Sharing my alignment specs (70 Dart)

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OttawaCharger

OttawaCharger

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Ottawa, ON
Background -- this car was recently assembled and made roadworthy so I'm still in shakedown mode. I found a shop local to me that would use the Skosh chart recommendations. I left the car with them for the day and when I picked it up, these were the results. I will admit that I'm pretty disappointed and I will be making some changes over the winter season to add caster. I'm also going to invest in the proper tools to do the alignment myself. I'm not too happy knowing that I spent $400 and I'm going to need to redo the alignment when I'm done changing. Also, I'm also not sure how he wasn't able to get any caster on the driver's side at all once he got the camber dialed. The car is pretty skittish over 65 especially when the road is uneven. Part of that is due to a worn steering box but certainly not all of it.

alignment specs.jpg
 
That price is a kick to the dick.
What is the problem with alignment techs? These cars are not that hard to do. I got 4 degrees of caster and 3/4 degree of negative camber with stock parts in my '70 Charger. I'll admit, if the front end is about an inch or more below stock height, the alignment numbers get better due to the spindle/knuckle design. For the money you spent, you could have bought a gauge and done your own alignments at home.

Alignment at home and aftermarket UCAS too.
 
I just swapped some HDK upper control arms onto my car to get some more caster as it sees a lot more highway miles and it's something I should have done a long time ago. Not sure what the car was aligned at before (I probably have the paper somewhere), but guessing it was close to stock and probably ~0 caster and had similar "light on its feet" road manners on the highway I didn't care for. I haven't gotten a good caster measurement yet as my wheel fixtures hit the fender when I turn the tires, but just eyeballing the front and rear cam bolts to be even and setting camber where I wanted it, it "should" be around 4 degrees of caster per the way the arms are built. Car feels much more solid on the highway now and steering effort really didn't change all that much (manual steering, 24:1 ratio I'm pretty sure). If you hit the brakes and dive the front end around a corner it gets heavy, but nothing crazy by any means.
 
RustyRatRod said:
$400 for an alignment and you paid it? You're half guilty then.
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Maybe he didn't get a quote first......Just got handed the bill. I've taken it up the hoop a couple of times not asking for an estimate first....LOL, live and learn.

Edit: Sorry OP, the LOL wasn't directed at anything or anyone specifically.
 
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Kern Dog said:
That price is a kick to the dick.
What is the problem with alignment techs? These cars are not that hard to do. I got 4 degrees of caster and 3/4 degree of negative camber with stock parts in my '70 Charger. I'll admit, if the front end is about an inch or more below stock height, the alignment numbers get better due to the spindle/knuckle design. For the money you spent, you could have bought a gauge and done your own alignments at home.

Alignment at home and aftermarket UCAS too.
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that's the route I'm aiming at. I'm going to get the tools and see where I can get it to without changing the uppers. Then get the uppers if needed.
 
plymouth4onthefloor said:
the only good thing i see is toe in. why did he kill the caster?
Your rearend should be shimmed to get same the toe on both sides. look for a another shop!
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I had rebuilt the front end completely and set caster camber by maxing out the forward adjust all the way out and the rears all the way in. When I picked it up they explained that they needed to pull in the caster to get the camber we needed. I didn't realize that I could adjust the rear. It makes sense now that you've explained it. Thank you for letting me know!
 
OttawaCharger said:
Background -- this car was recently assembled and made roadworthy so I'm still in shakedown mode. I found a shop local to me that would use the Skosh chart recommendations. I left the car with them for the day and when I picked it up, these were the results. I will admit that I'm pretty disappointed and I will be making some changes over the winter season to add caster. I'm also going to invest in the proper tools to do the alignment myself. I'm not too happy knowing that I spent $400 and I'm going to need to redo the alignment when I'm done changing. Also, I'm also not sure how he wasn't able to get any caster on the driver's side at all once he got the camber dialed. The car is pretty skittish over 65 especially when the road is uneven. Part of that is due to a worn steering box but certainly not all of it.

View attachment 1716326480
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400 for an alignment?! wtf... :( i did my first alignment recently myself. went easy as pie with 1 tool.. i did toe in with strings and jackstands.... BTW.. if you are mechanically inclined you should put in moroso offset bushings on the upper control arms before aligning...
 
This is the gauge i used to check camber (i didn't bother checking caster as i can't change it without messing up the camber) I set the rear adjuster all the way in and used the front to adjust camber, so it's as max caster as it can go anyway... (2 offset bushings in each UCA)
 
Computerised alignment equipment take wheel run-out into consideration. Something to think about whe using mechanical systems. That thrust angle is within specification.
 
Icetech said:
This is the gauge i used to check camber (i didn't bother checking caster as i can't change it without messing up the camber) I set the rear adjuster all the way in and used the front to adjust camber, so it's as max caster as it can go anyway... (2 offset bushings in each UCA)
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thank you. I'll check it out. I've got a list going for Black Friday already :)
 
BTW.. this is how to do the toe in with string.. BUT.. i can't find my video i got the idea from.. on a mopar i setup the string then align it to the body using the body pinch seam under the rocker, in front of the back tire and behind the front fender so the string is parallel to the body, then measure toe with it.
 
OttawaCharger said:
Canadian after taxes. Shop rate is $175 these days and they claimed 2 hours. I knew the shop rate going in but was hoping for better results to be honest. These guys have a pretty good reputation around town.
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2 hours probably isn't that crazy. I'm guessing I spent at least that or more when I tried to do mine just recently, though admittedly I had a little more to work with as I had to keep taking the camber bolts out to adjust the length on my new tubular arms. Between old, rusty, and just generally frozen stuff it can take a bit to get it all there. I would imagine a lift with a laser readout would be a lot quicker, but I've never used one to know. Just depends how much time you want to take to get it just where you want it.
 
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