LEX350BS

I picked up my 2007 Lexus IS350 RWD in August 2014 and the car came with 19" MRR wheels and swift springs. I just swapped the MRR wheels out for the 2012 staggered F sport wheels. I noticed that the MRR wheels tires on the front passenger tire was bald on the inner walls and the tread wear was uneven compared to the rest of the wheels so my thoughts were obviously I may need an alignment.

I am just lowered on swift springs and based on my research swift springs lowers the car like 1 inch. Do you think I need to get a camber kit to get it adjusted at the alignment shop to prevent the uneven tread ware on the new tires?

It's just lowered on springs so I didn't think so but I am new to Lexus and RWD because I have owned Honda's all my life.

I wanted to set up an appointment for an alignment but wanted some input.

Thanks!

LEX350BS

Lots of views and no comments lol. Should I have posted the question elsewhere?

laobo979

iTrader: (5)

You have to be patient to get an answer cause viewing don't mean anything. But if you searched you find your answer so much faster. That being said you''re not that aggressive to need camber kit. What you'll need for the front is Figs engineering lower bushing and when get your car aligned make sure toe is closest to zero as possible.

LEX350BS

Thanks! My other dilemma is I didn't want to pay for an alignment with my current set up because I am going to be lowering the car within the next couple of months with coilovers/camber kits so I wanted to avoid paying for an alignment twice.

I'm just worried that if I don't get an alignment now then within the next couple of months the new tires will start to have the same issue with uneven tread ware.

Which sounds like I have to just pay for the alignment now or just get the coilovers done sooner then I wanted...

WylieKylie

iTrader: (2)

Alignment may or may not help regardless of when or how many times you do an alignment. You need the FIGS bushings described by laobo979 to completely correct the issue.

Knarf916

Are these bushings a must in order for alignment ?

SeanO

iTrader: (1)

SPC ball joints would work fine for you.. I'm in a 2010 IS350 lowered on f-sport springs and recently had them installed to correct 1.5 degrees of negative camber (which is what you have by the sounds of it). I'm on stock 18's mind you but I imagine you'll be fine still with 19's

LEX350BS

Went to the alignment shop just to check and I am at negative 1.6 degrees of camber on the front and -2 in the rear. I think I am just going to hold off on anything until I get my coilovers. I am going with the Megan Racing front camber kit, rear upper camber arms and rear traction arms.

Thanks for your input.

For the folks that have Megan Racing front camber kit, what are your thoughts?

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

^Yeah, if you plan on a complete array of suspension mods, it's best to wait until you have everything installed and the ride height situated before getting your alignment.

WylieKylie

iTrader: (2)

I got a set, installed them a year ago, and haven't thought about them since, just the way this kind of a mod should work. I'll inspect them soon and see if anything funny is going on, but I'm not expecting anything.

The guy who did my alignment had a good opinion of the Megan stuff, and he is accustomed to working on high end sports cars and real race cars. I was surprised he had good things to say about Megan, but it did give me some peace of mind.

LEX350BS

Thanks for the input. Yeah, I would be interested to know an update how they are a year later. I'm sure they are still in good condition.

What is your suspension set up WylieKylie?

I was thinking about getting all the Megan Racing camber kits front and rear. Pair that up with the extreme drop kit BC Racing coilovers 14/12k spring rates.

WylieKylie

iTrader: (2)

Before you get every adjustable arm known to man you need to decide exactly how you want the car aligned and how each arm is going to help with that, then find a shop that is willing to give you what you want. Most shops are going to do more damage than good with every arm on the car being adjustable, and for 99% of applications the only thing you are going to need is the camber arms in front and back. I would suggest the rear toe arms as well, but in most cases they aren't necessary, they just add convenience.

My suspension isn't anything special, I just happen to be an alignment and tire snob. In stock form the alignment is not adjustable and in particular the super soft bushings on the rear ends of the front control arms wear out tires, so I replaced the bushings and added some adjustability in order to let me run more aggressive tires and not wear them out in 3,000 miles.

Right now I've got:
FIGS front LCA bushings
Front Megan Camber arms (rear upper arms)
Rear Megan Camber arms
Rear Megan Toe arms
Rear Megan upper front arms

I'm seriously considering going back to the stock rear upper front control arms as I don't ever really think they will be needed.