Rocweiller

Had my sons car into check alignment etc. the dude that messed with it said that it couldn’t be adjusted fully, toe or camber, can’t remember which. He mention that I would need to get ball joints that where at a different angle.. is there such a thing?

tmdz

Does he have an aftermarket suspension system installed? If you lower the height of these cars past a certain point they won’t align to oem specs without additional/different hardware.

Rocweiller

I don’t believe it has aftermarket suspension, the front tires are wearing from the center in.

Spike100

If the suspension is stock, the car can be aligned.

I wonder if the ball joints are worn. Uneven tire wear can be a symptom of worn ball joints. How many miles on the car?

Chihuahuamaster

The guy is more than likely talking about the upper control arm. An adjustable set of these would be used to correct front camber. However, there are not really any of these arms that I myself would trust due to how the adjustment points are configured.

If the camber is not in spec, the car is probably lowered, or there is another issue with the front suspension. Do you have the alignment spec sheet that the guy should have provided when aligning the car?

Some additional negative camber in front isn't going to wear out the tires like that unless it is really excessive.

Rocweiller

yes I do have the sheet , he had it on the hoist and used the alignment that uses lasers. I think it was the front driver side.

Chihuahuamaster

For stock suspension parts, the alignment looks pretty good to me. That amount of camber up front should not be an issue.

Toe adjustment is what will usually eat through tires, if it's not right. I would have preferred the toe specs to be closer up front. Around .05 on either side.

If it is wearing through tires perhaps the suspension components are moving under load, i.e. worn bushings or play in the joints.

I would start by checking the main ball joints on the wheel spindle, check the boots for tears or leaks. Also check the bushing on the lower control arm, where it mounts to the 'frame'.
It would be difficult to check for play in the tie rod/ tie rod ends without taking it apart however.

Rocweiller

120000ish

Rocweiller

Looked like one of the boots was cracked. What brought this on was my son wasn’t paying attention and backed in to a cement light pole. Causing damage in the range of 10k based on the first shop we went to. Trunk, rear bumper and right rear fender damage. The rear body panel was pushed in as well. 2nd place we went to the guy was a shyster and said the car frame was bent and offered us 500 bucks. So a guy I’ve know for along time said he would fix the car if we got the parts and would check the alignment to tell us if frame was in fact damaged. Which it wasn’t. So 1000 dollars in the car is fixed beside taking out the bondo on the rear quarter panel and redoing the finish.

tmdz

When you said the front tires are wearing from the center in - Do you mean the center of each tire is wearing sooner than the rest of the tire or the two front tires are both wearing on the inside? Center of both tires is a sign of over-inflation.

Also, I think a lot of us 350z enthusiasts feel like it may not be a good car for young people. They are fun to drive but can be pretty unforgiving... I mean, possible frame damage from backing into a post? How fast was he going?

Rocweiller

I thought over inflation at first. The center of the tire toward the inside, is how it looks to me.. Luckily he isnt anything like I was was when I was young.. he is 19 and in college now. No tickets or accidents until now. He was devastated.. He said he was going about 5mph.. Backing up in a Denny’s parking lot with his friends doing the same.. The brace behind the bumper did not have the styrofoam on it and the dude who put the replacement on said it would have helped if it was there. The car had been wrecked prior this , this why the rear quarter panel bondo cracked.. The guy who said the car frame was damaged wanted the car, he thought he was gonna pull one on us and flip it.