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View Full Version : Alignment Question Please Help!!!!!



qqbennyqq
11-14-2003, 10:04 PM
Hi , I have a 97 c280 with number 1 pads all around with brabus springs.. im goin to be putting on brabus mono V 18x8.5 with 225/40/18 tires. how should i do the alignment? will the alignment shop know what to do? i hope to save treadwear and improve handling. is there a number i need? or do i just it to 0?
please help

thanks

speedybenz
11-15-2003, 11:34 AM
Well alignment spec vary quite a lot depending on what you want.

But I think some good numbers are front camber -1.5, toe 1/16" in. In the front try to get as much caster as possible.

Rear camber -1.0, toe 1/8" in.

JRE320
11-15-2003, 01:54 PM
I agree with Jeff. ;)

J Irwan
11-15-2003, 05:49 PM
However,


if this is your C280 you're trying to get alignment then good luck

W202 chassis don't have any adjustment for chamber adjustment.

Mercedes sell chamber bolt to help adjust the chamber, but it is very limited.

Or you could get some custom rear arm that is adjustable that way the chamber on the rear can be adjusted.
(Speedybenz have the courtesy to make us some, I am sure you could contact him for this adjustable rear chamber arm :) )

However, you'd still have some problem to correct the front chamber after you lowered the car..


In the past have visited 3 different shop to get my car aligned especially the chamber but all them told me that nothing I could do....(I visited 3 different shop since at firts I didnt believe the what the 1st shop told me, so I went ahead to get another 2nd opinions)



Regardz,

jnolte
11-15-2003, 11:58 PM
u got pics of your car?? sounds nice

manny
11-16-2003, 05:19 PM
jnolte

Was just looking at a nice 1999 C 43 at the local M-B dealer.
It has all the goodies, @ 34 k miles on it for @ $ 28 k..
It's in Canada though.

Oh, and it's Magma Red. !

jnolte
11-16-2003, 05:22 PM
Originally posted by manny
jnolte

Was just looking at a nice 1999 C 43 at the local M-B dealer.
It has all the goodies, @ 34 k miles on it for @ $ 28 k..
It's in Canada though.

Oh, and it's Magma Red. !

thanks mang i will look into it:)

DougandhisC280
11-18-2003, 07:26 AM
There is camber adjustment. It just doesn't get all the way back to spec after lowering the car.

J Irwan
11-18-2003, 08:55 AM
Originally posted by DougandhisC280
There is camber adjustment. It just doesn't get all the way back to spec after lowering the car.


I don't know who told you that..

There is no chamber adjustment on W202 chassis one the car is lowered. (same as W208CLK)

I asked my dealer twice, I even asked to talk the mechanic directly.
And I went to 3 different alignment shop.

That's why mercedes sell chamber bolt for alignment purpose , but then thats only for the front.

My E36 3 series doesn't need any chamber kit, since the chamber is adjustable after the car is lowered (granted the adjustment that can be made is limited, but enough to get the chamber to be "within the spec")
W202 has none....





Regardz,

Renn 208
11-18-2003, 09:01 AM
Okay so to clarify, for the 202 208 210 chassis, there is no "camber adjustment" per se from MB. There is, however, a "camber repair bolt" that is available - but making adjustments to this bolt changes more than just camber. And as stated before, there is no camber adjustment part available from MB for the rear.

DougandhisC280
11-18-2003, 09:25 AM
First off, it's camber, not chamber.

Second: I watched NTB adjust my camber from -2.7 degrees to -1.9 degrees without the correction bolt. There is enough play in the suspension to achieve adjustments without the bolt.

qqbennyqq
11-18-2003, 10:01 AM
ok guys tahnks for all the help. but the question is .. my car was lowered about 2 month ago at sprewell racing with the brabus springs and number 1 pads.. i didnt do any allignment.. because i wanted to wait for the springs to sit in and car to get lower at the same time wait on my wheels.. now i am goin to be gettin teh wheels very soon.. should i get alignment? or should i not? what do i do?

J Irwan
11-18-2003, 12:12 PM
Originally posted by DougandhisC280
First off, it's camber, not chamber.

Second: I watched NTB adjust my camber from -2.7 degrees to -1.9 degrees without the correction bolt. There is enough play in the suspension to achieve adjustments without the bolt.


Thanks for the correction I didn't realize I spelled it wrong until I re-read it again, and I am too lazy to edit my post :p


now I don't know what the NTB do, to be able to adjust the chamber, but I even have my car on the hoist so that the tech can take a look at it..

since I have manual for W202, front the suspension design , it doesn't seem to have any camber adjustment as well..


(PS: we are talking about W202/W208 chassis right, not W203..?? )


Regardz,

Renn 208
11-18-2003, 02:31 PM
J,

You're right in that there' nothing built into the design of the car to adjust for camber anywhere. So to make any kind of adjustment with MB parts only, you would have to have camber repair bolts installed.

There are two ways to get the camber repair bolt:

1. Buy it from the dealership, parts dude whatever

2. Within a year of purchase, slam the car as you like then take the car in for your free alignment. When the tech discovers you're out of spec, they will use the camber repair bolt.

Things to keep in mind:

-adjusting the camber repair bolt changes both camber and caster at the same time. Camber is not adjusted alone.

