1988 Mayfair
Mini Spares Adjustable heavy duty tie rods
Mini Spares Adjustable lower arms
I think I know what is going on, but I want to make sure I’m not missing something.
My last alignment job (at a shop) resulted in the inside of the front tires wearing down after only a few hundred miles. I bought a set of toe/camber/caster plates and discovered the total toe was out of spec. I just fit new track rod ends (genuine, original length). The old TRE had 10 turns each, and using the thread pitch and toe measurements, I calculated I need 7 turns on each side. That seems low for safety, and I have seen people on the forums quote a minimum of 10 turns are needed. Even if 7 isn’t exactly correct, I need less toe, so it will be less than the 10 turns it had before.
The camber measurement is more negative than the book value, but it looks to me like the adjustable arms are at their shortest limit (so I can’t add more pos camber). I bought the adjustable components not for performance, but just for durability and the ability to dial things in. I haven’t seen a quote for the range of camber the adjustable arms are supposed to allow, but I would have thought the standard book value would be within their range. I know negative camber can affect toe, and people talk about needed the longer TRE to accommodate more neg camber.
So…. Am I correct that the limit of the adjustable lower arms won’t get me to book value (what is the most pos/non-negative they will allow camber to be)? If so, is the extra neg camber most likely the cause of low thread engagement of the TRE, and I need the longer TRE? Is there anything else I am missing that could be relevant?
Suspension measurements:
Total Toe: 7/16 out (book value 2/16)
Camber: 1.1 deg neg, both wheels (book value 2 +- 1 pos)
Caster: 1.1 and 2.4 (book value 3 +-1)
I am a bit suspicious of the caster measurement. I have had issues with the repeatability of the measurement, and even after large adjustments, the measurement didn’t change much. I will figure that out after this.