I know I want to start out with -1.2 camber for my driving style, but not sure on the toe. What is the toe setting from the factory? I am imagine it is toe in and quite a bit as the car tracks well. What is the recommendation for street to agressive street use? Does anyone know that number? I don't think I want toe out at all, but not sure. I want the car to remain straight, but turn-in better than it did stock.

Need to check my alignment now that I have replaced the springs and struts.

Thanks!

 

Check out this thread for factory alignment specs:
http://forums.bradbarnett.net/showthread.php?t=58811

 

a little bit of toe out goes a long way for turn-in. It will make it "twichy" on the street though

 

I run between 0 and +.1 degree total toe. With my street tires on, it is not twitchy at all.

 

Thanks. I am not sure why I didn't see that thread in my search! I have to decide on the toe... I have the stock 17's, so it might not be as touchy as when I was running 17x9s on my '95.

 

Steeda recommends toe in.

-1.3 negative camber
7.0 Caster
-.03 Toe In

 

I haven't checked it yet, but after lowering it def looks like I have about 1-1.5 degree neg camber. I am going to wait for it to settle for a few more days before getting it aligned(at least checked). I guess I will need camber bolts, but I want to keep about 1 deg negative, I think factory is .7 or so. I didn't see anyway it could be adjustable putting it back together. Lowering it probably toed it in a smidge too, but the car drives perfectly, and is much more responsive. Every time I think it looks like a little too much neg camber, I see a BMW that looks like it has sandbags in the trunk. I think half the handling those cars have is from running club-racer spec neg camber.

Funny enough, it now feels exactly like a 330ci on turn in. Other then the differences in the IRS/Live axle setups(i.e. the rear skating on turns but more instanious power delivery from the LA) it feels identical.

 

I don't want to hijack this thread, but I'm curious as to how many that have lowered their cars actually replaced all the fasteners as advised by TSB 05-9-11 (strut bearing issue) or did you all just reuse the existing bolts/nuts?

 

Alright he said it!!! Now lets have a 10 page argument on IRS... where's whats-his-face? (the IRS junkie?)

 

Don't run toe-out on the street regardless of tire. Factory specs dial in toe-in so that the tires run straight while moving as the bushings load and deflect. If you go toe-out the wheel won't self center and you'll experience more severe tramlining on rutted roads. Toe-out does signficantly improve turn-in ontrack, but ontrack you're driving at 10/10ths with undivided attention.

 

And you want more then one day out of your tires on the street

 

Kevin,here are the results after my front Ultralite install..I bought camber bolts off of TACOBILL

 

forgot to attach

 

I think Bill was at 1.3 for both after alignment, right at borderline factory allowance. I may just get the bolts for when I bring it in so I have em. Who makes them for our cars?

 

I've got a ton of suspension mods and my car feels no where near a 3 series. BMW does a great job of tuning their chassis, particularly the steering rack. Ford on the other hand tends to overboost the steering rack, causing a numb feel.

 

The ones Bill sold me were made by Eibach

 

With out of spec neg camber it gets more weighty with less on-center numbness Remember the profile of the tires on a 3 series are also much lower, even our 18's have a bunch more sidewall, you can feel a lot of squirm in them on the mustang. Look at some of the photos members have at the autocross with stockers on, the sidewalls go under big time. I've probably driven well over 100 bmw's. If you drive a base 3 with the smaller wheels and fatter sidewalls its a huge difference from the ultra low profile ones when the sport wheels are ordered. I took an 01 328 to lunch the other day(base 16"s) and you could feel it doing the same thing. Initial turn in was decent but it got mushy quick.

The S197 has a near-identical copy of the bmw front setup. Add bilstien shocks, some springs, 35 series Michelin rubber and some neg camber, and see what happens. They just come from the factory fully modded. They also have the low profile tires at 18" figured in by design, being a smaller car they can keep a lighter wheel and low profile tires in the specified outer diameter for the vehicle. But to get to that profile we need 20's and the rotating mass offsets the benefit of the lower profile. Those are some big wagon wheels to turn around and load the suspension. If the car was 15% smaller like a 3 coupe, you could run 18's with 35 series rubber. This is why I just did springs this time and let it eat other then throwing yet another steeda catalog at another mustang.... It is what it is, start saving for the blower....


Yea I found a set of camber bolts by Ingalls on ebay(probably ALL from the same place) and just ordered them. Half the price of BMR's. Will have about 300 miles on the springs by next monday, should be time for the allignment. Been whacking the speed bumps and potholes to make sure all is good....I think I'm gonna shoot for 1.10 negative. If the strut caps go, I'm spending the bucks and getting the steeda plates(or one of the other versions now coming out) and be done with it forever.

 

My car has 275/40/18 RE050A Pole Positions on it and a full suspension. I am also runing -1.3 degrees of negative camber. My Mustang has no where near the precision of my old 330i with the sport package. Hell, the regular 3 series suspension isn't that sporty. The real competitor would be the M3. What we really need is an aftermarket quick ratio steering rack!

 

Yea, but a lot has to do with that 'magic size' the 3 series has. The car was designed around smaller components and and a wheel-well filling 18" wheel with rubber band tires we can never use. Some of it too is that with a 3 you are often not going as fast as it feels. Floor a 330 up the street and you're like 'wow this is fast' and look at the speedo, where you are used to being at 90 in the stang the speedo amazingly only shows 74-'oh'. I got a 530 in the other day and same thing, I make the same run up the block every day thousands of times with the same refference points and 'hey this is pretty darn quick' and when I looked down.... 'oh'. First thought is that the spedo is wrong. I run out 3rd in the stang on my way out, look down, and I'm like 'whoops!-103 in a 40, doh'

I get em pretty frequently. I had a 330ci and a 328 recently but can't find the listings.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...m=140124565681

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...m=140106388846

 

My dad has a 05' 545i with A/S Goodyears. He doesn't like the stiff ride of the sport package, so he opted no to buy it. I am dead serious when I say that his car is more confidence inspiring. The steering is also more precise. A lot of it has to do with our SRA axle. Little bumps upset the rear while cornering.