Camber adjustment....

[Eric VerValin]

Is this only done with the adjustable strut mounts? Both of my front tires are wearing pretty well on the outside, not too worried as of yet, as I have some cheap Kumho's on there now. Without spending money upfront on an alignment, I wanted to see if the tires would tell me anything about what I might need to upgrade after the intrax / tokiko install... and they did. Both are wearing on the outside edges, pretty evenly. Therefore I assume I have too much positive camber? Only to be fixed with an adjustable mounting plate?

:thankyou:

 

[Shoaz]

You might also have a bit too much toe-in. Hard to say without looking at it.

BTW, you don't need aftermarket mounts to adjust camber. If the spot welds in the top plates of your front struts haven't already been broken, that's all you need to do. They're easy to pop apart, and if they've already been separated, all the better.

 

[Eric VerValin]

Well, if they're broken loose, what would keep them in place? And yes, I do believe I have a bit of a toe in at the moment, even if its only a few degrees. I'll have to get it into a shop that will let me adjust it and then re test it if I can find one.

 

[Shoaz]

The spot welds just keep the stock camber plates from moving when the strut is removed. They're held in place by the clamping force from the nuts on the strut mount once the spot welds are undone, which is necessary (and standard procedure in the manual) to do a front-end alignment.

 

[Eric VerValin]

Well the one on the driver side, was a little loose, but when I tightened it down it seemed ok. I marked it, and it hasn't moved that I can tell.. So when they align a front end.. they move your stock plates around then tack em down? I'm confused.. lol

 

[Shoaz]

Well the one on the driver side, was a little loose, but when I tightened it down it seemed ok. I marked it, and it hasn't moved that I can tell.. So when they align a front end.. they move your stock plates around then tack em down? I'm confused.. lol

They'll move the plates and the strut tops around until caster and camber are within spec, then tighten down the three nuts on the strut mount. Those three nuts are more than adequate to keep the plate clamped to the top of the strut tower and prevent it from moving.

Once the welds are broken there's no real need (or reason) to re-tack them.

 

[Storm-Chaser]

The Service Manual specifies that the strut mounting plates be riveted in-place once the factory spot-welds have been cut, if done as part of the alignment procedure.