Alignment Spec Questions, another alignment thread Options

[John]

I have a few questions that some of you smart people out there might be kind enough to answer for me.

I am wondering how you convert angular toe-in (per factory specs) to inches of toe-in.

I could convert angles to inches if I knew where to measure. Is the toe-in measured at the rim, at the tread, at the sidewall?

Or am I reading the chart from the factory manuals incorrectly?

What are the "factory" settings for:

Front Caster
Front Camber
Front Toe

Rear Camber
Rear Toe


On another note, RIDE HEIGHT.........

The front ride height is measured as the DIFFERENCE between the center of the torsion bar and the center of the wheel rim.

How is the rear ride height supposed to be measured, and what is the 'spec'?????

Thanks for replying.

[J P Stein]

QUOTE (JOHNMAN @ Mar 15 2005, 10:40 PM)

Thanks J P But is it 15" or is it 7.5"???

Neither actually, it's the angle. I could have used any dimension. Your multiplier is tangent of the angle.....which is why they give it to you in degrees. Slope per inch.... the lineal dimension is the offset for a given length. I used 15 inches cause a 15 inch wheel has a flat plane 15 inches wide (the outer rim) to measure on.

If you want 1/16 toe in (total), your alignment guy converts that to degrees...or his machine does.

Camber works the same way.
If you want -2 deg for instance and you're presently at 0, the top mount needs to move inboard. Approx length, ball joint to top mount (WAG) is 18 inches X tangent of 2 deg is .0349=.628.....which is why it's tough to get-2 in front.
Over a 15 inch span on the wheel, it's .52 ....the top of the wheel is inboard that much more than the bottom....slope.
1 deg is .017 slope per inch. Once ya got that, you can get close in working it out in your haid (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/screwy.gif)

Assuming 0 at the rear, the swing arm tube is about 12 inches wide.
Take out .41 inches of shims....if ya got em'.....slope perpendicular to the wheel and the wheel goes with it. (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif)

Lowering the car as much as feasible gives negative camber
for free....at both ends...at the cost of suspension travel...so then ya need stiffer springs to keep it off the bump stops (or raised spindles.... or both), non pliable bushings to hold what you've worked to get.....yada, yada.
We're having fun now, by gawd.