stock suspension; negative camber problem
05-30-2008, 07:59 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2008
Location: pittsburgh, pa, US
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
stock suspension; negative camber problem
I have a 95 civic ex and i went off the road and the right front wheel went over a sharply steep one foot high grass hill (dont ask) anyways, my passenger side front wheel now has about one a half degrees of negative camber and without camber adjustment on this car, im not sure exactly what is wrong. I have been told that if the strut and strut fork are bent that they would cause it but others have told me the steering knuckle is bent that would do it. Any suggestions ???
05-30-2008, 09:01 AM
#3
Banned
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: strathcedar, nsw, australia
Posts: 526
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Re: stock suspension; negative camber problem (95civicex5spd)
With a Mac strut suspension, if the strut is bent then you'll (most probably) have unwanted additional neg camber.
With a double wishbone the 'knuckle' is what is also known as the 'upright', and if this is bent then the affect would be the same as a bent Mac strut (i.e. neg camber).
Note that a double wishbone suspension does have a 'strut', but it is only a spring / damper unit (i.e. a 'coil-over') that serves no locational / geometrical function (unlike a Mac strut where the damper acts to locate the upper part of the suspension and partially defines the geometry), so whether bent or not can have no affect on camber angle, unless it's damaged in such a manner that the ride height is substantially affected (lower) which could cause an increase in neg camber.
To check the knuckle / upright:
Remove the wheel from the undamaged side.
Now remove the cover that hides the nut associated with the upper ball joint (attached with two small bolts).
Now hold or clamp a straight edge against the hub flange (the face where the wheel mates up to the hub) so that the straight edge sticks and points upward.
Measure (with ruler) from the straight edge to the flat machined face at the top of the knuckle (where the nut cover attaches with the two small bolts).
Repeat this process on the other (suspected damaged) side to get a comparitive measurement.
If the measurement on the suspected damaged side is significantly (more than say a couple of millimeters) less than on the undamaged side, then you can assume the knuckle is bent.
This does assume that any damage exists above the hub, but since those parts of the knuckle that are below the hub are very robust compared to the more slender parts above the hub, damage is far more likely to be above the hub than below.
If a Mac strut is bent, then this most probaly means that the damper rod is bent, and the damper needs to be replaced.
With a double wishbone the 'knuckle' is what is also known as the 'upright', and if this is bent then the affect would be the same as a bent Mac strut (i.e. neg camber).
Note that a double wishbone suspension does have a 'strut', but it is only a spring / damper unit (i.e. a 'coil-over') that serves no locational / geometrical function (unlike a Mac strut where the damper acts to locate the upper part of the suspension and partially defines the geometry), so whether bent or not can have no affect on camber angle, unless it's damaged in such a manner that the ride height is substantially affected (lower) which could cause an increase in neg camber.
To check the knuckle / upright:
Remove the wheel from the undamaged side.
Now remove the cover that hides the nut associated with the upper ball joint (attached with two small bolts).
Now hold or clamp a straight edge against the hub flange (the face where the wheel mates up to the hub) so that the straight edge sticks and points upward.
Measure (with ruler) from the straight edge to the flat machined face at the top of the knuckle (where the nut cover attaches with the two small bolts).
Repeat this process on the other (suspected damaged) side to get a comparitive measurement.
If the measurement on the suspected damaged side is significantly (more than say a couple of millimeters) less than on the undamaged side, then you can assume the knuckle is bent.
This does assume that any damage exists above the hub, but since those parts of the knuckle that are below the hub are very robust compared to the more slender parts above the hub, damage is far more likely to be above the hub than below.
If a Mac strut is bent, then this most probaly means that the damper rod is bent, and the damper needs to be replaced.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Halo
Acura RSX DC5 & Honda Civic EP3
1
10-11-2004 02:49 PM
