Hey guys , I had to replace a strut on my car only did the passenger front . Yes I know should have done both but funds are low. My question is. I put a Monroe sensa tac on there and took it to get aligned and was told the Camber won't go to spec. It was at .7 with a max acceptability of .2 . It drive fine. Straight and handles good but why wouldnt it go to spec? The old struts bottom hole is elongated. I read that means it isn't from the factory? Is that true? please help I'm not sure if I should let it go or fix it or what. Thanks guys.
front end allignment ? 98 saturn sl2
- Thread starter Dakota1820
- Start date
- Status
Replace the other side and I bet it can hit spec....
What does one side have to do with the other in that respect
Ride height can affect camber, one side has more height than the other right now because of the stronger new gas strut on on side, the sitting low as a result. Also, if I remember correctly, camber is not adjustable on the S-Series.
The stock struts do not have adjustable camber, as you state. If this info gets into the universal alignment overlord computer the computer may demand a camber kit (funny bolt) and a tech might go along with it and not even check or try to loosen the strut to hub bolts and align. In your case you need to loosen the bolts, kick the joint towards the middle of the car, then hold it there with your third hand while you retighten the bolts.
A small camber change will make a significant toe change on this car (I've owned more than a dozen BTW) as well as many similar macpherson strut setups on other cars. If your steering wheel was dead center when you got it together, pre alignment, you probably nailed it.
Positive camber is not really good. Spec is .2 to -1.2 IIRC.
Can you put a bubble level on your tire sidewalls at, oh, 11 and 7 o'clock? The top of the tire should be 1/8-1/4" further in than the bottom.
I like the stock struts more and more when the spindle has to come off to do a wheel bearing. But, if you only do one side at a time, you can use a laser level to get things back the way they were before.
A small camber change will make a significant toe change on this car (I've owned more than a dozen BTW) as well as many similar macpherson strut setups on other cars. If your steering wheel was dead center when you got it together, pre alignment, you probably nailed it.
Positive camber is not really good. Spec is .2 to -1.2 IIRC.
Can you put a bubble level on your tire sidewalls at, oh, 11 and 7 o'clock? The top of the tire should be 1/8-1/4" further in than the bottom.
I like the stock struts more and more when the spindle has to come off to do a wheel bearing. But, if you only do one side at a time, you can use a laser level to get things back the way they were before.
I will try that . The strut I pulled off did have an elongated hole at the bottom. Does that mean its not original. The only negative effect I had with the old strut was when driving over like wash board roads it would rattle a little bit only going slow though. When i pulled the rod on the strut if you moved it up and down just right and not a lot just up and down a little you could feel a little bit of a spot with no resistance only for a split second though. The other old side does this to but i don't have the money for another strut and another alignment
Just get a junkyard strut, it'll be stock and have the spring on it too, making life easier.
Stick a laser level on your front tire at 4 and 8 oclock and shoot the laser at the pavement near the bulges of your rear tires. Should miss outside by ~1/2" on both sides with the steering wheel straight.
Even if it's not, it's your baseline with your current alignment.
As you tweak camber towards negative, your front wheels will toe out. The laser will magnify any toe.
If you adjust camber (and, as a result, toe), put the tire back on, then roll the car back and forth to unload the suspension. Re-measure.
I yanked my stock struts at 175k, they weren't noisy or completely blown, but I figured they'd had enough. Got a set of four KYBs off ebay.
Stick a laser level on your front tire at 4 and 8 oclock and shoot the laser at the pavement near the bulges of your rear tires. Should miss outside by ~1/2" on both sides with the steering wheel straight.
Even if it's not, it's your baseline with your current alignment.
As you tweak camber towards negative, your front wheels will toe out. The laser will magnify any toe.
If you adjust camber (and, as a result, toe), put the tire back on, then roll the car back and forth to unload the suspension. Re-measure.
I yanked my stock struts at 175k, they weren't noisy or completely blown, but I figured they'd had enough. Got a set of four KYBs off ebay.
Wouldn't a junnkyard strut be just as bad as mine probably . am I wrong to assume that
The new gas charged strut won't do jack squat concerning ride height.
So what is the camber for each side? Are you pos or neg?
Slotting the strut is a great way to even things up.
Cars used to be adjustable, and now they are not nearly so. There is no crime with slotting. Avoid thin 'crash bolts' as a fix.
Another less known technique is to loosen the subframe, and pry it over, then re tighten. This can even out problem settings.
So what is the camber for each side? Are you pos or neg?
Slotting the strut is a great way to even things up.
Cars used to be adjustable, and now they are not nearly so. There is no crime with slotting. Avoid thin 'crash bolts' as a fix.
