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I know this has been discussed, but the negative camber on my rear wheels is very noticeable. Even after hard cornering I show no contact on the outside edges. I'm going to bring it in for an alignment check.
For those of you who do not track and got an alignment, what did you set your camber to.
Should I just set it to Z51 specs?
Dealer I went to was experienced and also had specs for track vs non-tracked Grand Sports. I trust them as they race Corvettes and just let them set based on how I said I drove it.... Was fortunate to have an experienced dealer near by, maybe check the regional forums for places people have taken theirs for alignment that can be trusted?
How do you define hard cornering? You may not be cornering hard enough. Although the rear tires don't roll over as much as the fronts even under very hard cornering. What are your tire pressures?
Before taking the car to the dealership get yourself a tread depth gauge and check the tread depths all the way across the tire (keep gauge off wear bars). On the major grooves that go all the way around the tire they should be very close to equal. If they are equal you may not have an issue with the alignment.
The FE3 suspension is the Z51 suspension and its settings are the same as for FE1 and FE2. If you are really interested in maxing out tire wear then you want those alignment settings as close to zero tolerance as the mechanic can achieve. Here are the GM alignment specs for the C7:
Notice the barn door wide tolerances for each setting. Anything inside those tolerances is assumed to be OK and you get a green and go alignment. If you want it tighter you need to make sure they understand you want the alignment set as close to the spec (without tolerance as possible). You may notice the rear caster measurement/setting. It is likely they can not perform this measurement due to the lack of proper tools (they are not part of the alignment rack).
I know this has been discussed, but the negative camber on my rear wheels is very noticeable. Even after hard cornering I show no contact on the outside edges. I'm going to bring it in for an alignment check.
For those of you who do not track and got an alignment, what did you set your camber to.
Should I just set it to Z51 specs?
The issue is the GM specs are very broad, i.e. Grand Sport rears can range from -0.5 to -1.7 and be within spec! Mine were on the high side from the factory (more negative.)
For my Grand Sport requested and got:
Left front -0.5/-0.6
Right front -0.7/-0.8
Both rears -0.8/-0.9
Tech centerlined all toe, essentially 0.
Not as low a tire wear as possible but for my driving a good compromise, IMO.
I just got my 2017 GS (NON-Z07, stock with new non-runflat Conti DWs all around) aligned at a local shop that I trust. I told them that I was getting the alignment to help with inside front tire wear.
My settings are attached for those interested. We shall see what kind of tread life I get this time — I wasn’t impressed with the stock alignment chewing through the $2k/set PSS run-flats at 12,500 miles, and the ride is much nicer now with the Contis.
Three questions I have are: 1) what is the suspension “FE” nomenclature designations you refer to?, 2) What are the “optimum” alignment settings to mimimize tread wear for a GS that is used only on the street?, and 3) Is zero camber all the way around the way to go? I have read various posts on CF that suggest that the alignments on these cars coming from the factory are all over the map.
Last edited by JumpingJackFlash; Feb 9, 2018 at 05:01 PM.
I had my 17 GS re aligned and told them to use the street non aggressive specs. Also wanted a before and after printout of the alignment. You get one free alignment up to I believe 7K miles. I think this is what they told me so don't let them charge U. Good luck with it.
Three questions I have are: 1) what is the suspension “FE” nomenclature designations you refer to?, 2) What are the “optimum” alignment settings to mimimize tread wear for a GS that is used only on the street?, and 3) Is zero camber all the way around the way to go? I have read various posts on CF that suggest that the alignments on these cars coming from the factory are all over the map.
FE1 has been the base suspension for many years, FE3 has been the Z51 Suspension for years. I suspect the FE2 and FE4 versions are for the cars with MRC.
My chart is from 2015 so there is no GS included. The FE6 and FE7 represent the Z06 and Z06/Z07.
My Z06/Z07 came with all 4 wheels setting at -1.0 to -1.2 camber. Which isn't too bad from any shop. I haven't really heard that they are all over the place. In track season I set the camber at -2.3 in front and -1.7 in the rear and I set it at -0.8 at all 4 wheels for the off season when I am planning on doing a lot of road driving. You can go to 0 if you want but then maybe you should wonder why you bought a Corvette. The fun is taking it around corners. 0 camber will take a lot of the edge off and numb the car. Basically, you turn it into an Impala.
I set my cars up with .2 degrees of POSITIVE camber on the front and straight up or 0.0 camber in the rear. I drive on the street and not the track.
It stands to reason that a car driven on the street should be aligned for a car being driven on the street. The tires will last much longer and the car will handle uneven roads better.
FE1 has been the base suspension for many years, FE3 has been the Z51 Suspension for years. I suspect the FE2 and FE4 versions are for the cars with MRC.
My chart is from 2015 so there is no GS included. The FE6 and FE7 represent the Z06 and Z06/Z07.
My Z06/Z07 came with all 4 wheels setting at -1.0 to -1.2 camber. Which isn't too bad from any shop. I haven't really heard that they are all over the place. In track season I set the camber at -2.3 in front and -1.7 in the rear and I set it at -0.8 at all 4 wheels for the off season when I am planning on doing a lot of road driving. You can go to 0 if you want but then maybe you should wonder why you bought a Corvette. The fun is taking it around corners. 0 camber will take a lot of the edge off and numb the car. Basically, you turn it into an Impala.
Bill
Thanks for your informative response. It’s appreciated Bill. Regarding alignments, I have been reading this forum and other forums regarding this topic. There are many anecdotal accounts regarding misalignment of C7s coming out of BG. I have read and seen accounts on YouTube from owners claiming premature tire wear due to misalignment. These claims are coming from non-track rats such as myself. As you are aware there is so much to like about the current C7. I am a retireee and no longer have an interest in tracking. However I still appreciate all the things that Corvette represent and hope to make my first Corvette purchase later this year. I don’t plan on screaming around a corner at 90 MPH in my vehicle. If I can find something that will aid in reducing tire wear on my vehicle I am certainly going to listen. Thanks again Bill for your reply. Derrick
You don't plan on going around corners
at 90 mph, but then............
IT HAPPENS, AND YOU'RE LOOKING FOR THE
NEXT CORNER!
You can wake up now! I’m afraid my Mario Andretti days are long over. My next traffic ticket might be for driving too slow. I’m the guy you drive behind and scream why is this guy going so slow?
One very important part of getting the front end aligned on any corvette, is making sure that whomever sets up the alignment heads doesn't scratch the clear coat or paint on the wheels. It happens more often than the typical alignment guy is going to admit. I would at least ask the counter guy about it so they know you are aware of the possibility.
GS Re-Alignment
