E46 rear camber/toe setup
Discussion
My brothers 03 318ci went in for an MOT the other day. It needed a new set of rear tyres. Being sceptical as I remember it looking like there was a good 4-5mm left all over the tyre I asked the guy who fitted these new boots quickly if I could have a look. Sure enough on the inner edge there was a band of very high wear. One was right down to the canvas so I'm glad it was caught.
The chap said they can suffer with alignment and to take it somewhere with a propper setup. He said the bushes were a bit loose. Seeing as it had just passed the MOT I think the bushes are unlikely as they would register as play which would fail the MOT. A cracked spring should also have failed the MOT.
I did some rearearch and found these specs
Rear:
Camber: -2.0 to -1.5 degrees
Toe in: 0.13 to 0.23 degrees
The toe is the one that bothers me as the rear toe is very visible and looks more like 5-10 degrees. Camber isn't really that visible as I would expect with a couple of degrees. It is certainly not the excessive ammount that would have it running only on the inside edge. So is getting the aligment checked a good idea? I hear BMWs get through rear tyres but that waer pattern is crazy.
The chap said they can suffer with alignment and to take it somewhere with a propper setup. He said the bushes were a bit loose. Seeing as it had just passed the MOT I think the bushes are unlikely as they would register as play which would fail the MOT. A cracked spring should also have failed the MOT.
I did some rearearch and found these specs
Rear:
Camber: -2.0 to -1.5 degrees
Toe in: 0.13 to 0.23 degrees
The toe is the one that bothers me as the rear toe is very visible and looks more like 5-10 degrees. Camber isn't really that visible as I would expect with a couple of degrees. It is certainly not the excessive ammount that would have it running only on the inside edge. So is getting the aligment checked a good idea? I hear BMWs get through rear tyres but that waer pattern is crazy.
Always worth getting an alignment done, it's cheap enough
BMW KDS best option but expensive.
£40-£100 at somewhere that does 4-wheel alignment - search for your local place and get a 5% discount voucher here
http://www.alignmycar.co.uk/
Do it ASAP (ie today) or the new tyres will be quickly ruined
BMW KDS best option but expensive.
£40-£100 at somewhere that does 4-wheel alignment - search for your local place and get a 5% discount voucher here
http://www.alignmycar.co.uk/
Do it ASAP (ie today) or the new tyres will be quickly ruined
5 to 10 degrees toe and your tyres would be squealing as you drove in a straight line.
The rear control arms bushes do wear and it they're replaced without putting the mounts back in the same place the toe will be changed. A proper 4 wheel alignment is the sensible thing to do shortly after replacement. Not sure the camber is adjustable.
And what brand/model of tyre was it?
The rear control arms bushes do wear and it they're replaced without putting the mounts back in the same place the toe will be changed. A proper 4 wheel alignment is the sensible thing to do shortly after replacement. Not sure the camber is adjustable.
And what brand/model of tyre was it?
phelix said:
5 to 10 degrees toe and your tyres would be squealing as you drove in a straight line.
The rear control arms bushes do wear and it they're replaced without putting the mounts back in the same place the toe will be changed. A proper 4 wheel alignment is the sensible thing to do shortly after replacement. Not sure the camber is adjustable.
And what brand/model of tyre was it?
Those numbers could well be miles out. Its just if you look down on the wheel you can see a very visable toe in situation. I think for that to be noticable it would have to be quite big.The rear control arms bushes do wear and it they're replaced without putting the mounts back in the same place the toe will be changed. A proper 4 wheel alignment is the sensible thing to do shortly after replacement. Not sure the camber is adjustable.
And what brand/model of tyre was it?
The tyres that came off were fairly cheap. I honestly can't remember but were one of the familiar cheap brands. The tyre guy said the cheaper ones can wear oddly. I just think the band that was visable is more than that.
The rear bushes in an e46 aren't the best even when in 'good' condition and nowhere near MOT failure state.
Go to youtube and search for "RTAB under acceleration". You'll find a video of an e36 (same design) and it's quite shocking just how much these move.
Solution is to change them for polyurethane equivalents. I use Powerflex bushes on rear trailing arm and at the rear of the front wishbones. Big improvement, easy to fit, although removing the old bushes can be tricky. You'll need an alignment afterwards but make sure wherever you go can align your rear wheels to the chassis, not just point your fronts relative to the rears which a lot of places do.
Also don't listen to any garages that say the rear can't be aligned. you simply loosen the trailing arm bracket bolts and move as required to adjust the toe, then re-tighten.
Camber doesn't affect tyre wear that much unless you basically drive straight motorways all the time, so your inner wear is likely to be a toe alignment issue or weak RTAB's causing toe alignment issues under acceleration.
Go to youtube and search for "RTAB under acceleration". You'll find a video of an e36 (same design) and it's quite shocking just how much these move.
Solution is to change them for polyurethane equivalents. I use Powerflex bushes on rear trailing arm and at the rear of the front wishbones. Big improvement, easy to fit, although removing the old bushes can be tricky. You'll need an alignment afterwards but make sure wherever you go can align your rear wheels to the chassis, not just point your fronts relative to the rears which a lot of places do.
Also don't listen to any garages that say the rear can't be aligned. you simply loosen the trailing arm bracket bolts and move as required to adjust the toe, then re-tighten.
Camber doesn't affect tyre wear that much unless you basically drive straight motorways all the time, so your inner wear is likely to be a toe alignment issue or weak RTAB's causing toe alignment issues under acceleration.
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