Well, actually it is "not a minute thing" according to the PM exchanges I have had with Jim Mero. And I do not think there is anyone more qualified to opine on that subject. It is an important component of setting the car up properly if you want to drive a triple digit speeds safely and quickly on road track days.

Granted, the 95% plus of Vette owners will never notice when they take a road trip to the beach, head to the country club for a round of golf, or hard park at C&Cs. All good stuff, but that is not what I bought the advertised "track model" for. And Chevrolet should be equipped (literally) to support all the products they sell,

SO we will just have to agree to disagree.

 

Rock on sista. You could always buy the inclinometer and attachment yourself. I wonder how all those other model Corvettes were able to run triple digit speeds without having rear caster adjustments?

 

Maybe because there were NO REAR CASTER ADJUSTMENTS for the C6. LMAO

 

There never was a rear caster adjustment in any model until the c7 Der Dee Der LMAO. Like I said, I wonder how all those other model Corvettes were able to be stable in the triple digits without having rear caster adjustments? It makes my point on how minimal of an adjustment it is.

 

You call yourself an alignment guy? Well, I guess I can call myself the King of England. And you have no clue - so now you quote my words of educating you re no previous rear caster was available pre C7 - a fact you clearly did not know. Really? Minimal adjustment? Again, freaking clueless as per the importance of it stated by GM's suspension guru and backed up by many posts on the forum by people who track there cars.
I wouldn't trust you to do a proper alignment on a bicycle given your freely demonstrated ignorance.
But I am done wasting time with you. As the saying goes, directly applicable to YOU - "Never argue with an idiot. They will only bring you down to their level and beat you with experience."

Adios...

 

Been performing alignments 19 years longer than you have. Worked on quite a few cars on this forum. Many autocross, scca, drag racing, etc. You're the one telling me I don't have a clue. You can always do your own alignments. Look up froggy on here. Maybe you'll actually learn something.

Actually you aren't the one who cant read. as I mentioned well before you did there was no rear caster in any model year before the c7. You should really stop while you are behind. Post #20 to be exact I stated GM never cared about rear caster on any model until the c7. It wasn't until post 23 you said because they never had rear caster in the c6.

You are correct though, never argue with an idiot, which is why I'm not arguing with you. You sound like a liberal democrat.

 

All I can say is that the GM engineers must have made rear caster adjustable on the C7 for a reason. As to why GM did not train their dealers in proper rear alignment procedures for the C7, it's just like how GM did not train their dealers to do oil changes on dry sump systems. (As an aside, can you imagine the fiascos that are going to occur with servicing the C8, given GM's lack of training/support for dealer service departments on C7 alignments and oil changes?) It's hard to believe that there are no dealers or independent alignment shops in NE Florida that can do it. I'm still looking for one in NE Florida or SE Georgia. Following this thread hoping Ninevettes might find somebody equipped to do it.

 

Bingo, your post got to the heart of the issue, and my original request re trying to find an alignment shop/dealership who was competent and willing to do a full alignment, of which rear caster is an important part of. Important hint: I learned the hard way that many shops or individuals who claim to be C7 "alignment experts" do not either know that setting rear caster is an important part of a C7 alignment OR they know about it but do not want to either buy (private alignment shops) or participate in the GM tool sharing program (Chevrolet Dealership). I have shared my experiences to-date with my search in Jacksonville and Orlando (not withstanding the one idiot there that is a self-proclaimed "expert" but never does rear caster), plus contacted one reference (Never answered the phone or responded to my VMS), or the recommended shop in Sarasota who does not have the CH-47960 tool and does not want to invest in one.

So, I am pursuing an alternative strategy which may or may not work out.... As I get more time next week, I will work further on that alternative. Stay tuned...

 

I know exactly why they did it. When you are looking for that last ounce of something to make it the best you can, you do stuff like this. Independent dealers aren't going to spend almost $1000.00 for a tool that they will use about once a year for a $100-150 alignment job. Same reason why dealers won't buy it, which is why GM has the tool loan program to help offset that cost. Dealers are going to spend their money training their personnel where it makes the most money and sense. How many Corvettes versus pickup trucks will they service?

