Wheel Aligning at home - the guessing way

[Peter Jones]

So is it worth all this time and effort, or would it just be easier to get a wheel place to do it for 40 bucks and know that it's *perfect?


*providing your wheel place is knowledgeable and reputable?

Goodyear charged $75 the last time I had a car done.

You can be just as accurate, even more accurate if you're patient.

I wanted to be able to do this for race setups so I can change between track and road settings myself. It's also a good idea to make sure your settings are still alright before you hit the track, epecially if you've hit any ripple strips or done some gardening.

It's more for tuning suspension than your annual wheel alignment.

I also have a lot of cars including a '59 beetle. Most alignment places won't go near a link pin beetle because it takes too long for them to set camber on these.

Pete

[roccodingo]

I also have a lot of cars including a '59 beetle. Most alignment places won't go near a link pin beetle because it takes too long for them to set camber on these.

Pete

Now thats bringing back memories,, ahh all them shims.....

best doing the alignment yourself no matter what the cost i believe, to many cowboys here that only work on local produce to know whats going on..

[Spyda]

Lets say you dont have time and you cbf to put in so much effort and you live in melbourne.

Who do you go to for a wheel alignment that wont be shiz?

[Preen59]

There's an easier way than how pete has done it that i know of using 2 tubes and a string line. It requires less work to make too, and you can do it with the wheels on.

I'll explain later when i've got some pics. The way i'm talking about is how most race car teams do it. Very simple and no chance of error unless you physically screw up the measurements.

Having said that pete, i like your little jigs, very nice.

[Preen59]

So is it worth all this time and effort, or would it just be easier to get a wheel place to do it for 40 bucks and know that it's *perfect?


*providing your wheel place is knowledgeable and reputable?

Yeah well... Basically it can be very hard to find someone that will do it properly. If you have the gear it takes 15 to 20 mins tops from start to finish.

Stop being lazy and learn to do it yourself!

[Spyda]

Yeah well... Basically it can be very hard to find someone that will do it properly. If you have the gear it takes 15 to 20 mins tops from start to finish.

Stop being lazy and learn to do it yourself!

Ok ill do it myself haha

Show me how.

[Peter Jones]

There's an easier way than how pete has done it that i know of using 2 tubes and a string line. It requires less work to make too, and you can do it with the wheels on.

I'll explain later when i've got some pics. The way i'm talking about is how most race car teams do it. Very simple and no chance of error unless you physically screw up the measurements.

Having said that pete, i like your little jigs, very nice.

Thanks Preen,

I made the jigs up just to get better access to everything, I found setting the camber solo pretty hard with the wheels on the ground because I couldn't watch the gauge and be 1/2 under the car with a socket on the strut bolts. Jacking it up wasn't the answer because I needed weight on the suspension. The car is 30mm lowered so there's's not much room to work around the tyre. There's a little refinment needed but this method works for me.

Pete

[Preen59]

Thanks Preen,

I made the jigs up just to get better access to everything, I found setting the camber solo pretty hard with the wheels on the ground because I couldn't watch the gauge and be 1/2 under the car with a socket on the strut bolts. Jacking it up wasn't the answer because I needed weight on the suspension. The car is 30mm lowered so there's's not much room to work around the tyre. There's a little refinment needed but this method works for me.

Pete

Very valid point. If the way i'm thinking of doing it actually turns out to be a pain, i might end up making jigs similar to yours.

[gldgti]

Very valid point. If the way i'm thinking of doing it actually turns out to be a pain, i might end up making jigs similar to yours.

im thinking of getting some sexy lasercut MS bits - maybe i should make 2 sets?

[Preen59]

im thinking of getting some sexy lasercut MS bits - maybe i should make 2 sets?

Nah don't worry about that. I'll CNC machine mine when i work out what i want to do. Shoot me your designs if you want. It might give me some ideas.

Thanks for the offer.

[Mrk_Mickey]

I'm just digging up an old thread here with a question...are one of you knowledgable blokes able to post up a method of doing your own alignment? I'd like to know how to do it and it may come in handy if I'm not happy with the wheel alignment I need done atm

[gldgti]

I'm just digging up an old thread here with a question...are one of you knowledgable blokes able to post up a method of doing your own alignment? I'd like to know how to do it and it may come in handy if I'm not happy with the wheel alignment I need done atm

you'll have to wait until 3rd december - until then its THESIS time for me.

