Firestone Alignment Issue?!
09-17-2012, 05:18 PM
#1
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Charlotte, NC
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Firestone Alignment Issue?!
Ok I am new(ish) to the forum but nowhere near new to the breed of nissan/datsun world. I bought my 2003 Z last year with 33,000 miles and a mod list that I mostly wanted. It is lowered 2" on eibach springs and has SPC rear camber and toe adjustments. I recently took it to Firestone to get an alignment because I'm a cheap a$$. They offered me a good deal on my alignment so I went ahead and brought it in. Little did I know that it would be such a pain. They told me that they could not get my camber and toe align without one or the other being off. I could almost believe that but the reason they say they couldn't is that I needed aftermarket adjustments...that I have and they used? Here is my print-out. Any comments good or bad are appreciated but I am mostly looking for a shop in the Charlotte, NC area that could do a better job. I just bought 4 Hankook Ventus V12 Evo's and I LOOOOVE them. I just want them to last.
Last edited by ddavis4488; 09-17-2012 at 05:28 PM.
09-17-2012, 07:24 PM
#2
Since you do not have any front upper control arms the camber is not adjustable. Unless you have a really nice set of front adjustable control arms like SPL, neither is caster so they are correct when they said there is nothing they could do up front to get it in spec.
As for the rear, what after market parts exactly do you have? I am assuming you have the SPC camber arm and SPC toe bolts? They should be able to easily get the camber back in with the SPC rear arms. Looks like they didn't have any problem with the rear toe as it is in spec as well.
As for the rear, what after market parts exactly do you have? I am assuming you have the SPC camber arm and SPC toe bolts? They should be able to easily get the camber back in with the SPC rear arms. Looks like they didn't have any problem with the rear toe as it is in spec as well.
09-17-2012, 07:57 PM
#3
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Charlotte, NC
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Since you do not have any front upper control arms the camber is not adjustable. Unless you have a really nice set of front adjustable control arms like SPL, neither is caster so they are correct when they said there is nothing they could do up front to get it in spec.
As for the rear, what after market parts exactly do you have? I am assuming you have the SPC camber arm and SPC toe bolts? They should be able to easily get the camber back in with the SPC rear arms. Looks like they didn't have any problem with the rear toe as it is in spec as well.
As for the rear, what after market parts exactly do you have? I am assuming you have the SPC camber arm and SPC toe bolts? They should be able to easily get the camber back in with the SPC rear arms. Looks like they didn't have any problem with the rear toe as it is in spec as well.
Yes you have it right. I know I need adjustable upper control arms for the front but they are not economical and plainly not as much as an issue as the rear.
The rear does have the SPL (I thought it was c) kit with camber and toe but they told me the camber could not be adjusted to spec while keeping the toe in spec
. I know the toe and camber react with each other but I could not agree with them that my kit couldn't get both in spec. I have always heard that the kit could fix almost any drop kit, mine being not uncommon. A little more info. My Eibachs were probably installed 10 years ago so they may be lower than the advertised 2". I am thinking about going back to stock springs and getting wheels with higher offset and tire height to give me a similar look. Any advocates or anyone against that, your comments are very welcome. Again, the life of my tires is the most important problem I have. I like the lowered look but this is my daily driver.
P.S. I also have a Chargespeed V2 front bumper for sale if anyone is interested.
09-18-2012, 04:42 AM
#5
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Charlotte, NC
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Yea I figured as much. I pretty much knew I was screwed when I walked in and the first thing they say is there lead technician wasn't there.
So any recommendations on a good shop around Charlotte, NC??
09-18-2012, 06:08 AM
#7
I think the front control arms are actually pretty economical at $249/pair: http://conceptzperformance.com/Cart/...ion.php?II=827. The Kinetix are very nice for the money and I have been very pleased with mine.
Anything more than -1.7-1.8 degrees in the front is going to wear the inside edges of your tires. Stock spec is -1.3 max so you are -0.8 degrees on the one side. The rear can handle more negative camber before it starts to show wear on the tires hence the stock camber spec in the rear is -2.1 max. So, you are actually out just as bad in the front as you are in the rear.
If you are really worried about tire wear you have a couple options:
1. Get the stock springs back on the car and have it aligned again as that should resolve the large negative camber readings you are having in the front as well as the rear.
2. Get a set of front camber arms installed (very easy to do yourself), and then find a shop that knows how to handle aftermarket suspensions adjustments so you can get your car aligned again.
Anything more than -1.7-1.8 degrees in the front is going to wear the inside edges of your tires. Stock spec is -1.3 max so you are -0.8 degrees on the one side. The rear can handle more negative camber before it starts to show wear on the tires hence the stock camber spec in the rear is -2.1 max. So, you are actually out just as bad in the front as you are in the rear.
If you are really worried about tire wear you have a couple options:
1. Get the stock springs back on the car and have it aligned again as that should resolve the large negative camber readings you are having in the front as well as the rear.
2. Get a set of front camber arms installed (very easy to do yourself), and then find a shop that knows how to handle aftermarket suspensions adjustments so you can get your car aligned again.