-If you got the bolts yourself, it would be quite a bit of trial and error to get to the right spec as adjustments are based soley on symptoms rather than the end alignment spec.

This all goes for the fronts only.

This is why we all await speedybenz, for he bringeth the magic solution to all of your camber needs.

J Irwan
11-18-2003, 03:08 PM
And for the rear, qqbennyqq


you could search on this forum for speedybenz camber arm..


he basically machine custom adjustable rear arm to replace the "fixed" OEM one.

That way you could adjust the rear camber to avoid "excessive negative camber" ;)



Regardz,

DougandhisC280
11-18-2003, 03:36 PM
Thanks for the correction I didn't realize I spelled it wrong until I re-read it again, and I am too lazy to edit my post


now I don't know what the NTB do, to be able to adjust the chamber, but I even have my car on the hoist so that the tech can take a look at it..

You did it again!!!:shock:

I was told the correction bolt only adjusts the camber +/- .3 degrees. So you can't slam the car to much unless you get the 600 dollar K-Mac camber kit.

Renn 208
11-18-2003, 04:16 PM
Originally posted by DougandhisC280
You did it again!!!:shock:

I was told the correction bolt only adjusts the camber +/- .3 degrees. So you can't slam the car to much unless you get the 600 dollar K-Mac camber kit.


I don't know how to be any clearer about this but:

SPEEDYBENZ has all the camber adjustment that you could ever want. Yay more neg camber!

J Irwan
11-18-2003, 04:45 PM
Originally posted by DougandhisC280
You did it again!!!:shock:

I was told the correction bolt only adjusts the camber +/- .3 degrees. So you can't slam the car to much unless you get the 600 dollar K-Mac camber kit.


Like I said earlier Speedybenz make adjustable rear arm (so you can adjust the camber) not some bolt kit..


Regardz,

speedybenz
11-18-2003, 05:02 PM
As J Irwin and Renn208 have been saying I make new custom Camber Arms for the W202, 208, 210 that replace the stock rear camber arms.

These new arms allow you to adjust the camber in the rear back to stock or as far as +10 to -10 degrees camber.

Again this is for the rear only at this time. I am working on a system to fix the front camber.

The custom arms are easy to install and use the stock bolts and are made of the best quality parts available.

Jeff

DougandhisC280
11-18-2003, 06:03 PM
And what are you charging for this free camber kit?

Denlasoul
11-18-2003, 06:15 PM
Read me first (http://www.club202.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2052)
Now read me (http://www.club202.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=2030)
Lastly, read me (http://www.club202.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=2063)

qqbennyqq
11-19-2003, 10:04 PM
ok guys thanks for everything.. but after looking at the price for new camber bolts.. i dont think im willing to cough up another couple hundred bucks on my vehicle.. i rather just replace tires more and plus i dont need to take corners fast as hell because i do have the stock shocks along with teh brabus springs so i dont have the "supurior" handling. well guys 1 last question is .. if i dont buy camber bolts or anything .. should i still go to a alignment shop and let them do what they can? and what type of measurement should i tell them .. should i tell them to do whatever or is there a specific i should tlel them?

thanks

qqbennyqq
11-19-2003, 10:08 PM
and what is the differnce between camber and toe?

Renn 208
11-20-2003, 04:47 AM
camber is the wheel's attitude in reference to the verticle line. Put another way, if the top of the wheel is closer to the center of the car than the bottom, that's negative camber.

Toe is the wheel's attitude in reference to the head to tail line. Toe in would look like this /---\ from on top of the car and toe out \----/

If you want a better look at it, click here (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/general/align.htm)

speedybenz
11-20-2003, 09:21 AM
AJ,

That is a nice reference on alignment. I had not read that one before.

Jeff

qqbennyqq
11-22-2003, 10:42 PM
thanks alot renn! big help ! so can u please tell me what i should do? i just twant to maximize tread wear .. i dont need performance

Denlasoul
11-22-2003, 10:52 PM
Originally posted by qqbennyqq
i just twant to maximize tread wear .. i dont need performance

You mean MINimize tread wear. :)

qqbennyqq
11-22-2003, 11:14 PM
yes im sorry ,my mistake. MINIMIZE

Renn 208
11-22-2003, 11:23 PM
Originally posted by qqbennyqq
thanks alot renn! big help ! so can u please tell me what i should do? i just twant to maximize tread wear .. i dont need performance

just stick to getting your car aligned to factory specs (or go with +.5 camber)

And since tread wear is paramount to you, do not overlook your tire pressures. Checking for proper pressure on a regular basis can make a huge difference in treadwear.

qqbennyqq
11-23-2003, 09:41 AM
thanks!

merc_lover
11-23-2003, 03:11 PM
would i have these camber problems if i went with koni/bilstein shox, h&R sprins and 18" wheels? i just want to lower her a bit, not slam her.
thanks.

Denlasoul
11-23-2003, 03:15 PM
It depends. I am currently running the H&R/Bilstein/18" on my C43 and do not really have major camber problems. I was told I am running #1 #2 spring pads, but I think it may be #2 #3.

Wear on my tires is good. I have had this setup for over a year and about 8K miles.