[gavs]

Hi all,

I have read this thread with great interest but yet am still none the wiser on exactly how to do my wheel alignment. I am planning on replacing my wishbone bushes on my Mk4 and from my readings, I need to do a proper wheel alignment after I refit the wishbones.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Preen59
Yeah well... Basically it can be very hard to find someone that will do it properly. If you have the gear it takes 15 to 20 mins tops from start to finish.

Stop being lazy and learn to do it yourself!

Ok ill do it myself haha

Show me how.

X2, How do I do it?

[gldgti]

Ok, so if you read the start of the thread, you'll understand whats going on.

now, lets say you want to adjust your wheel alignment because you have a problem, or because you've just changed a wheel bearing and tie rods and you need to get it eyed in so you can drive the car.

1) Always ajust the Toe setting LAST. when you shange camber/castor, you change the toe, so the final toe setting must be done after all other adjustments.

2) if you're changing the castor (lets say offset rear control arm bushings in a mk2 or later car) then you should change that FIRST

3) Camber, goes in the middle

my method usually involves this series of events:

1) centralise the steering wheel first. so you can get the camber pretty good, you need to have the toe somewhere close to right to start off with. this means that with the wheels OFF, and the car up on stands, eye in the toe by looking down towards the floor across the face of the hub. use a visual reference such as the trim line on the front guard on each side to eye up the toe. the suspension is hanging, so the toe is probably going to be showing more positive (out) than if the suspension was compressed. get it close, then move onto the camber.

2) so long as your struts and uprights and bushings are all nice and not bent or broken, you should be able to use the union of the strut mount bolts and the wheel bearing housing (upright) to eye up the camber before putting the wheel on. in my experience, the furthest you can make the camber negative is not far from where you want it for a mk1. on the other hand, you can make the camber far more positive that you'll ever want, on the mk1. so, guess it by making it all the way negative, and then back a little bit. use visual references such as how much gap is between the top of the upright casting and the strut casing to get each side similar.

3) now, bolt a wheel on one side. leave it jacked up, and feel behind the RIM for the space between the RIM and the strut... dont use the tyre. use the RIM, OK? This is not a bad way to get each side pretty colse to the other. all you need to do is feel around the back. you can even turn the steering to one lock and try to measure it if possible. you'r aim is to get the other side the same. if its not, you'll have to remove the wheel and adjust.

Now, even if you're really good, and you get that 'strut-to-rim' gap exact on each side, this doesnt mean that the true camber setting will be the same on each side - you're car could well be a little bent. however, chances are it'll be fiarly close, unless something serious has happened to your vehicle.

4) Now, you need to check that your setting is actually what you want. this means lowering the car to the ground and eyeing up the camber on each side. its obvious to see if its negative or positive. you can use bodywork as a visula cue, or, if you know you're floow is flat, use a string with a weight hanging next to the rim to see what the camber is like. eye it up against the rear wheels. again, if the car is fairly straight, you'll be able to see if you're way off, or OK.

5) assuming your all ok, now comes the tricky part. you might want to take it for a spin and see if you can tell if you have too much of anything, ut chances are you're toe will be off and the steering wheel wont center. note which way its off, and by how much.

6) never just move the steering wheel... as long as you have the rack centered, you should keep it that way.

7) eye up the toe FROM BOTH ENDS OF THE CAR. typically, from the back of the car, you ill appear to have more toe in that you actually do. from the front of the car, you will appear to have more toe out than you actually do. you need to find a happy medium. unless you have a large adjustment to make (more than 5 full turns of a tie rod), i usually do toe adjustments with the car on the ground. if you have some space, you can turn the steering from one lock to another while moving hte car forward or backwards, in order to allow space for adjusting each side whilst lying on the floor. its not pretty, but it works.

more later... i gtg

[Jarred]

I used a pretty similar process when setting up the alignment on my current mk 1.

Got the camber roughly similar, and then went about making adjustments to the toe. Drive a bit, change the toe a bit, and repeat till I was happy with it. not the most efficient way. but I got it decent in the end.

I think I'll go over and check everything before the road trip.