FJ Cruisers of Northern California
Alignment
Hi today I went at Les Schwabs to finally align after I installed the Icon kit. I got the long excursion kit with the UCAs and everything. The result is the following:
Do you think it's OK? He told me he couldn't fix the caster completely. Would you help me check and understand the results of the procedure?
I should also mention that the car "pulls" left a bit. Will this be fixed as soon as the tires get used to this new condition?
Thank you
Alessio
Do you think it's OK? He told me he couldn't fix the caster completely. Would you help me check and understand the results of the procedure?
I should also mention that the car "pulls" left a bit. Will this be fixed as soon as the tires get used to this new condition?
Thank you
Alessio
Views: 26
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by PBn'FJ on
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Everything is in spec except the caster so your tear wear should be normal.
I am surprised that the Icon UCA's don't give more positive caster numbers. I wonder if they have any adjustability. The caster being out of spec will just give you less on center feel.
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Permalink Reply by 5AND5TORM on
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The Icon UCAs are adjustable for caster and camber. A tech that knows what they are doing should be able to get your alignment spot on. You should not have a pull.
I highly recommend that you find a shop that really knows suspension. Any monkey can get the number in spec. A tech that knows what he is doing will get them in spec, then drive the car, then make some tweaks to get it to work right.
Did you have the rear aligned?
I just did adjustable rear links, I matched the length to the stock links and had it aligned. The tech had to add 1/4 inch to right lower.
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Permalink Reply by manoweb on
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Thanks for the hints. According to the sheet I published they did not touch the rear. I was busy with the spare tire fix (that cannot be fixed) so I couldn't check the alignment procedure :(
Where do you go for alignment? I would just like to go to a place where they know what to do. Doesn't matter if I pay a bit more...
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My guy is John at Advanced Suspension Technology in Clovis (849 Hoblitt Ave Clovis, CA (559) 298-7282), that would be a bit a bit of a drive for you. He does lots of lifted and modded trucks because he is next door to Extreme Off Road & Repair.
I did a search on Yelp and found Auto Innovations in Milpitas, http://www.autoinnovations.com/ they have a lot of good reviews from car guys. You might want to call some local 4WD or performance shops to see who they recommend.
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If I knew while I was driving back from SoCal that would have been on route and so easy :(
Now I think I will go back to Les Schwabs and try to explain and have them try to fix their job...
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I went today but I was a bit late and they had a couple of other vehicles to fix so I will go back tomorrow morning. The guy I spoke with had basically no clue and he said that they normally do what they have in the computer, and he does not know if he can adjust the rear... I hope to find somebody more knowledgeable tomorrow.
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If you are interested in trying another shop, this place comes highly recommended in Mountain View.
http://www.customalignment.com/
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I will see what they can do today and then, once I come back from the trip, decide if I need to visit this other shop. Thank you for the suggestion!
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I went there again today and after three hours (they fixed the rear and the back in a more thorough way) and a test drive, this is the result. What do you think? I haven't driven too much (I will tonight) but the numbers are:
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OK so after the quite long drive to and back from the High Sierra, the car is still pulling left. I will probably visit the shop again, last time I've found a knowledgeable guy. What do you think of the numbers above? Why is it pulling? Now I've used the tires almost a thousand miles and this tendency to pull has not vanished...
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Your front left caster is still out of spec, if the caster is different from side to side, the vehicle will pull to the side with the less positive caster. You should have the rear aligned as well.
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Ok so the guy said that caster setting was to compensate for the "pull" but apparently it does not compensate anything.
The guy adjusted the rear (and stayed on it for a good while) but now that I check numbers, compared to the initial settings, I do not understand what he did... what would be a good "target" for the rear settings?
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