[justpete]

Originally Posted by Maestro

Okay went home and looked at all the numbers and look back in time to some prior alignments here is what I found.

Front Camber on both side did get more negative over time, was around -0.8 on both sides. Now the driver side is -1.6 and passenger side -1.2. However the tire on the passenger side has always been far worse. I did speak to the alignment shop and they said something needs to be done about the negative camber due it being beyond the -0.8 spec. and said there was nothing they could really do. They obviously did not know about the alignment pin. They said they could not see anything wrong with the suspension, but obviously they does not mean anything.

Front Toe is 0.10 on driver side and 0.11 on the passenger side. For the most part it has been set around these numbers these numbers, so base on the comment that 0.05 may be better to address the problem and spec is 0.02 to 0.22 and I am not sure these are correct. I did challenge these at the shop and they said this is what the computer pulls up for the car.

The rears are as follow, Right -1.7 Camber and 0.12 Toe and left is -1.7 camber and 0.08 toe. I know they said they have trouble get the toe to be the same. I have minimal issue with tire wear on rear the center usually wear out at about the same time as the inside edges.

Front Cross Camber is -0.9
Front Cross Caster is -0.3
Front Total toe 0.21

Rear Cross Camber 0.0
Rear Total toe 0.20

I never quite understood those number and how it affected the overall car performance

All this indicates an old car with a worn and likely damaged suspension. It's not possible to get these numbers with a new suspension. Simple as that.

[feuer]

Who the f*** cares about what the computer pulls up for your car? You tell them 0.0 toe all around. Anyhow, since you insist that you have -1.6 and -1.2 (and you assume) reading from shop alignment rack are accurate you need to inspect the suspension components: deformed strut mounts, bent struts, bent spindle/uprights and etc... From to photo posted anyone with very little knowledge will tell you is TOE! You are plowing. Kills your tires, speed, fuel economy. So make sure that the tie rods are OK. And again, I have already told you: go see another shop. The fact that this one can't figure it out is more than self explanatory.

[bNks334]

All your numbers looks fine except, like the shop is saying, you have too much front camber on the drivers side. I wouldn't say your problem is with the toe arms or your toe adjustment.

The differential in front camber is too high (bent strut?). This is causing the cross caster and cross camber... This results in the car pulling to one side and scrubbing more on the other side...

Pop the aluminum alignment pin out on the drivers side and pry the strut tower as far away from the engine bay as you can to dial in some positive camber (there are tons of DIY's on how to do this). Maybe even pop the pin on the passanger side and dial in some Negative camber on that side (move the strut tower TOWARD the engine to add negative camber). Aim to get an even -1.3* or less on both sides. This should even out the front camber and therefore the irregular tire wear as well.

Most alignment shops have no clue how to adjust front camber on a McPherson strut suspension. They don't know that you can simply pop out the aluminum pins on a BMW and move the strut tower.

You'll need to adjust the toe again once you go messing with the camber at the strut tower...

Problem solved.

[yipronny]

Sorry to jack this thread but this is the spec sheet of my recently aligned 335i at a pretty reputable shop around the area....any thoughts?

[bNks334]

Originally Posted by yipronny

Sorry to jack this thread but this is the spec sheet of my recently aligned 335i at a pretty reputable shop around the area....any thoughts?

Looks fine... more importantly the everything being green is that it's even from side to side.

[boro92]

0.21 total toe is a lot of toe for the front axle (for good handling).
I'd start by backing it out.
However, you may also have other issues at play - tension rod bushings, tie rods, ball joints. Make sure the front end has no play. It is not always just the alignment.

[techwhiz]

Also as funny as it sounds pressure too low will cause extreme wear on the insides of the tires because of neg camber.

The tire distorts and by the time you notice the wear there is no going back.
Run them a little hard to reduce wear on the inside edge.

[mweisdorfer]

Originally Posted by Maestro

I posted this in the general section, figure i post it here as well

Has anyone install Caster/Camber Plates on a 335I to help reduce the inner tire wear. I mostly use my 335I as a daily driver and I am getting tired of replacing tires once every 18 months of so (15K to 20K miles). As we know the alignment shops can not help, there is no way to get rid of the negative camber on the 335I unless you change the suspension. I figure the most affective way to do this is a caster camber plate and if I want to track the car in the future I can put in the camber I need and then take it back out.

Is someone has done this, which plates would you recommend using. Ideally I am looking for something which does not require much modification to the actually car like drilling holes and such.

I also read you can remove the alignment pin, most people seem to be doing this to get more negative camber, last time I had the car align they showed I had about -1.6 and the spec seem to show normal is -0.8. If I remove the pins do you think I can get back to a neutral camber.

Your better off putting brand new control arms on the car front and back plus new tie rods.

If you opt for the M3 control arm set for $673 from FCP Euro and Lemforder tie rods, you'll be out about another $120.00 for those. So, maybe $800.00.

Putting camber plates on it is like putting a bandaid on a much larger problem. I think your suspension control arms are gone, if your going through tires that quickly.

Your shocks and struts may even need to be replaced too.