Trending Topics
09-18-2012, 07:10 AM
#8
Super Moderator
MY350Z.COM
MY350Z.COM
iTrader: (8)
Do you have aftermarket toe bolts? if not that could be a big problem. Front camber from the factory is to induce understeer, running -2 up front is really no big deal and will only take a couple thousand off tire life.
For a street driven daily driver, i would shoot for -1.5 front and rear.
For a street driven daily driver, i would shoot for -1.5 front and rear.
09-18-2012, 07:45 AM
#9
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Charlotte, NC
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I think the front control arms are actually pretty economical at $249/pair: http://conceptzperformance.com/Cart/...ion.php?II=827. The Kinetix are very nice for the money and I have been very pleased with mine.
Anything more than -1.7-1.8 degrees in the front is going to wear the inside edges of your tires. Stock spec is -1.3 max so you are -0.8 degrees on the one side. The rear can handle more negative camber before it starts to show wear on the tires hence the stock camber spec in the rear is -2.1 max. So, you are actually out just as bad in the front as you are in the rear.
If you are really worried about tire wear you have a couple options:
1. Get the stock springs back on the car and have it aligned again as that should resolve the large negative camber readings you are having in the front as well as the rear.
2. Get a set of front camber arms installed (very easy to do yourself), and then find a shop that knows how to handle aftermarket suspensions adjustments so you can get your car aligned again.
Anything more than -1.7-1.8 degrees in the front is going to wear the inside edges of your tires. Stock spec is -1.3 max so you are -0.8 degrees on the one side. The rear can handle more negative camber before it starts to show wear on the tires hence the stock camber spec in the rear is -2.1 max. So, you are actually out just as bad in the front as you are in the rear.
If you are really worried about tire wear you have a couple options:
1. Get the stock springs back on the car and have it aligned again as that should resolve the large negative camber readings you are having in the front as well as the rear.
2. Get a set of front camber arms installed (very easy to do yourself), and then find a shop that knows how to handle aftermarket suspensions adjustments so you can get your car aligned again.
Do you have aftermarket toe bolts? if not that could be a big problem. Front camber from the factory is to induce understeer, running -2 up front is really no big deal and will only take a couple thousand off tire life.
For a street driven daily driver, i would shoot for -1.5 front and rear.
For a street driven daily driver, i would shoot for -1.5 front and rear.
Yea I am almost certain I have the matching toe bolts with my camber arms but they were both on the car when I bought it. Are there any markings on the toe bolt that would confirm they are aftermarket? I will check it out if there are.
Yea I understand that camber is not as big of a deal as toe when it comes to tire wear but I plan on keeping my car forever to if I can save 2k miles on every set of tires I buy then I will be very pleased.
Thanks for all the help guys!
09-18-2012, 10:29 AM
#10
Super Moderator
MY350Z.COM
MY350Z.COM
iTrader: (8)
Yea I am almost certain I have the matching toe bolts with my camber arms but they were both on the car when I bought it. Are there any markings on the toe bolt that would confirm they are aftermarket? I will check it out if there are.
Yea I understand that camber is not as big of a deal as toe when it comes to tire wear but I plan on keeping my car forever to if I can save 2k miles on every set of tires I buy then I will be very pleased.
Thanks for all the help guys!
09-18-2012, 12:29 PM
#12
Registered User
Ok I am new(ish) to the forum but nowhere near new to the breed of nissan/datsun world. I bought my 2003 Z last year with 33,000 miles and a mod list that I mostly wanted. It is lowered 2" on eibach springs and has SPC rear camber and toe adjustments. I recently took it to Firestone to get an alignment because I'm a cheap a$$. They offered me a good deal on my alignment so I went ahead and brought it in. Little did I know that it would be such a pain. They told me that they could not get my camber and toe align without one or the other being off. I could almost believe that but the reason they say they couldn't is that I needed aftermarket adjustments...that I have and they used? Here is my print-out. Any comments good or bad are appreciated but I am mostly looking for a shop in the Charlotte, NC area that could do a better job. I just bought 4 Hankook Ventus V12 Evo's and I LOOOOVE them. I just want them to last.
Alignment $130 4 wheel 2006 ZR Michelin Pilot A/S
09-19-2012, 09:43 AM
#14
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Charlotte, NC
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
09-19-2012, 10:02 AM
#15
Super Moderator
MY350Z.COM
MY350Z.COM
iTrader: (8)
That is proper, now the pic of the spring bucket arm!
09-19-2012, 11:49 AM
#18
Super Moderator
MY350Z.COM
MY350Z.COM
iTrader: (8)
Need a pic of the lower arm closest to the back of the car . The pic needs to be of the onboard location
09-19-2012, 03:14 PM
#19
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Charlotte, NC
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
09-19-2012, 04:38 PM
#20
Super Moderator
MY350Z.COM
MY350Z.COM
iTrader: (8)
Thats the stock toe bolt, you need an aftermarket one with more adjustment like http://www.z1motorsports.com/350_g35...oducts_id=4637