I've been to two well known alignment locations and the local chevrolet dear. Everyone insists that I need .8 camber in the front. However the "Forum" , members, and a couple of web sites say 0 Camber. All I know is the car is wondering but they do not want to take it to 0 Camber beacuse they say it is not FACTORY SPECS, and it would increase tie wear. They say to eliminate a "pull" they might change the CASTER. If it pulls to the left somewhat, would they increase or decrease CASTER on the right side?

 

:cheers: Go to http://www.vettebrakes.com/align

You have a choice of driving conditions...print it out, take it to the alignment shop and tell them it's your money and this is what you want

I run the advanced street set up and it is great

:seeya

:steering:

 

Here's a link from the Vette Brakes website that has a number of alignment setups. They state that none of these are the "factory" specs. http://www.vbandp.com/instructions/h...ruct/align.htm

Some alignment shops will not perform a wheel alignment using customer specs which may be more of a liabilty issue or having a custome come back upset because the specs he originally provided did not do what he though it would do and the car doesn't drive worth beans.

If the alignment shop does a good job and they get the car aligned to factory specs, it should not "pull" at all. If you are happy with OEM specs for simply daily driving, then use whatever setting the shop's alignment computer says is correct for the car. If you feel you can accept some "quirks" in how the car will handle with other specs, then you might consider the VBandP settings. Unless you are a serious autocrosser or have a dedicated track car, use only the "Daily Driver" or "Advanced Street setting. You should print the page and take it with you to the shop if you choose to use these settings.

 

Hi,

THE FACTORY SPECS I GAVE YOU WERE FOR A 1992. (CHECK YOUR PRIOR POST AS I THINK I ANSWERED YOUR QUESTIONS) 0 TO .5 +/-

AGAIN IT HAS BEEN MY EXPRIENCE THAT THE MORE NEGATIVE CAMBER YOU RUN THE MORE DARTY THE CAR WILL BE ON THE STREET.

IF THE TOE IS WAY OFF IT COULD PULL ALSO.

MY SETTINGS ARE:

.75 NEGATIVE CAMBER FRONT
.50 NEGATIVE CAMBER REAR
3/16 TOE IN FRONT AND REAR
AS MUCH CASTER AS I CAN GET

WITH THIS SETUP I ROAD RACE (4 EVENTS A YEAR) AND DRIVE ON THE STREET.

IT DRIVES THE BEST ON THE STREET IN MY OPINION WITH THE STOCK SETTINGS.

GOOD LUCK,

STEVEN

P.S. SORRY FOR ALL CAPITALS

 

The alignment tech said the shocks would not effect a pulling situation. It does not happen all the time, but more so at a higher speed. Would you add shocks before a new alignment? Do you think the VPB seetings would possible correct the pulling situation? [IMG][/IMG] :auto:

 

I had my Z52 aligned to the specs printed in Vette magaqzine that they downloaded from the TPI Specialties website.

Here's what they say for the street and I will admit, it's stuck. Never a tire squeal around a corner.

Camber: FRT= -1.1 REAR = -1.2
Castor: +3.0
Toe: FRT= -.110" for a total toe of -.220" REAR = -.01" for a total of -.02"

This was in the Dec 2000 issue of Vette Magazine.

BIG JIM

 

After reading your posts, I'm beginning to think you may even have some other kind of problem in the front end or it may be as simple as road conditions.

What tire pressure are you runing in front? Too low a pressure may cause some "wandering" at higher speeds when the tires are cold. The tire air pressure recommendation for my 87 with Z52 is 35psi at all 4 wheels. Make sure both front tires have the same pressure.

Some roads will have grooves in the pavement due to heavy traffic. Asphalt pavement where there is lots of heavy truck traffic is one example. Cars with wide tires like our Vettes will tend to get "caught" in these grooves and feel like the car is wandering and even has a "darty" feel to it as the car moves to the left or right as it gets caught in the spacing of the grooves. Tire pressure adjustment can help here as will a little bit of toe-in on the front alignment.

Worn bushings in the front suspension may cause a pulling effect but a good alignment shop will detect bushing problems as they won't be able to get the alignment settings to hold correctly. Check the front wheel bearings too. A bad bearing can cause the car to pull in the direction of the bad bearing. A dragging brake pad can do the same thing. Check the pads for abnormal wear: one side worn more than the other side or one pad with a taper wear pattern.

Finally, are you having a shop align both the front and rear at the same time? If the rear end is out of alingment, the front alignment won't really help. As far as shocks, as long as both shocks appear to be in good condition (no leaking oil or rust on the damper shaft, mounting bushings in decent shape) you should be OK. If the shocks are really old, then you might try new ones.

 

I had lowered the tire pressure to 32 lbls from 36 to soften the ride.

They said the bushings looked ok, but when I drove the car and brought it right back, they had to reset the toe. They said that was common.

Both front bearings are tight. Jut put on a new Pep boys rt. front bearing.

I had the front rotors turned and new brake pads with with the bearing.

I was thinking about the rack and pinion but he said it was tight with no leaks. He said the tie rods looked ok along with the ball joints. Another thing was the steering wheel would jerk to the left when stopping at a traffic light. He said the brake calipers looked ok.

Then I started reading posts on control arm bushings. Is there a way to tell if they are bad? :confused: