alignment can even be done.
And on top of all that.........all 4 wheels need to be aligned
Also........after I rebuilt and aligned my own suspension on my '68 project, I can understand why some shops won't touch the alignment on a Corvette......rusted bolts/nuts/shims take hours to loosen before the alignment can even be done.
And on top of all that.........all 4 wheels need to be aligned
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 154
Likes: 5
From: Colorado Springs
None at the moment. He said he would have to put a ton of shims in the rear to get me to 2.75 pos. This shop does a lot of old vettes. I was recommended to go there.
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Drifting
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 1,765
Likes: 254
From: Catlett VA
Many years ago I had a similar problem on a 66 Mustang that also had badly negative caster. I finally found a shop that could think outside the box. They ordered longer bolts for the A arms so more shims could be added and fixed the problem. Not sure if longer bolts are available for your Vette, but it might be worth asking.
RA
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 154
Likes: 5
From: Colorado Springs
Many years ago I had a similar problem on a 66 Mustang that also had badly negative caster. I finally found a shop that could think outside the box. They ordered longer bolts for the A arms so more shims could be added and fixed the problem. Not sure if longer bolts are available for your Vette, but it might be worth asking.
RA
RA