Another less known technique is to loosen the subframe, and pry it over, then re tighten. This can even out problem settings.
It's suppose to be .2 positive and its .7 it drives fine but I don't want to wear out tires. My mechanic friend said they should have slotted the new strut to make it be in spec and that they were just lazy. They wanted to charge me 40 bucks for a special bolt and that seemed odd to me . I gave them 80 bucks for a four wheel alignment I didn't think I'd have to pay extra for a Camber adjustment.
Originally Posted By: chevyboy14
It's suppose to be .2 positive and its .7 it drives fine but I don't want to wear out tires. My mechanic friend said they should have slotted the new strut to make it be in spec and that they were just lazy. They wanted to charge me 40 bucks for a special bolt and that seemed odd to me . I gave them 80 bucks for a four wheel alignment I didn't think I'd have to pay extra for a Camber adjustment.
I had this exact problem when I took my car in for an aligment. I finally got a good alignment done after I took my car to the (now ex) Saturn dealer. Your camber adjust is built into the struts. Nothing needs to be slotted, apparently they just have no idea. The first place I went put a camber kit on my car too, which I LOL'd about. It is not necessary. For the record I had 3 Saturn S-series and replaced struts on 2 of them.
It's suppose to be .2 positive and its .7 it drives fine but I don't want to wear out tires. My mechanic friend said they should have slotted the new strut to make it be in spec and that they were just lazy. They wanted to charge me 40 bucks for a special bolt and that seemed odd to me . I gave them 80 bucks for a four wheel alignment I didn't think I'd have to pay extra for a Camber adjustment.
I had this exact problem when I took my car in for an aligment. I finally got a good alignment done after I took my car to the (now ex) Saturn dealer. Your camber adjust is built into the struts. Nothing needs to be slotted, apparently they just have no idea. The first place I went put a camber kit on my car too, which I LOL'd about. It is not necessary. For the record I had 3 Saturn S-series and replaced struts on 2 of them.
The tech that was doing my alignment said he tried to move it and it wouldn't give enough slack. I didn't see him do [censored] and I was watching most of the time.
They probably didn't even try to loosen the strut bolts and align the camber. Most of them will not adjust anything but toe, but technically you are paying for the camber to be adjusted as necessary.
The good news is it doesn't seem like the cross camber is off enough to cause an issue and little extra postive camber doesn't usually seem to wear tires as bad as excess negative camber. Or at least .7+ camber that doesnt cause a pull shouldn't wear the tires much if any.
The good news is it doesn't seem like the cross camber is off enough to cause an issue and little extra postive camber doesn't usually seem to wear tires as bad as excess negative camber. Or at least .7+ camber that doesnt cause a pull shouldn't wear the tires much if any.
Without an adjustment, there is not any real room for adjustment in the strut bolts.
Like I said, avoid the skinny crash bolt fix and just slot the strut a bit.
Camber and then toe can be set.
Getting the sides EVEN is more important to me than 1/2 deg of camber for a civilian street car.
Like I said, avoid the skinny crash bolt fix and just slot the strut a bit.
Camber and then toe can be set.
Getting the sides EVEN is more important to me than 1/2 deg of camber for a civilian street car.
I bought a Camber bolt and was guna do it today. And loosened it up and he didn't touch it I pushed it In and it gave me my Camber adjustment I did the other to. They are now about .2 negative. I wanted a hair of negative Camber. It still needed a toe adjustment to. The guy didn't do a good job I used a level and a tape measurer and its straight enough now that itll drive itself and follow the road
Originally Posted By: chevyboy14
I bought a Camber bolt and was guna do it today. And loosened it up and he didn't touch it I pushed it In and it gave me my Camber adjustment I did the other to. They are now about .2 negative. I wanted a hair of negative Camber. It still needed a toe adjustment to. The guy didn't do a good job I used a level and a tape measurer and its straight enough now that itll drive itself and follow the road
Good work.
The reason I don't prefer camber bolts is that they are skinnier, and often with less clamping force than stock.
A neutral alignment will follow road crown a bit - left and right equally.
I bought a Camber bolt and was guna do it today. And loosened it up and he didn't touch it I pushed it In and it gave me my Camber adjustment I did the other to. They are now about .2 negative. I wanted a hair of negative Camber. It still needed a toe adjustment to. The guy didn't do a good job I used a level and a tape measurer and its straight enough now that itll drive itself and follow the road
Good work.
The reason I don't prefer camber bolts is that they are skinnier, and often with less clamping force than stock.
A neutral alignment will follow road crown a bit - left and right equally.
- Status
Similar threads
