DMPesso

So I got all my my tie rods changed and the driver side rear wheel bearing and the alignment was reading the front caster is good before he aligned it then the caster came completely off when he was done and also the rear camber is showing off now which I'm thinking could be from them changing the wheel bearing? This doesn't make sense to me, and I had my father pickup the car for me so I couldn't get an explanation from the mechanic why the caster changed. Can someone tell me what would cause negative caster in the first place and what could possibly be bent and what could cause it to go negative after aligning it? And is it possible for the camber to go negative in the rear after them changing the wheel bearing. They were having some issues at first getting the wheel back on so who knows.

Mr Jokster

iTrader: (8)

Did you bring this to the attention of the guy aligning your car? It shouldnt be negative like that, he just did a poor job... Unless he couldnt correct it anymore, but by the figures, he added more negative camber. Dude just messed up. Nonetheless, the operator should have explained what the results were and what needed to be done to correct it, not just hand you the paper and let you go. Seems like a horrible shop.

DMPesso

It looks like the caster went out after he tried to align the camber. But the rear camber is bad on the side they changed the bearing on. What could that be? I have the worst luck :-(

DMPesso

I had my father pickup the car because he works there I have to go speak to him after work on Monday but I would rather get some advice and know what I'm talking about before I go there and complain because that is a little weird it went negative

Mr Jokster

iTrader: (8)

On a different note, if I'm not mistaken, it takes over 3* of camber to make significant wear on the tires... I could be wrong though. As for the caster, its not adjustable on our cars, but it doesnt create any wear on the tires, it'll just make your car pull to the left or the right.

DMPesso

So your saying the camber in the back and caster in the front won't cause any pulling? I feel a slight drift to the left but it's not too bad. But is the rear camber something that can go bad after replacing the wheel bearing or could something else be bent in the back causing that? Also what should I say to the mechanic when I go back on Monday because he will try to make it seem like it's normal the caster went out when he adjusted the others.

Mr Jokster

iTrader: (8)

Reread it, caster doesnt cause wear but WILL cause pulling

This is what caster does to the position of your wheels:







All your questions will be answered on Monday, noone can tell you anything that is wrong with your car without looking at it, its impossible. You're asking people to guess and point out any of many things that can cause it, its not gonna help anything. You need to go in on Monday, ask for the guy who did the work on your car and ask him why the camber wasnt corrected and actually made worse. No need to ask about the caster, nothing can be done about that other than maybe changing the bushings, but that too can still be a toss up.

lexo98

iTrader: (2)

You can have some negative camber and still be within specs. You gotta take it back and have him get it all in the green or tell you what other parts you need to replace. I'm lowered on coilovers and for some reason only needed to replace one camber bolt on the right rear to fix my problem

DMPesso

This is what I am saying. I want to know what could possibly cause the caster and camber to go out like that? Bolts? Arms? What it seems like is that he tried to bring down the camber too much which in turn made the caster negative because the caster was perfectly fine until he messed with the camber and everything. I'm gonna go back on Monday or Tuesday and see what he says about that but of course he's gonna deny it and say there's nothing he can do caster isn't a adjustable blah blah. I just wanted to go there having a educated response like no the caster isn't adjustable but it went negative because you tried to make the camber too positive. I'm not asking for someone to tell me what's wrong with my car without seeing it. Just what are the possibilities that can cause this?

DMPesso

It seems too good to be true that just changing a bolt would fix the issue

DMPesso

What I'm trying to figure out is if I can tell him the caster is off because you adjusted the camber too much. And what about the rear camber is there anything he could have done about that?

- I just don't understand how adjusting the camber can throw off the caster so much that was almost perfect before that

Mr Jokster

iTrader: (8)

You're putting too much thought into this, just go in and tell him to fix the camber in the rear, thats all. Caster changes when other adjustments are made, plain and simple. If it bothers you so much, then change the caster bushings and see if it fixes it. Your car is 14 years old, the parts are very old and worn, you have to expect many misalignment's. Yes one bolt can fix what was mentioned above.

If you really need to understand alignment and its components, then I suggest google searching and research everything to understand how a cars suspension works. its something I've done and something many others have done.

DMPesso

Sorry I just want to be walking in there knowing what I'm talking about. I thought the rear camber isn't adjustable? Are you saying it is? And the caster arms were changed about 2 years ago.

Mr Jokster

iTrader: (8)

Yes its correctable, heres the bolt:



As for the caster, everything works together so unless everything is brand new, discrepancies are possible.

DMPesso

So he couldn't have adjusted the rear camber on his own ? (I guess I don't have to tell him he did anything wrong) is it always the bolt or can it be an arm or something else? Thank you for answering all my questions.