[idriveacivic]

I had the alignment checked a few weeks back and after they fixed the toe issues, the print out showed that I had -1.2 and -1.1 on the fronts and about the same on the rear. According to the print out the factory range goes to -1.0 in the front. So it's only out of spec just by a little. Does anyone know how "bad" this is? I know that there are benefits to having some neg. camber but what kind of tire wear can I expect?

I've got some new Kumho's coming in about 4 days and was wondering if a camber kit is really going to make the difference. According to the shop "regular rotations" will keep the irregular wear down to a minimum.

 

[taz77]

it's not TOO bad.. most people will probably say it's negligable... but i don't know the long term effects on a slight neg. camber. you probably won't notice much (if any) tire wear compared to a camber within spec.

but if u ever do plan on correcting your camber because of the tire wear, u might want to do it now rather than later. i know a few people who waited too long to correct the camber, and when they finally did, the offset load on the bearings made them wear out much faster than usual... and trust me, the cost to replace bearings costs much more than getting a camber kit.

 

[jocktheglide]

I hear that amen......

Yeah, get your camber kits even though it's slight neg. It's better to spend 3 dollars on all 4 cambers than put wear and tear on the suspension as a whole. I did not even put my cambers on and my wheel was neg. 2.2 so it was really bad. My inner wheel had wires coming out of it it was horrible. I finally stop being lazy and put my cambers on and it was only -.3 aftewards and my rears were a -.7 so it was better. The cost to replace all my wheels was like 380 bucks!

 

[hybridhbsi]

i had a -3.0 up front and -2.4 in the rear she looked good for about 3 months then i had to replace 4 tires and i had a kit but the car was to low for it to work it sat about 3.5" it was low

 

[del_parker]

i know mine isn't too bad with eibach pro kit and koni yellows. i'm waiting to see how long this set of kumhos last me before i decide. i'm rotating the tires every oil change...

 

[idriveacivic]

it's not TOO bad.. most people will probably say it's negligable... but i don't know the long term effects on a slight neg. camber. you probably won't notice much (if any) tire wear compared to a camber within spec.

but if u ever do plan on correcting your camber because of the tire wear, u might want to do it now rather than later. i know a few people who waited too long to correct the camber, and when they finally did, the offset load on the bearings made them wear out much faster than usual... and trust me, the cost to replace bearings costs much more than getting a camber kit.

Thanks for the info... I never even though about the bearings load issue. I'll probally only have the car for about 2 more years so hopefully this won't be an issue for me.

 

[vtec94]

not too bad, but make sure to get your toe straight!
mostly the camber doesn't hurt the tires, i meant in case of yours -1.1 degree, but if your toe setting is like | \ or / | or / \ or \ \ /, most likely the very last case \ /, your tires will go fast!

get the toe aligned straight!

$.02

 

[infinatenexus]

Neg camber=better handeling.....

 

[w3accord]

just rotate your tires often and you should be fine.

 

[lOOkatme]

-1.1 isn't bad at all...I wouldn't buy a camber kit. just get an alignment done...or probably which you just did to fix the toe.....since you know the negative camber numbers....so you will be fine.

 

[LogikPhryk]

Does installing a camber kit affect an alignment because I need the numbers to know which kits to get?

 

[flylwsi]

the effects of -1.1 is pretty interesting...
i had a set of paradas that had about 45k on em... and even with regular rotations, the inside corners ended up wearing down almost to the steel bands...

the neg camber makes a big difference... trust me... i have -1.4 in front and -1.1 in the back... it's a helluva handler, but the tires get worn down a bit... if you can see the camber, you can bet it wears your tires...

 

[infinatenexus]

You can adjust the rear camber on a civic by using washers. I dont know the exact name of the part, but it is the upper mount for the suspension, you just un bolt the two bolts holding it on, and place washers behind it. It got my ass end in check for about 2.00 in stainless steel washers. it took six washers per side. Sounds kinda ghetto,, but it works great. Each washer seems to correct the camber by about .75

 

[idriveacivic]

the effects of -1.1 is pretty interesting...
i had a set of paradas that had about 45k on em... and even with regular rotations, the inside corners ended up wearing down almost to the steel bands...

So you were able to get 45000 miles out of a set of tires with your camber?? That's great! That's really what I wanted to hear. I burn thru tires faster than that just w/ normal driving.

I did the washer trick, but wasn't sure how many to put on exactly, I didn't want to go back after my alignment and put on more washers and have to get another alignment. The shop that I went to charged a good bit for the alignment.

 

[taz77]

basically speaking.. one washer about 1/16" thick would correct about 0.5 degrees. but even if u do the camber w/ the washers, you'll still need to get it aligned again, or you're handling will get worse than before u corrected it.

any change in the 2 of the 3 basic alignment angles (caster and camber) will affect toe. that's why alignment shops adjust the toe last. if they were to adjust toe first, then camber, they'll have to come back later to readjust the toe.

w/o the alignment, you'll notice a number of handling problems... steering wandering... offset steering wheel... and your rear end feels like it floating when u corner harder than usual.

 

[shorthand]

I had the alignment checked a few weeks back and after they fixed the toe issues, the print out showed that I had -1.2 and -1.1 on the fronts and about the same on the rear. According to the print out the factory range goes to -1.0 in the front. So it's only out of spec just by a little. Does anyone know how "bad" this is? I know that there are benefits to having some neg. camber but what kind of tire wear can I expect?

I've got some new Kumho's coming in about 4 days and was wondering if a camber kit is really going to make the difference. According to the shop "regular rotations" will keep the irregular wear down to a minimum.

Rear spec is 0-(-2) deg so your right in the middle of the spec. This level of camber is a good trade off between streetable tire life and better handling. I would keep it (I am running -.5 front and -1.6 rear right now)

 

[LogikPhryk]

Dude, where do u get those 20 hp pinstripes, they must rip.

 

[dlim1]

i plan to use washers i have 3/8 washers, and my rear is droppped about 1.8 inches, they say 3/8 washers corrects .5 negative camber, and that if you drop a car 2 inches, that is like 2 degrees of negative camber. is this all correct?

 

[BlackEG_Si]

Dude, where do u get those 20 hp pinstripes, they must rip.

Yeah, they are sick. I am having them shipped from Japan. They are $2000/set but worth every penny.

 

[infinatenexus]

Sounds about right. Mine is dropped two inches, and it took six washers per side. three for each mounting bolt. now my alingment is almost perferct. i only wish there was a ghetto way to allign the front of the car.........