Rear tires rubbing... tried everything!

[DemonNeno]

Alright, this is ******* me off! My '89 (eibachs & tokikos) has this rubbing issue. Now, i intially thought the 17s were causing it, which were 235/45's.. So i installed 215/60's on the slicers and ****! Still rubbing, but no where near as bad. Here's the catch, though! The car has -1 camber on the right rear & -.05" toe.. It has camber bushings, but they are made out of a polyurthene type material, so I'm not fully aware of what brand they are. My passenger side has .03 POSITIVE camber (which I can't get into spec with those ******** bushings... it'll through it out more positive, not negative! Possibly on backwards? Can't see how, but...) and -0.05" toe (but doesn't rub!), equivalenting to -0.7 cross camber & -.10" total toe. Rolled rear fender lips.. AND IT STILL RUBS?! My SAI look normal and the wheel wells dont look like they've been patched up, so I can't imagine the car was hit, at least not hard enough to tweak the cheeks out back!

Any input or ideas? Perhaps some specs that are preferable without compromising treadwear? BTW, i performed the alignment myself, tinkered with a couple of different adjustments hoping to cure the problem with no luck..

 

[jelloslug]

How wide are your wheels and what is there offset? If the offset is off and/or they are too wide it would cause rubbing. Your only solution my to be to roll the lip of the wheel well. How bad does it rub?

 

[nc89sho]

you need more adjustment first of all.. i would either get the GTP arms or install more excetric bushings. you can install them on all four courners. It is a little odd though because my car currently has -1.4 on both sides and is toed in a bit and doesn't rub with the intrax springs.

 

[K-Dawg]

Which side does it rub on?

 

[DemonNeno]

I'll answer according to input...

First, the stock slicers w/ 215/60R16s are being used. This is why i'm freaking out about the problem. I'd imagine there is enough clearance in there for +.5 camber and about an inch of toe (either way!) for that size to start rubbin! Also, the fender lips aren't only rolled, they're completely cut off! No fender lips at all!

Also, what spec should I go for in the rear, as far as camber and toe? I believe it's 0 toe and -1.0 per side for factory specs... but I don't know what would be optimal to go with in regards to firmer cornering without premature wear. I don't recall whether the shotimes write up was real specific on their writeup or if it was generalized specs. Yes, I do realize all cars react differently to adjustments and specs. I'm just looking for a bit more specific than a 3 degree tolerance spec.. :****:

TIA!

 

[K-Dawg]

Sounds like something is a bit screwy under the rear of your car. My 17x7s have enough room for me to have the rear compressed all the way and still have plenty of clearance between the lip and rim/tire to do whatever kind of adjustments I need to make. And that's with stock non-cut fenders.

 

[nc89sho]

if you have stock bushings/controll arms i would shoot for a slight toe in in the back (IE -.3 / -.5) if you have upgraded bushings/controllarms i prefure the toe to be neutral. (0) -1.0 camber in the back shouldn't wear tires out too much and should corner pretty well.. just remember, if you've got alot more neg. camber in the back than in the front it will promote aditianal "Push" or understeer in the corners wich you usually don't want in a front wheel drive.

 

[JaySHOguy]

I'd say you have something extremely out of alignment back there... I had 18x8" wide rims with 40mm offset and 235/40/18's on my '89. With Moog coils in back, I only had to roll the lip a tiny little bit.

Make sure none of the 4 control arms are bent, and that the strut mounts are good. With a bent control arm, the wheel will get kicked out an angle.

 

[Shoaz]

The misbalance of the camber is a clue, I think. It might be worthwhile to invest in some GM control arms, and then you'll be able to set the camber and toe to whatever you want.

I agree it's really strange that the slicers rub, but that means that something is very not right back there. But you already know that.

 

[DemonNeno]

hehehe... Yes, yes.. Something not right. Well, since this does seem to be a problem that I can't figure out, it's time to start measuring parts, checking for straightness in those rear arms, and figuring out if the H-brace out back has pooped on me in the oddest fashion.

TIA! I will definitely update you all on this problem for future reference, perhaps.