I'm in process of rebuilding my front suspension and looking for advise on how I should have it aligned when completed. The car is primarily a weekend road driver w/o any "hardcore" competitive racing intentions. With the suspension rebuild coming to completion, here's what I've got going:


Stock A-arms w/Moog offset upper A-arm mounting rod (has the threaded ends and supposed to allow for more camber or caster - now you see why I need help cause I don't even know the difference - alignment spec lingo is new language to me)
QA1 Coil-overs 350lb spring
Alum. head 383 & 5spd.
Polyurethane bushings on frame, A-arms & sway Bar
5-leaf spring on back w/QA1 Adjust. shocks
Subrame connectors
Converting to 3rd Gen PS Box - in process
P215-15-60 tires in front and 275-50s in rear. (would definitely prefer some 17" rims & lower profile tires but will have to be patient for now on that fantasy)
New Moog ball joints, pitman arm, idler arm & tie rods
1" sway bar with poly bushingsI'll be finished in about a week and will be taking to alignment shop and wondering what I should instruct the shop to set specs at?

Thanks in advance to those who are knowlegable in this specific area and can help me!!:thumbsup:

Most of the new upper aftermarket a-arms allow for increased positive caster (lower ball joint in FRONT of upper ball joint). Positive caster is easy to consider by looking at a motorcycle. A standard motorcycle has some positive caster, but a chopper with an extended front wheel has TONS of positive caster. The positive caster will increase front end stability and will also help the car return to center after you make a turn. First gen Camaros had very little positive caster, mostly because manual steering boxes were still quite common then and increasing positive caster means increasing the effort required to turn the steering wheel.

I used Global West upper a-arms. I'll go dig up the specs.......

I called GW and asked them about the alignment specs. They sent me to this page: http://www.globalwest.net/1967-69%20Camaro,%20Firebird,%201968-74%20Nova%20Tubular%20upper%20arm%20instructions.h tm

You could print those out and ask the alignment shop what they thought about optimum settings for your situation.

I had mine done by a reputable shop, and even with the GW upper a-arms they had a very hard time to add in much extra caster (I wanted as much as viable as I have power steering). It was difficult for them to dial it in because every time they changed something, it would affect something else, so it took him twice as long as a "normal" job, lol. I tossed him a $20 tip for taking the time.

If you have power steering, I would dial in as much positive caster as possible, up to the "street" limits of 5 or 5.5 degrees.

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http://www.familycar.com/Alignment.htm
There's a page talking about the alignments terms. I would be sure and know the terms before going to alignment shop!!!!

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Oh, I almost forgot, I think it would be prudent to look at any specs that might have been provided with the custom Moog mounting rod. You may have some limitations or caveats there.

Tell the alignment man to get you as much positive caster as possible, (probably 3 deg positive) and .5 deg negative camber, set toe-in at 1/16". Watch you tires for wear on the inside edges, and if you see any extra wear, reduce camber to 1/4 degree. If you drive a twisty road now and then the wear will be pretty even, if you drive freeways all the time, the lower camber might work out better as far as tire wear.
David

I found my exact specs that the alignment shop set things in July 2006.

Caster: 4.5* Left - 5.2* Right
Camber: 0.8* Left - 0.7* Right
Toe: 3/32" Left - 3/32" Right

I have been very happy with these settings. These are very close to what Dave Pozzi (the guru) recommended above. As a matter of fact, I think Mr. Pozzi answered a similar alignment question that I had a couple of years ago.

Thanks for that Dave Pozzi...............:thumbsup:

Off-topic, but - Hey Dave P., I seem to recall you posting a pic about a ride in a WWII bomber a while back. I took my own ride in one a few months ago. Does this pic look familiar? Imagine looking out there and having a ME-109 hot on your tail!

http://csgbenefits.org/topturret.jpg

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Very Cool Picture Dave!

Yes - thank you David for the recomendations/guidelines!!

Dave - why does your right and left caster settings vary by almost a degree - is that intentional for a specific reason or is that just considered close enough by industry standards?

Thanks,

Very Cool Picture Dave!
..............Dave - why does your right and left caster settings vary by almost a degree - is that intentional for a specific reason or is that just considered close enough by industry standards? ......


The vehicle will steer to the side with the least caster (left). The typical crown on the road will pull your car slightly to the right, therefore the variance in caster is a means to offset the road crown and have your car go (mostly) straight.

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