Camber alignment problems

[cellar]

I have a 96 sho with lowering springs (not sure which company made them) that were on the car when i bought it used. I love the look of the lowered car but a big problem i am running into is alignment problems. I just put a new set of tires on this car and want to get the most mileage out of em' as possible. I took my car to get aligned and they cant tweek the front left and right camber enough to fix the problem.

The angle they got for the front left was:
-2.49* with the specified range supposed to be between -1.10* and 0.10*

for the right front was
-1.91* with the same specified range


Since I have no complex understanding of how to deal with this I thought i'd ask the board. I've heard something about a camber kit but i have no idea where to find one for the SHO or where to start.

 

[SHOZ123]

You are going to have to bust the strut tower plates loose and hog out the holes so the top of the strut goes out more.

Camber plates are difficult to install and will raise the body a bit. Some don't fit like they should.

 

[2 4shofast]

You are going to have to bust the strut tower plates loose and hog out the holes so the top of the strut goes out more.

Thats what had to be done to my car as well.

 

[99V8SHO]

Yep, done to mine too.

 

[cellar]

any idea of some basic places to go and get this work done or how much it will run?

thanks for lettin' me know

 

[ornery1]

this makes the cars handle lousy,saves on tire wear but kills handeling

 

[cellar]

really?

 

[stephen newberg]

No, not really. All it does is allow you to get the camber to the factory indicated numbers over time as the car ages. If anything, it improves handling to be able to have the camber the same between sides. As point out above, there can be problems with the camber plates, and the best long term solution is just to auger out the adjustment holes, and you can do that with or without the spot welds broken, but if you only need a small amount of adjustment to get in spec, cutting the welds loose works just fine and, since you are then tightening the entire structure back down again after the adjustment, it does not effect the handling at all, except as improvement.

pax, smn

 

[ornery1]

ive done this on my 93 and a 97 and it drasticaslly makes the car feel sloppy at highway speeds. takes alot of the enjoyment out of 100mph driving

 

[SHOZ123]

Did you have the car aligned afterward?

If you lower your car then this has to be done along with resetting the toe.

 

[ornery1]

yes!!!! i work at a ford dealership. i know what im doing and stating a fact.

 

[stephen newberg]

Normally, this would just discourage me about people that work at Ford dealerships. It is, of course, very possible that both of your cars have some handling problems that show up at 100+ mph. However, being able to adjust the camber to the correct value would not be what is causing it. Also, you should probably slow down until you figure out what the problem actually is.

pax, smn

 

[ornery1]

wrong!!!! master certified tech and svt rousch certified!!!! talk what u know and not what u think!!!!!!!

 

[venom]

wrong!!!! master certified tech and svt rousch certified!!!! talk what u know and not what u think!!!!!!!

Boy, it seems to me that you got your username right...... You should also keep in mind to tread lightly when beginning to come after another member, because you never know exactly what their experience is....

Never think you are the sharpest one on anyhting, or someone WILL prove you wrong next month, or maybe even today.

 

[cellar]

any idea of some basic places to go and get this work done or how much it will run?

thanks for lettin' me know

?????

 

[stephen newberg]

I have doubts that Ornery1 is anything he is claiming to be, since he seems to know very little about suspensions, considering this and his previous posts asking about tire fit.

So that no one will be misinformed, once again, augering out or breaking the welds that fix the camber does not detrimentally effect the handling of the Gen III SHO, or any Ford Taurus, assuming it is done correctly and the system is all tightened back down after the alignment, and these are standard alterations made regularly on these makes and models.

Additionally, many other things can produce a negative handling effects at 100+ mph, but the implication from Ornery1 that he regularly drives at such speeds is, I would guess, another indicator to go along with his on screen handle.

On that, I am going to lock this thread. Ornery1, if you wish to discuss this further, contact me via private email.

pax, smn