At 05:57 PM 2/9/99 -0800, John Weber wrote:
>Both of my front wheels lean outwards. Looks horrible...drives twitchy.
>
You have POSITIVE camber! <horrors>
Actually, as others have mentioned, _positive_ is the stock setting.
My Spit has been set to 0.5 degree negative camber I have not had any
twitchy handling. My tire wear is funky however. With the weight of
passengers in the car the suspension geometry induces _more_ negative camber.
I'm trying to raise the front of my car a bit (it scrapes the pavement on
bumps) and will have to re-align the front of my car once more when I
settle on a good ride height.. Remember, adding or subtracting camber
shims affects the toe.
>I have all new rubber for all four corners, and after I install all
>that, I'm going to need the front end aligned...
Be sure you check for loose/worn a-arm bushings, tie rod ends, upper ball
joints, and trunnions before you spend $$ on alignment.
Don't forget the back suspension bushings either. A lot of twitchyness can
be caused by the rear suspension trying to 'go its own way'.
>Where do I find the necessary shims that go between the lower control
>arms and the frame? The book I have merely says they're needed, but I
>can't find them. Any ideas?
Shims are relatively cheap and available from the usual Brit Car sources.
I would suggest buying a few (say $10 worth) because the alignment shop
won't have the proper ones.
Cheers,
Atwell Haines
'79 Spitfire FM96062 UO
Succasunna, NJ USA
"It's not the destination that counts, it's the journey."
Drive a Spitfire!
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