Alignment + Camber Question

Idfkman · 10-14-2022, 10:24 AM

I recently moved and have had to subsequently find a shop close to home for alignments and tire mounting etc. Just about all other maintenance I DIY.

I recently had the car aligned at the new shop along with a fresh set of Yokohama ADO8R's (tire rack deal) mounted. They're amazing btw.

I'm running AG 359 wheels
19x10 et 25 265 35
19x9 et 18 245 35

BC BR Coilovers

After the alignment the shop owner showed me that I needed new rear lower control arm bushings which I'm still in the process of researching a best solution for. The car is mostly street driven but will become my AUTOX (and occasional track day) car in the future when I can upgrade to a more performance oriented suspension setup.

After chatting with the shop owner about what setup I was looking for he recommended -2 camber all around for autox and street use.

I've attached the alignment specs.

One thing though that gives me pause after alignment is that the camber setting in the front are completely different. the passenger side has way more negative camber than the driver side. I'm wondering why this is. I'm a bigger guy, 6'3 280 so I'm wondering if they set that up in mind knowing I'm a heavier driver or if it is potentially improperly setup(?)

Any advice? I'm super new to suspension work and autox but I'm hooked now and would love some insight.

Should camber settings be the same at all times?

I'll add pictures of the front camber setups in a 2nd post so my app doesn't crash.

Idfkman · 10-14-2022, 10:25 AM

Pictures of camber setting's on coilovers and wheels.

patsbimmer1 · 10-14-2022, 11:32 AM

Hi. Former technician here. That looks like a printout from a Hunter aligner so that's a good start. Just looking at your current measurements on your sheet everything looks perfect. The eyeball test doesn't look great but there's a number of reasons that could be. I'd have them roll the car again on the rack and get numbers. Don't be alarmed if the individual numbers are off by a couple tenths one way or the other but what you should see is that your total toe, thrust angle and steer ahead stay about the same. If there's a massive swing in your camber from the current numbers my best guess is the bolts weren't tightened sufficiently on the camber plates and it shifted after some driving.

Davisca455 · 10-14-2022, 01:24 PM

^^^
Agreed, the printout looks good, but the eye test is extremely suspicious.

The driver's side tire looks like it's stood up (less negative camber), and the driver's side camber plate looks like it's stood up as well.

(Not sure why the camber plate fasteners weren't installed the same way from side to side?)

I'll add another vote to visit the alignment rack a 2nd time.

10-14-2022, 10:24 AM	#1
Idfkman Lieutenant 473 Rep 468 Posts Drives: F80 M3 Join Date: Sep 2018 Location: Maryland iTrader: (1)	Alignment + Camber Question I recently moved and have had to subsequently find a shop close to home for alignments and tire mounting etc. Just about all other maintenance I DIY. I recently had the car aligned at the new shop along with a fresh set of Yokohama ADO8R's (tire rack deal) mounted. They're amazing btw. I'm running AG 359 wheels 19x10 et 25 265 35 19x9 et 18 245 35 BC BR Coilovers After the alignment the shop owner showed me that I needed new rear lower control arm bushings which I'm still in the process of researching a best solution for. The car is mostly street driven but will become my AUTOX (and occasional track day) car in the future when I can upgrade to a more performance oriented suspension setup. After chatting with the shop owner about what setup I was looking for he recommended -2 camber all around for autox and street use. I've attached the alignment specs. One thing though that gives me pause after alignment is that the camber setting in the front are completely different. the passenger side has way more negative camber than the driver side. I'm wondering why this is. I'm a bigger guy, 6'3 280 so I'm wondering if they set that up in mind knowing I'm a heavier driver or if it is potentially improperly setup(?) Any advice? I'm super new to suspension work and autox but I'm hooked now and would love some insight. Should camber settings be the same at all times? I'll add pictures of the front camber setups in a 2nd post so my app doesn't crash. Attached Images __________________ 10 E90 M3 /// Dinan Intake, X Pipe, Exhaust, Underdrive, 3.62 Diff, Coilovers, Alpine e85 Tune - sold 16 F80 M3 /// MaxPSI 4 Pin, DP, CP, SL Mid-Pipe, TMIC, KW HAS, EU5's, AB Performance Flex Tuned
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10-14-2022, 10:25 AM	#2
Idfkman Lieutenant 473 Rep 468 Posts Drives: F80 M3 Join Date: Sep 2018 Location: Maryland iTrader: (1)	Pictures of camber setting's on coilovers and wheels. Attached Images __________________ 10 E90 M3 /// Dinan Intake, X Pipe, Exhaust, Underdrive, 3.62 Diff, Coilovers, Alpine e85 Tune - sold 16 F80 M3 /// MaxPSI 4 Pin, DP, CP, SL Mid-Pipe, TMIC, KW HAS, EU5's, AB Performance Flex Tuned
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10-14-2022, 11:32 AM	#3
patsbimmer1 Second Lieutenant 173 Rep 280 Posts Drives: E90 SSii M3 Join Date: Oct 2014 Location: North Prairie, WI iTrader: (0)	Hi. Former technician here. That looks like a printout from a Hunter aligner so that's a good start. Just looking at your current measurements on your sheet everything looks perfect. The eyeball test doesn't look great but there's a number of reasons that could be. I'd have them roll the car again on the rack and get numbers. Don't be alarmed if the individual numbers are off by a couple tenths one way or the other but what you should see is that your total toe, thrust angle and steer ahead stay about the same. If there's a massive swing in your camber from the current numbers my best guess is the bolts weren't tightened sufficiently on the camber plates and it shifted after some driving. __________________ 2011 e90 M3 DCT - Current 07 335i Stella sold 97 328i Lola sold 95 325is sold 93 nissan 240sx KA-T sold
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10-14-2022, 01:24 PM	#4
Davisca455 Captain 2208 Rep 865 Posts Drives: 2008 M3 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Davis, California iTrader: (0)	^^^ Agreed, the printout looks good, but the eye test is extremely suspicious. The driver's side tire looks like it's stood up (less negative camber), and the driver's side camber plate looks like it's stood up as well. (Not sure why the camber plate fasteners weren't installed the same way from side to side?) I'll add another vote to visit the alignment rack a 2nd time. __________________ Chris, 2008 E92
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