Switching to DA trailing arms and LCAs is coming back to bite me in the ***. The additional 1/2" of track width it created prevents standard alignment equipment from getting a proper reading. I'd like to stick with the shop I'm at, and bringing out the front width to match the rear sounds like a better idea overall.

Opinion time: I don't want to get 4 new wheels, so I'm limited to using 15" Rota Slipstreams. I have +40 offset rims on there now, and switching to +45 in the front would close most of that 1/2" gap (1/2" is 12mm, hopefully close enough to do an alignment) but if I'm switching rims, would going to a 15x7 be a better idea? I understand the effects of alot of the variable going into this, but all togeather I'm alittle lost. I run 195-50s and prefur a neutral balance.

Thoughts?

 

hmm, probably not the best topic sentence in the world. I'm also curious, does anyone know of any stock rims (Honda or otherwise) that have a 35+ or 45+ offset?

 

I dont know what kind of hokey alignment machine you are using but a lot of cars have staggered setups, so you are saying if the front is narrower than the rear of any car the car cant be aligned? i have never heard of that, if that is the case with that machine seek out a newer one, or get a string alignment at a race shop that aligns cars that wont/cant fit on the machine

 

if you want them equal for some reason, see if you can mill the 12mm off of the inside center of the wheel, see how much clearance you have to the caliper, i think you really need a new machine

 

Or you could get some $10 wheel spacers from pep-boys for temporary use while you get the alignment. Put a pair on the back and gain about 1/4" of track width and take them off after you get it aligned.

The most important part of the alignment is that you get your thrust angle as close to zero as possible. The second most important is the rear toe to zero for consistent turning. The third most important is the front toe...either zero or a teeny bit out.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fireant &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Or you could get some $10 wheel spacers from pep-boys for temporary use while you get the alignment. Put a pair on the back and gain about 1/4" of track width and take them off after you get it aligned.

The most important part of the alignment is that you get your thrust angle as close to zero as possible. The second most important is the rear toe to zero for consistent turning. The third most important is the front toe...either zero or a teeny bit out.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I completely forgot about spacers, much cheaper than new rims and they won't mess up my tire rotating. Thanks for the heads up.

I'm not terribly familiar with alignment equipment, but the tech made it out like I'd have to go to a tuning/race shop to have it done, that any "normal" shops wouldn't have anything. The equipment used involved placing pieces of equipment at each wheel, the rear using the an infared beam off of the front sensors to establish toe.


Modified by Deo at 2:43 AM 5/6/2006

 

That's right. And going to a rce shop will also assure that they are doing it right with calibrated equipment. It should cost just shy of $100 to get a race alignment.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fireant &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">That's right. And going to a rce shop will also assure that they are doing it right with calibrated equipment. It should cost just shy of $100 to get a race alignment. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Heh, that's what I'm worried about. I managed to knock my car out of alignment in 3 months (every wheel) so I'm a prime candidate for one of those 3 year programs that I doubt tuning/race shops offer. I don't take my car to the track and use cheap tires so I'm not too worried about the alignment being 100% as long as the car drives straight.

A question about wheel spacers; I go by the "Get what you pay for" theory, but how could you really mess up a round piece of metal with some holes drilled into it? Is this the sort of part you can get a bad deal on?

 

Non-metric spacers are loose and can cause wheel vibration because they are offset. Make sure and get a metric set.