i lowered my car last week...cut the front, longer bolts in th back time for a alignment... i don't know anything about what they need to do/what to look for... can someone give me info? also i read alot of guys sit in the car while they are doing it. do you sit on both passanger and drive sides? is it necesary or better to do this? anyone have specs for this? any and all info would be great. :cheers:

 

qs_zo6,
Don't know if the shop would let you set in the car - insurance issue. I try to have about 1/2 tank of gas and go from there. I lowered the car and did not do an alignment for about 8 months. It drove fine and I figured I was okay, then I really looked at the tires when I was doing an oil change. The alignment was way off and I was wearing out the inside of the tires. I would recommend direct to the shop after lowering. The thrust alignment is touchy on the C5 - technician took 2 hours to make sure he got it right.

later,

 

From what I have read, you should drive it for a couple weeks so the car will settle and then do the alignment. Some will sit in the drives side if the do a lot of autocross so the alignment is set with a driver in the car. I found a place here that did a laser alignment and was very happy with the work.

 

My only other suggestion would be to go with as little neg camber on the front as possible, if you are mainly a "street" driver. If you drive mostly in a "straight line", the stock specs will lead to premature inner front tire wear. :yesnod: :)

 

go straight to the shop and have it aligned! Don't drive it around any more than necessary, or you will cup your tires more than they already (probably) have.

Your weight will not affect the alignment an appreciable amount!

Dave

 

QS,
After lowering my Z06 I took it to a local alignment shop.
Just for fun I had them print a sheet with the alignment settings as the car was brought in.
Then I had them print a sheet of the settings with me in the car.
The settings changed more than I thought they would but whether they are an appreciable amount is somewhat subjective.
I do agree with Dave Farmer on that issue unless you are say 300 pounds or heavier then I would align the car with you in it.
GM even says that when you have the car aligned leave the things in the car you usually carry, work equipment, etc. although there is no mention of aligning the car with the driver in it.
Many times the passenger will offset the driver's weight somewhat anyway.
Also you will have a difference of 100 pounds between a full tank and an empty tank. That also changes the settings a little.
Gm says to align the car with a full tank of fuel.
You should have set your ride heights with an average amount of fuel you carry. Not a full tank or empty tank. 3/8" difference in rear ride height between a full and empty tank.
I will post the changes on my spec sheets with me in the car and not in the car if you want.
BTW: I only weigh 155 pounds. I had the car aligned with me in it. I do not know anyone else who has been in their car when it was aligned. First time for me.
You will probably have to find an alignment shop that is not a national chain or a local race shop to get that kind of service.
Dave


[Modified by corvette dave, 12:08 AM 10/1/2002]

 

that would be great thanks :cheers:

 

QS,
Too late tonight.
I will look it up tomorrow and post.
Dave

 

Hopefully this will clear up some questions on alignment after lowering and questions about aligning with or without driver.

I took my Z06 in to be aligned after lowering it 1 1/8” all around.
The car had 3/4 tank of fuel. 31 psi in tires. 2200 miles.
The alignment settings were all within specs except the right rear toe, which was at +.42.
The maximum toe at the right rear is +.09.
Unfortunately I do not have the alignment setttings the car had from the factory. I will do that on my next new one for comparison.
I do have a camber gauge and took factory camber settings before and after lowering in my garage. The camber changed an average of .3 degrees negative on each corner after lowering.
I also had the tech print out the readings with no one in the car.
I then got in the driver’s seat and had those readings printed. I weigh 160 pounds.
The caster in the right and left front increased by .15 degrees.
The toe all around was virtually unchanged.
The left side front and rear camber were unchanged.
However the right side camber front and rear increased .12 degrees negative.
Since I drive the car 90% of the time alone, I had it aligned with me in the car to the factory preferred settings.
It would make sense that the heavier the driver the more the readings would change.
I hope this helps.

Dave Montgomery

 

tanks for the info :cheers:

 

I recently lowered both my '00 FRC and a friend's '97 coupe. Mine was adjusted within the limits of the factory hardware, about 3/4". His we had to rebuild the front bushings anyway, so we cut them down lower than factory and lowered his overall about 1.5". Mine has 97000 miles, his about 25000.

Waited about 1 week for everything to settle, then had mine aligned. Everything was out of whack: toe, camber, caster, on all 4 corners.

When my friend had his aligned (same shop, technician, and rack), he only had one corner that was significantly out.

Bottom line: I'd find a good shop and get yours aligned after you give it some miles to settle, because you don't know what you've got until you do.

Hope this helps,
Mike

 

:yesnod: :yesnod:

 

Whenever I adjust ride height, I have it re-aligned. All the geometry changes. Sometimes, I have noticed that if you have more negative camber and you drop the car it still is negative, but can effect the toe in/out. Best to have it aligned. A good source of information as a base line for alignment specs can be found on Vette Brakes and Products website, go to the online catalog, pg.6. It gives some base line specs with explanations for street, advanced street, autocross, and track.
Good Luck.