So what is the black goop on the front struts?

[theiceman]

I wanted to make some camber adjustments to the front of my car . That black goop was not only on the adjustment plates put also down inside the camber plate. Even after loosening the 3 bolts the thing would not move due to so much goop down there.
I think the right thing to do would be to remove the camber plate completely and get it on a wire wheel to clean it up. That will give me much more movement.
After that I would like to replace the stuff but don't know what it is ... The challenge I may have is that I am at 0 degrees camber ( I am rubbing slightly ) and the front plate is all the way to the inside .... any suggestions ?
I realize i have thrown quite a few things in there ..

[Oh Haha]

Kimi,

That goop is the fine layer of undercoating from the factory. You need to remove most of it to make adjustments, as you have found out.

What way are you trying to go with camber? I'm surprised you are at 0 as most guys cannot get that.

Where is your tire rubbing? Inside or outside?

front end alignment specs

[TimT]

Coal tar epoxy probably.. used as a sealant at the top of the struts so water can't get into the trunk..


You have to chip it away to get a good alignment

[aj88cab]

I think many have found that the Carrera and apparently the SC seem to be a bit front "camber challeged" in stock form. Based on threads I have seen your options may include:

Modifying the strut tower top to allow a little more adjustment range. I think some folks have mentioned removing the metal shock dust boot and replacing it with a rubber bellows to get more room to move.

Mono-Ball upper shock mount to minimize movement of camber under stress.

Poly-bronze bushings - to reduce flexing of stock suspension due to rubber bushings

Strut bar - can be tensioned to add (and hold) camber.

De-cambered ball joints to help add camber.

Sexy but often pricey camber plates that provide more range that the factory units.

And there's that rolling the fender thing...but I think we know where you stand on that option

The real suspension experts probably have more to add.

Also that goop comes off easier if you heat it up with a blow drier to soften it.

[theiceman]

obviously some rennlisters here

I am at zero and my tire is rubbing just on the outside barely , but it makes a god awefull noise on dips. I was hoping to get to neg .5 or .75, but as I said I was against the inside of the tower . I should state I am running 7s on the front with 205 55 16s. I did not realize getting 0 would be a challenge and thought this was the factory spec. ( I am kinda new to the alignment thing. )
But things got a WHOLE lot starnger from their. My car is sitting at 26 inches to the front fenders and 25.5 to the back so I would also like to lower it about .5 inch all around... and this is where it gets weird .....

My car is exactly 305mm from the ground to the centre of the wheel .. and I measured 165mm from the ground to the centre of torsion bar dust cap ... on both sides ..... that leaves me with about a 130mm ride height .. WTF ? I am suppose to be around 100mm. If i am reading it correctly 130mm is way to LOW ..... " as the value of C increases the lower the car will ride "

A= 305mm
B=165mm
C=A-B
C=130 spec 100

The rear is even starnager

Distance to centre of Wheel 305mm
Distance from ground to centre of torsion bar cover 292mm

at first I thought I was in range at 13mm . Except that is is backwards .. the Torsion bar is suppose to be HIGHER than the centre of the wheel !!!
what am I doing wrong ?

[theiceman]

Ps Thanks for the tip on the sealer , never thought about water getting into the lugage compartment ffrom under the wheel well . I will seal it back up with some undercoating when done.

[theiceman]

The specs are exactly where I am at now so maybe I should just leave well enough alone and live with the rubbing . starngeky enough my 17s don't rub. Probably due to less sidewall flex causing the sidewall to "bulge" out slihtly under compresion and rub. These were all seasons I put on a set of Fuchs I had lying around just for the cold weather around October - November and MArch - April Time frame . then I put my summer 17s on.

The ride height thing is bugging me now though .

[aj88cab]

If you are at 26" height at front you might be able to lower it some and maybe gain a little camber. Might be just enough to clear the fender...then again lowering might make it worse. Can't hurt to try and see.

I have rolled fenders and run 7" Fuchs up front. I am at 25", maybe a little less actually. I can get about 0.75 camber on my Carrera, your SC might not be the same.

When I first put the wider wheels on I had a little rubbing even with the rolled fenders. I used a high-tech solution to the issue. I put on a heavy pair of gloves, sat down on the ground, braced my feet against the wheel, and gave the fender a couple of heafty tugs. No more rubbing!

[frankc]

I posted the same question a couple years back...

What's the goop around the camber plates?

Like here, some folks had recommended that I try using heat, but when I tried a heat gun on this stuff, it did not soften up at all. I was afraid to use too much heat on the painted areas for fear of lifting the paint, but I did get the camber plates quite hot before giving up and simply chipping and media blasting the stuff off as the plates were being powder coated anyway.

Frank

[theiceman]

Thanks Frank .. I actually did as you did and chiselled it off. I now have get some sealer to seal it back up .