Ninevettes point of insisting the car needing it done because of stability in the triple digit speeds is moot. Plenty of other generation Corvettes have been at those speeds on tracks without the ability to adjust caster in the rear. Which, again, makes my point that rear caster is minimal in the big scheme of things.

It'll take ninevettes a while to find a place with the tool and desire to perform his alignment to his needs and satisfaction. I hope you both the best in finding a place.

 

Glad to see you're still butthurt. Im no more a self proclaimed expert than you are about alignments. Just have a little more experience. But hey, rock on sista! Hope you find what you are looking for. Here's a thought. You could always invest in the CH-47960 tool yourself, if it's that important. I'm sure I mentioned that as well, but you can only read your own posts competently.

 

Ill help you out. https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...h-47960-a.html

 

So, For those of you in Florida, I have some (mostly) good news concerning how to get your Z properly aligned. First, to reiterate my first post, a little background. I have a'19 M7 Z06 and live in North Central Florida since 8/17. I bought my new '19 in the Fall of '18 from Criswell and had it shipped to me via PLYCAR. Gorgeous car, my best Vette yet, but quickly realized from both street driving and a few track outings, that this car badly needed an alignment. This car required more specialized attention to getting a proper alignment done given it now has adjustable rear caster. And I found out it needs a somewhat specialized tool to properly set it. Now GM has such a tool "CH-47960 Digital Angle Gauge" plus another tool called CH-47960-10 which is an adapter that allows the digital angle gauge to be attached to the rear suspension. Given this tools are kind of expensive, so most GM dealerships do not stock this tool. GM has a tool loan program available for these dealerships to participate in (they need to pay GM to participate). Problem is that exactly ZERO dealerships I contacted in North and Central Florida participate in this program and obviously don't care to. So much for GM providing full support for their products. I went to the local alignment "expert and guru" who claimed to have "done lots of C7 Z06's" but he did not even know about setting rear caster. I let him go ahead and do an alignment anyway, which was a mistake, so back to square one. Meanwhile, I had to deal with multiple occurrences of bent wheels, after two open track days, so my attention was diverted elsewhere while I sourced a set of Forge Line VX1 R's to replace the crap, lowest bidder Mexican produced cast wheels.

So during my search to resolve the alignment issues which caused my Z to handle much more poorly at speed than my DD '16 SQ5, I started to accumulate some information - including a set of recommended DSC alignment settings. I also had some back channel discussions with Jim Mero who was an incredibly helpful source of advice and guidance. Same with Bill Dearborn. A big shout-out to both of these gentlemen for their time and assistance. And if you are wondering is properly setting rear caster is important - well they say it is, and I will take their word for it over any forum "keyboard warrior" here.

A few weeks ago I called DSC to see if they had a recommended shop in Florida to align my Z. They did, a shop located about 125 miles from me in Tampa, so I contacted them and had my car aligned their yesterday since I would not be losing a work day. And using the slightly modified DSC street/track set-up based upon Jim and Bill's recommendations, the trip back was the first time since I had bought this car, that it was properly stable during a few short high speed bursts on empty sections of the Interstate.

The shop's name is "Vortex Motorsport" and they are primarily a Porsche Shop. And a damn good one - Porsche Cup cars parked all around the place. As for the tools, I bought them on Amazon, took them with me, and they utilized them to FINALLY do a proper alignment. Took a few hours, but totally worth it. And of course, as I suspected, the alignment was totally screwed up - a mess.

So that's my story, and I am sticking to it. So, for you Florida guys, I found a great place - too bad I had to go to a Porsche shop to get my GM car properly serviced - which is in a nutshell, a textbook example of how GM chooses to service their very expensive product. Sad.

If any of you guys in Florida want to get a proper alignment, now you know how. In fact, I think we can work out some arrangement, where if you want to use the tools I have, you could stop by the house, and with a cash deposit, you can borrow them, then bring them back when through. I work/consult full-time from home most of the time when not on job-related travel, so it might be an option for you. If yo call the shop, ask for "Bob." And tell him the guy with the Admiral Blue Z06 sent you.

More information? Contact me via PM.

 

Glad to hear you found a place to meet your standards and satisfy your needs.

 

Did you ever get in contact with them? I'm maybe 10 minutes away and could swing by on Monday and see if they are still in business or not.

