Yet another camber question...

Bob Gruen · Bob Gruen's Garage

The last time I bought front tires I was told that they could not get the alignment into spec. Looking at it the technician had moved the driver's side front strut all the way to the outside, up against the body. You could see from the leftover shmoo that the car was delivered, and ran for years, with the top strut adjustment basically centered.

I figured it was probably the front suspension doughnuts 'flowing', so I decided to change them out. Yes they were bad, and they even damaged the torsion bars (which I replaced with newly available OEM sized Sway-A-Way bars). So I corrected the doughnuts with the Elephant Racing kit and got the front end back together. I decided to double check that I was at euro ride height and found that I was actually lower than spec. Spent some time getting the stance right at euro height, drove the car around a bit, and did a gross measurement on the camber before I took it for a proper alignment.

With the driver's side strut mount still all the way out, the top of the 16" wheel was in ~3/8" when compared to the bottom of the rim. Passenger side was fine (0 camber) with about 30% of total adjustment to the outside still available. So I assumed I have a 'lightly' bent strut. (Boge with Bilstein sport inserts.)

Thinking I'd have the bent strut corrected and gussets welded in I took them both off. I placed them side by side on my workbench and started to compare measurements between the two. No bend. In fact, the driver's side might be just a tick more positive than the -good- passenger's side.

I'm stumped. I don't see how the lower cross beam could be shifted. My panel gaps are all fine, the car has never been crashed. I really did expect to find a bent strut. Now I am at a loss...

Bob

Trackrash · Trackrash's Garage

Interesting. From my experience, it is difficult to eyeball the SAI.

The strut inserts can be off, as well, I have found. A loose or worn insert can cause camber problems. I once thought my strut was bent and it turned out to be a loose wheel bearing. What about you ball joints.

Good luck figuring it out.