Modded Camber Suggestions
#11
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Originally Posted by ktlocklear' post='815732' date='Mar 13 2009, 03:51 PM
Yeah, that would make a pretty huge difference in tire wear. On my Nissan, the rear camber is -2.9 on each side.......and it too eats up the inside edges and quickly. Since there is no more adjustment on the rear camber, I'm pretty much screwed unless I raise the car back up :thumbsdown: Only thing i've been able to do is rotate the tires every 1500-2000 miles, which you can't do, I would assume (staggered).....and another thing that an alignment guy told me to do was to run a few psi less in the rear tires, which has seemed to help slow the wear down some too...not sure how that works though ![Blink](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/blink.gif)
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#12
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Originally Posted by Phantom Mark' post='815743' date='Mar 13 2009, 11:09 AM
Dropping the pressure is allowing the footprint of the tyre to spread more, making the inside edge less focussed / pinpointed ![Wink](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/wink.gif)
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#13
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When I used to have my xi aligned due to my "issues" they always set the rears at -2.00. That was spec for the car, but I always thought it seemed a bit aggressive looking to the eye. The rears always looked so slanted in. I'd follow that chart Gene put up....sounds like a good alternative.
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As for alignment, to make sure your "toe" is set correctly.
While the camber eats tires, improper toe eats tires WAY FASTER than camber.
I'd say don't go any lower than -1.5 on rear camber and use OE toe measurement should be a good compromise.
While the camber eats tires, improper toe eats tires WAY FASTER than camber.
I'd say don't go any lower than -1.5 on rear camber and use OE toe measurement should be a good compromise.
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Originally Posted by DrLev99' post='815990' date='Mar 13 2009, 02:18 PM
When I used to have my xi aligned due to my "issues" they always set the rears at -2.00. That was spec for the car, but I always thought it seemed a bit aggressive looking to the eye. The rears always looked so slanted in. I'd follow that chart Gene put up....sounds like a good alternative. ![Thumbsup](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/thumbsup.gif)
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Well it is a good alternative, and it seems the only alternative! I just got back from the alignment shop, and it seems the car is still pretty close to specs (-2.1 left and -1.8 right) from when it was aligned a year ago. However the only problem is he tells me he cant adjust the camber out w/o a camber kit! He said it was not adjustable
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I dont think my guy is lying to me, as he's not trying to sell me a kit or tires, he told me I could go purchase one on-line some where and bring the kit in and he will install it and realign the car.
Can anyone confirm whether or not you can adjust the camber out w/o a kit??? I mean I would assume you cant adjust it to zero w/o a kit, but there should be some play in the camber, no? Has anyone else used a rear camber kit, any recommendations on a brand???
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here's the other member I remember that adjusted the camber himself..
http://forums.e60.net/index.php?s=&sho...st&p=663029
http://forums.e60.net/index.php?s=&sho...st&p=663029
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My mechanic had no issues getting the rears into spec, but the fronts gave him a problem. I know he removed some camber pins from the struts up front, but not sure if that can be done in the rear.
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Originally Posted by DrLev99' post='816052' date='Mar 13 2009, 03:55 PM
My mechanic had no issues getting the rears into spec, but the fronts gave him a problem. I know he removed some camber pins from the struts up front, but not sure if that can be done in the rear.
Well I just got off the phone with Will at Bav Auto and he says this is a pretty common problem and that the camber should be about -.5 to -1.0 max in order to save the tire wear. He was telling me that when our cars are dropped even lower about -2 is about as high as can be brought out w/o a camber kit, he says there's very little adjustment by BMW because they dont like the suspension to be re-tuned. Anyway I was able to buy a K-Mac camber kit (same as what my shop recommended, go figure) and Will says this should solve the issue, no problem.
So I guess I just bought the bullet and hope for the best! I just hate that I had to burn through a set of tires to learn this lesson, or I would have had the kit installed last year!!!
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Originally Posted by GENEaTALS' post='816048' date='Mar 13 2009, 03:52 PM
here's the other member I remember that adjusted the camber himself..
http://forums.e60.net/index.php?s=&sho...st&p=663029
http://forums.e60.net/index.php?s=&sho...st&p=663029
I am going to PM him to see how he "dialed" down the camber
#20
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I know your frustration really well. My M5 ate up its rear PS2s in just 7000 miles with camber set at -2.3 by Dinan. Unfortunately toward the end of those tires' 7-month existence, the camber sagged even more to -2.8 and the toe was out of spec. I blame the settling of the new Dinan suspension for that. Plus I don't drive aggressively (WOT, redline shifting, powersliding) 95 percent of the time. Now on its second set of PS2s, I didn't want to get another rear set in 7 months. So I hit up a Dinan recommended alignment shop that does laser-guided alignment 10 miles from Dinan HQ. Even with Dinan suspension on my car, they were able to set the rears at -1.3 without a camber kit. So now, I should be able to get (roughly) twice the mileage out of these new tires vs. the first set. Although the rears aren't in BMW spec, my M5 feels just as grippy and responsive driving through some aggressive canyon roads. When one rear PS2 costs almost $500, I'll trade within-spec for out-of-spec any day.