CLRH2O

Many of us here lower our SC's. These are just the facts. We all show pictures; we all talk about the ride comfort, our settings for rebound damping and height, which hub centric adapters we used, which wheels we choose and why along with numerical specs on our perfect tires to suit the look or application that was needed at the time......

But the one thing I hardly EVER hear anyone talk about is how these settings and parts affected their 500-600 dollars worth of rubber after 3 months, 6 months or a year of driving on them.

Now and again you'll see some pics with a vague mention of "here's my wheels after a few months" showing horrendous inside tread wear, but these quick posts never include enough info on camber settings and all of the other myriad items that factored into what the pictures show and why the tread will wear this way or that.

To help illustrate what I'm looking for in terms of user experience and images and technical data to explain it all in each person's experience, I will use one of the scant few examples you can find on our SC boards here. This comes from in fact one of our own mods (who I have to send a personal thank you to myself) who showed what his wheels looked like after a few months. I think many of you might have heard of him as he's the one who gave us the ****Official Wheel & Tire Fitment Guide for SC300/SC400****. newyorksc! In fact nysc, if you want to add your camber data to this thread seeing as you already have pictures and the otehr specs which contributed to what we see in your poor tires pictures it would be a great boon

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=290699


So, those of you with other pictures, data and stories, please…. do tell

BLK13X

I can't remember the alignment specs off hand (since it was done in July last year), but the tyre wear is virtually even (and I've had these tyres on my car since July as well). The stock camber adjustment was enough for my car.

Yokohama DNA GP tyres (235/35/19, 265/30/19).

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

what were teh alignment specs? it would be great if someone can share.

Baoser

my rear tires dont last for *****...they wear down 3 times as fast as my fronts and I don't do no sliding...but i guess on ramps and off ramps own me...

I am within spec for camber...so its even wear...just wearing down too fast...

18x9
Falken FK452, 245/40

18x10
FK452 265/35

LexAnt

iTrader: (2)

I'm on my S03's still and I've had them on since 10/22/05.

245/35/19
285/30/19

also the car is a DD. I've put on ~30k miles (125k miles odo?) or more, I forgot the mileage I had when I first put on the tires. I'm at 155k miles.

The alignments specs I've been using are:
camber - -1.0
toe - 1/32

BLK13X

I can't remember off the top of my head, but when it comes around to alignment time (usually once a year for me ) I'll ask for a read out, can't find my old one for the life of me.

Oh, and the car is approx. 2.0" and 1.5" lower than standard height.

kyoso23

After ripping through $1300 in tires in about 6k miles, I installed a Daizen camber kit and got an alignment that is close to the stock settings. I bought the same tires again (NItto 555's) and now have about 20k on them and they are wearing almost perfectly even.

I am lowered on Espiler ASD springs and Tokico Blues.

CLRH2O

kyoso - happen to have the number data on the alignments? Also what is your lowered amount in inches / mm - and do you have pictures of your car.

Pictures with the data are a must Thank you for chiming in.

5sp_jzz30

iTrader: (2)

i buy used tires for the summer and run as much camber as godly possible. when the tires wear out i buy a new set. once winter comes i get it realigned to stock and throw on my winter tires. i have a guy that does my alignments for virtually free and to my specs every time

as far as summer specs i will run soon: 2-3* camber(or as much as i can get out of it being super slammed) front, 1.5-2* camber in the rear, 8-10* caster front, and 0* toe. the back mostly stays stock except for camber.

if you want your car to handle you have to pay to play. my buddy runs almost 3.5* of camber on his STI and still complains. tires go like toilet paper but its worth in the end.

kyoso23

I wish I did, but I don't. I go to a place that does everything by hand with plates and sheat. Old hot rodder dudes that keep it real. He told me that he got it as close to stock settings as he could and then he added just a tad back into the rear. The front is perfect. I am lowered on Espiler ASD springs, Tokico Blues, Daizen camber kit, and shaved/rolled fenders. I really only have decent pictures of after...
235/35/20 front
275/30/20 rear

lxsdude

It's pretty unrealistic to expect to get several varied alignment specs and use that data to save your tires unless you get the exact same setup. Hub-centric rings are just to keep your wheels centered on the hub. That has nothing to do with alignment.

I also only see people talking about camber. Now here's the REAL facts...

Toe-out in the rear will wear the inside of your tires out MUCH faster than a lot of negative camber. It will also make your car feel *twitchy* when you get new tires since it will be wanting to track quite a bit. There is no magic numbers to the alignment specs. Just don't be a complete ricer and half-*** it your self.

Make sure you get your car aligned properly and you'll be fine. Pay attention to the other 2 settings aside from camber if they're adjustable.

CLRH2O

lxsdude, I've read back through what the other's have posted here and cant find any reference to "Hub-centric rings" other than you typing it yourself. That aside, I would have assume we all know these have nothing to do with alignment - but I guess, thanks for slapping your forehead about it just in case?

