-1.5 camber stock suspension unadjustable. HELP!

[gearhead08]

Ever since I purchased my car in 2010 it has had alignment issues. When I bought the car and was driving it home I noticed it drifted slightly to the right. Long story short I didnt think it was enough to make a difference. In 2012 I noticed the inside of the goodyears were basically shot at 17k miles. I put some 555s on there and went to get it aligned. They said that the camber needed a kit so it can be adjusted and it is "maxed" adjustment as it sits. I thought they were just trying to get some extra money from me so I just left the dealership and they aligned it to where it did not drift anymore. Now 2015 my 555s are now wearing on the inside again. They are not shot or anything. So I took it to a different dealership and they said the exact same damn thing. How is it that stock suspension is at -1.5 and cannot be adjusted... Did I buy a dud or something? I will purchase the stupid camber kit if I have too but I might as well make it worth my while and lower the dang car. Thanks for reading any other insight will help seeing as I am not a suspension guru whatsoever.

 

[Zemedici]

Factory suspension? You'll probably just need camber bolts, it's a common thing. We order them for 5.0s that are lowered all the time at my dealership

 

[MaximumVelocity]

Just use Camber bolts, no need for camber plates. This will be your cheapest option to get the alignment squared away.

 

[barspen]

My front tires wear on the insides also. I'm lowered and want to tweak it a little more for track days, so I'm putting Castor Camber Plates on in the next couple months. I've read some mixed reviews on the camber bolts...they are defiantly a cheaper route and might mix your issue.

 

[Bad Company]

The factory spec if I remember correctly is -1.0 to -1.4. -1.5 isn't far enough off the spec to cause dramatic tire wear issues. These cars are built with negative camber from the factory.

If you decide to adjust the camber, do it with a Caster/Camber plate instead of the camber bolts. The camber bolts do NOT have the clamping load to hold the spindle and strut to each other properly.

 

[Black Sex]

Having my car aligned at the dealer also killed my front tires by chewing up the inside. IIRC it had -1.5* also and my buddy got it down to -.5 using factory bolts. I think he put a small notch in the strut.

 

[ShelbyGT5HUN]

17k miles out of a set of tires on a performance car is pretty good. It's not a commuter car that gets 35k on a set of rock hard high mileage tires. I put the camber bolts in my car, and took care of the alignment, but I don't have more than a 1000 miles on the set up to see if it affected wear. I had wear on the inside fronts with the Eibach spring kit. Alignments that get the best wear generally don't work for ultimate handling. Par for the course.

 

[Tob]

If you decide to adjust the camber, do it with a Caster/Camber plate instead of the camber bolts. The camber bolts do NOT have the clamping load to hold the spindle and strut to each other properly.

I second the motion. A set of plates such as those from Maximum will allow for the adjustment you need and are a much better solution than a reduced bolt diameter.

 

[finally03gt]

I have the same camber issues. I don't know the milage on the tires, as they were on when I bought them, but the inside edge is bald and the rest of the tire is nearly new. I will avoid the camber bolts based on what I've read. My first approach would be re-positioning the factory strut mounts.
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?994858-GT-500-strut-mount-question
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?1012861-WTF-can-t-align-a-Shelby&highlight=camber+strut+mount

 

[einehund]

I was told by Ford that the negative camber is within spec and that to pull out the negative camber involved drilling out the shock tower mounts and the ears on the struts....

Also see my thread here:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?1012861-WTF-can-t-align-a-Shelby&highlight=

 

[GT Premi]

I have the camber bolts and haven't noticed a problem with them yet. That's not to say a problem won't crop up later. But unless/until one does, I'm sticking with the cheap bolt solution.

 

[finally03gt]

I was told by Ford that the negative camber is within spec and that to pull out the negative camber involved drilling out the shock tower mounts and the ears on the struts....

Also see my thread here:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?1012861-WTF-can-t-align-a-Shelby&highlight=

That was one of the threads I linked. I'm off to discount tire, then Ford tomorrow, wish me luck

 

[einehund]

Good luck. I've changed my mind on my car and will be taking it to ford to have them drill out the ears and shock tower mounts to adjust the camber. I'll be switching to 285's on the front and I don't want to be replacing 2 of those every year...

 

[Darren5.0L]

-1.5* Camber doesn't seem like an issue to me, most of my cars tend to eat the inside of the tires because of camber wear, the Lightning is especially bad with 295's on the front but everything is in spec. It's just a pay to play thing as I see it, I only get about 20,000 miles from my GT500 fronts, and as performance car tires go I expect to replace a set on that interval.

My experience is 1 season from a set of rear DR's and 2-3 season's from a set of front rolling stock.

As another example having aggressive toe-out like on the factory Marauder settings gives great steering response, but really contributes to cupping in short order.

For reference as a personal data point, I went from the OEM Goodyears on my Lightning to Nitto 555's on the front, they are a much softer tire in the sidewalls, and they are wearing the inside edge much faster than the Goodyears ever did. I will not likely be putting another set back on once they are done, I personally don't much care for Goodyear tires, but the Nitto 555's were a step in the wrong direction for tire life, road holding, and rain performance. I did have the truck's alignment checked and it is perfectly in the middle of range for all settings.

 

[BMR Tech]

-1.5 camber, yummy.



I'm running more than that, on the REAR of my new Mustang....

 

[Matt in Houston]

There is nothing wrong with -1.5 camber. In fact your car should handle better, turn in slightly more sharply, and have less under steer. What can be detrimental is the toe setting in combination with the camber. Check your toe and have them zero it out. I would honestly leave the camber alone.

 

[barspen]

There is nothing wrong with -1.5 camber. In fact your car should handle better, turn in slightly more sharply, and have less under steer. What can be detrimental is the toe setting in combination with the camber. Check your toe and have them zero it out. I would honestly leave the camber alone.

+1

 

[finally03gt]

Well turns out, toe was my main culprit, not camber. My camber is now -.8° (from -.9° and -1.3°). I'm sure I gave up a little going closer to neutral, but U-turns under the freeway are about the most aggressive turns I make..haha. My toe was -.2° with spec of 0 to +.2°. The dealer experience overall was pretty rough today, but that's another story. I will have to go back in, because apparently when I said I was picky about steering wheel center, they didn't believe, and now a straight wheel gives me a right lane change. Hopefully though the MSPP's will last a bit. I like them so far. On a side note....
275 40 19 has a really tall side wall. I like it, fills the wheel well nicely with out looking like too much tire, but .... it's noticeably taller than the rear, and looks like my tires are swapped..boooooo! Live and learn I guess. 275 35 19 is the way to go for anyone considering it.