 

No, as I mentioned prior, called several times on different days, left voice mails with my contact information - never got any response. I have a busy schedule and if a business cannot even take the time to respond to their messages or answer the phone, I am certainly not interested in doing business with them (if they are even in business). Got a great and professional alignment done at the shop in Tampa I talked about.

 

Since you had the "tool" and specs from Jim & Bill, would it be safe to say that any alignment shop do the alignment?

 

I can only talk to you about my personal experiences with this. This is my 10th Vette and I have NEVER had these alignment problems before, as I previously documented. There are several reasons for that, I think. First, I moved to North Central Florida a little over two years ago from Northern Va, and I just think the local infrastructure (or lack of it) is part of the problem. Have not found any Chevy dealerships who have a true "Corvette Specialist" in their shops that also are capable and willing to do a full alignment on C7s. I have tried, first here in Gainesville, Ocala, Jacksonville, and many other places in North Central Florida. None of them want to participate in the GM tool loaner program which would give them access to the CH-47960 digital angle gauge and the accompanying CH-47960-10 caster gauge adapter, both which now reside in my garage. Many dealers claiming to have a "Corvette Specialist" are referring to someone in the shop who they may route some Corvette work to, not someone who has actually received specialized training with these cars and had considerable experience with them.

Then there are the alignment shops, one of them not 10 miles from me who professes to be an "alignment expert" who has done alignments on dozens of C7s, including Z06's like mine. But the guy never heard of setting rear caster, or of the need and importance of doing it. This was a pattern I encountered with several other "expert alignment shops who have lots of C7 experience" scattered throughout northern and central Florida. This included a few shops that were referenced in this thread by some folks.

So, I began to did deeper by asking some people who are acknowledged experts on the subject on this forum, and by opening a private dialogue with Jim Mero, who was kind enough to take time to respond to my questions. A lot of education went on for me. You see, at higher speeds, my car handled like crap, I have an Audi SQ5 that could track at 110 much better than my Z06. And why I care, is that I do some track time, and at the higher speed tracks like Sebring (which I would not venture onto with this car) I felt the car was dangerous, especially for someone like me with mid-level skills. And despite what some people here have opined, the experts told me that setting rear caster properly was really important for the way I wanted to occasionally use my car..

Frankly, I was getting so frustrated with the whole time consuming process, that I started thinking seriously about selling my '19 and getting something else. I am not retired and do not have unlimited time to keep chasing unicorns.

So, from my personal experience, given the way I occasionally want to use my car, I would NOT trust just any alignment shop to do this correctly, even with the correct tools. Jim Mero said, if you find a truly competent shop it would be worth the drive. And a call to DSC led to me the very competent shop I discussed in my earlier thread - it was worth the 125 mile drive for me. Shop showed me the before and after alignments (before was totally screwed up) and they spent about 2.5 hours doing the alignment using my caster tools, and their very up-to-date-equipment which was utilized by an extremely proficient technician. I mentioned earlier that these guys set up a lot of Porsche Cup Cars, and they do other sports cars including Corvettes.

The answer to your question depends upon what you are looking for, how you plan to use your car, and your expectations in terms of who you want working on it, By my requirements, for me, the answer is no.

YRMV (BTW, Tampa is closer to you than it is to me)

 

For what its worth, there is a vendor and contributor here who is a multiple national champion in SCCA autocross. He will tell you that rear castor is critically important. I live in Jacksonville and cannot find an alignment shop. Thank you for doing the legwork. Looks as though i'll be taking a road trip to Tampa.

 

I also live in the Jacksonville area and haven't had much luck identifying any really good Corvette specialists in the area. That is why I just ordered a 4 post Advantage lift with rolling jacks, so I can service my car myself. I hope I never need a body shop for my Corvette around here, all I've heard is nightmare stories about Corvettes and body shops in and around Jacksonville/St. Augustine. Sounds like the four hour drive to Tampa will be the place to get alignments done. Many thanks to NineVettes for doing some of the legwork.

 

So critically important, GM didn't think of it until the C7. How did all those c4,c5 and c6 make it down the track and road courses without it? Not to mention other cars like the viper, Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, etc...

I am curious as to what suddenly makes it so critically important now.