And although yes, while it's somewhat unrealistic to think that one person's settings are perfect for another's setup if not exactly the same, All SC's DO have the same suspension parts and most often the only aftermarket hardware that is substantially different from the next is the coil over shock assembly in its myriad forms. And even that item is bolted to the same locations as the stock hardware which makes even generalized numbers acceptably relevant in my opinion. If nothing else, the amalgam of MANY people's numbers will provide a good baseline from which to work if nothing else. Also, (and those who know more than I - as there is ALWAYS someone who knows more than the next person - feel free to correct me if I'm entirely wrong in this next statement) "Make sure you get your car aligned properly" means entirely different things related to the settings themselves between a stock SC vs. a lowered SC...... For that matter between an SC lowered 1" vs an SC lowered 2" vs an SC lowered 3" ect. A *proper* alignment for a stock SC would have an entirely different group of camber, castor and toe settings across the board than a *proper* alignment for an SC lowered 3" right?

Your call to action that people *also* give toe and caster settings however is completely on point and I agree everyone should give those numbers as well if they have the ability Let’s consider this a given for anyone new contributing to this thread.

I remember a few moths ago you chastising me for posing questions that ”a person with experience working on cars wouldn’t ask” and although I am certainly no certified mechanical technician, I do get by working on all my own cars so I’m not entirely shooting from the hip when I ask for info on each new subject. We all learn as we go right? In that same spirit, since your profile shows you as a 1995 SC400 owner and having been here on the forums since Oct of ’06 (how on earth do you only have 17 posts in all this time?! ), if you are lowered as well - please, provide your specs in this thread as the more data available the better. Thank you lxsdude.

And thank you to everyone else contributing as well. Now, let’s move this on forward

5sp_jzz30

iTrader: (2)

i dont understand what you mean that you wont get the same setting by using different setups. when i had my stock suspension and when i went to tokico/eibach combo my alignment numbers stayed the same. depending on how much you are lowered will vary how easy it will be to adjust the suspension to meet factory specifications. as long as you are no more then a 1.5" drop from factory you shouldnt have any problems getting your car aligned to stock. when you lower your car by 2 or even 3 inches you will need a camber correction kit in order to regain the factory settings. if you dont get your kit the minimum camber will still be a bit more then stock.

as far as toe i always set it to 0*. i dont do any toe in or out.

as far as caster the factory doesnt specify much because increases in caster increase the effort needed to turn the steering wheel but provide better high speed stability.

when i will get my Stance coilovers i plan on slamming it so i have less then a finger gap between the fender and my work wheels. with the car being that low the camber will be huge. when you get it aligned it will still read more camber then stock. im not planning to run camber correction kit because i love camber and i drift my car. the two go hand in hand. from what i recall the factory camber setting is only about 1*. i will try to run about 2 to 3 degrees even for daily driving.

the point of coilovers, sway bars, and wider wheels that most people put on is to increase handling ability of the car...looks is just a side benefit. in order for those coilovers and other suspension components to perform their best you cannot run factory suspension specifications. you will be disappointed.

heres the cliff-notes for those that dont wanna read:
1. 2* camber front
2. 1-1.5* camber rear
3. 0* toe front and rear
4. max caster front
5. stock caster rear

cheers

lxsdude

I don't have my specs handy. Your alignment settings should be determined by what you're doing with the car rather than what suspension parts are on it. I wasn't too clear on that when I was typing my initial post. If you just drive your car on the street, you will want very different settings than if you track your car. For example, if you track your car, then you should have a little bit of toe-in in the rear and a little toe out in front. Give yourself some castor up front too so that you get the benefit of having some good camber when turning.

For a street ride, you should zero out your tow, and keep a somewhat stock camber setting if you can achieve that while being lowered. You should be able to be pretty close to stock even with a lowered car if you can adjust it as such. That will depend on what adjustability you have with either camber plates, ride height, ...etc. No matter what, a little excess camber isn't going to destroy your tires. It's negative camber + toe out that will eat through them. You can get toe out by simply hitting a pothole if it bumps your wheel out of alignment. So if you see your tires wearing uneven, get your alignment checked sooner rather than later.

I don't recall specifically my chastising from the past, but I generally call people out when they claim to be knowledgeable and then ask a question that someone with such knowledge would never ask. We all learn as we go, or go to school to be a mechanic. There's nothing wrong with not knowing things. The only wrong thing is pretending to already know what you're asking. ... anyway, I don't remember the specifics. Just giving a little info on me.

As for my post count (checking up on my profile, are we?), I don't get on here that often. Every now and then I'll scan through the threads and on occasion I'll post if I think I can help the discussion. Hopefully, I've helped you with your alignment question. My posts may seem harsh, but you're more likely to remember them than a kind / hand-holding post, I'll bet.

5sp_jzz30

iTrader: (2)

so let make some cliff notes for people that dont want to read through our long posts :

daily driven stock car- stock setting...dun
daily driven lowered- stock or as close to stock (may need camber correction kit)

performance lowered- camber F 3*/R 1.5-2* is a good starting point
- toe F 0* or a little in/R stock(IMO)
- about 8.5* if you can get that much

these specs are used mostly for drifting but is a good starting point for Auto-X and road racing.