Alignment way off!

[Egon Spengler]

I have a 2003 300A and I was under her doing an oil change. While the oil was draining I happened to glance over at my tire and the inside is bald... NO TREAD! I bought this car last year with new rubber! I have rotated the tires too! (yes I have the same size tires all around... stupid dealers) So today I have ordered all fours (different size fronts and backs this time) I am looking forward to getting new rubber on her and getting an alignment... I have to stop doing burnouts as well!!!!

[hot-rauder]

I have a 2003 300A and I was under her doing an oil change. While the oil was draining I happened to glance over at my tire and the inside is bald... NO TREAD! I bought this car last year with new rubber! I have rotated the tires too! (yes I have the same size tires all around... stupid dealers) So today I have ordered all fours (different size fronts and backs this time) I am looking forward to getting new rubber on her and getting an alignment... I have to stop doing burnouts as well!!!!

your alignment is not way off.... it is normal. Mine wore the same way. someone around ehre has the specs to what it needs tweaked to for better tread wear.

[Egon Spengler]

well if I can get that spec before I get the stuff done... that would be great! WHOEVER YOU ARE THAT HAS IT!!

[DOOM]

Carfixer is the man you're looking for. I also plan on buying new tires next week ( damn trilogy killed my bfg's :D ) and will be looking to use his specifics. Hopefully someone will read and post up his specs.

[fastblackmerc]

Just search for Carfixers alignment specs.

[jonroe]

It's interesting....I've been watching the toe out tire wear threads since I got my MM new and never noticed much of anything through about 45K miles. Now, I'm at 49K miles and I can clearly see that the insides of the fronts are worn in the classical pattern of the slight toe out. It must not be much to only show up this late. I'll probably get new fronts this fall and then tweak the alignment according to Carfixer's specs. All in all 50K on the fronts is reasonable.

[freakstatus]

Carfixer is the man you're looking for. I also plan on buying new tires next week ( damn trilogy killed my bfg's :D ) and will be looking to use his specifics. Hopefully someone will read and post up his specs.

Doom, you've only had the Trilogy in for a few weeks! Your tires are toast already? That might get expensive...:burnout:

[Egon Spengler]

I found the specs by doing a search... ummmmmm... how hard will it be to get a place to align my car to these specs and not the standard ones they go by?

[Bluerauder]

Courtesy of an old thread :D


Courtesy of Carfixer

The inside edge wear of the front tires is caused by 2 things: negative camber and negative toe (toe out). Caster is not a tire wearing angle. The outside edge wear can be caused by excessive toe in and aggressive cornering.

Factory camber spec is -.5 degrees or- .75 degrees
Factory toe spec is -.15 degrees or- .20 degrees
(BTW, this info came from their website which is updated periodically and may differ from previously published material, such as cd's and paper manuals)

That means your alignment could have -1.25 degrees of camber and toe out of -.35 degrees and still be in the "green". This will wipe out the inside edges in <20K miles IMO.

All of the MM's I've aligned (about 10) had at least -1.0 degrees of camber and always toe out of -.10 degrees or more from the factory. That's why almost all MM's you see have excessive inside edge tire wear.

For best tire wear, here is what I use on all MM alignments:
Camber: 0 to -.3 degrees.*
Toe: Zero degrees.
Caster: 5-6.5 degrees positive with .3 degree lead on the right side.
*Camber can affect cornering feel. The more negative camber you have, the better it will handle corners. Most drivers will never feel the difference, especially on the street.

[Bluerauder]

I found the specs by doing a search... ummmmmm... how hard will it be to get a place to align my car to these specs and not the standard ones they go by?
I would think that if you are paying the bill and are buying the tires .... they should do exactly what you want. But hey that's just me. :D

[Egon Spengler]

I would think that if you are paying the bill and are buying the tires .... they should do exactly what you want. But hey that's just me. :D

very true... very true

[Egon Spengler]

a mr. "irish" sent me a note saying that it should be done to mustang specs.... is this true? I find all of you as reliable sources and just want to make sure I know what I am talking about when I go in there! And Irish, if you read this, is that for a 2003 mustang?

Thanks guys... don't want to replace my tires EVERY YEAR! $800.00 per year for tires would suck

[Bluerauder]

a mr. "irish" sent me a note saying that it should be done to mustang specs.... is this true? I find all of you as reliable sources and just want to make sure I know what I am talking about when I go in there! And Irish, if you read this, is that for a 2003 mustang?

Thanks guys... don't want to replace my tires EVERY YEAR! $800.00 per year for tires would suck
There's about 5 years experience on Carfixer's Alignment Specs. Why argue with success? :rolleyes: If the Mustang specs "happen" to be similar ... so be it. :P

[TAKEDOWN]

well if I can get that spec before I get the stuff done... that would be great! WHOEVER YOU ARE THAT HAS IT!!
When I purchased new tires for my used Marauder I was told that my alignment was way off, my front inner tires were bald, and was informed that alignment specs were for a Grand Maquise and that there was a difference. When I go home I'll look for the correct specs.

[Bluerauder]

When I go home I'll look for the correct specs.
Isn't it easier just to look in Post #9 ^^^^^^ :rolleyes:

[fastblackmerc]

Carfixers specs are the one's you should be using on your MM.... as stated they've worked for many years.... why try anything else????? :confused:

[Egon Spengler]

works for me.. thanks guys

[irish]

a mr. "irish" sent me a note saying that it should be done to mustang specs.... is this true? I find all of you as reliable sources and just want to make sure I know what I am talking about when I go in there! And Irish, if you read this, is that for a 2003 mustang?

Thanks guys... don't want to replace my tires EVERY YEAR! $800.00 per year for tires would suck
Yes, the MM alignment specs. were set to a 2003 mustang specs. by my mechanic & believe me it works, no more inside wear as before.

[justbob]

Does this work for lowered mm's?

[Egon Spengler]

Just purchased my tires from the "Tire Rack" $520.00 shipped for all fours... I am going to be super psyched to get the right size rears on her... When I bought it the dealer had all 4 the same size... going to get an alignment and have the tires put on hopefully before the summer nationals... if it is after the summer nationals, then alot of burnouts will be done!!!

[Egon Spengler]

Will having the bigger tires on the back create a noticeable difference in stance?

[mrjones]

With your 300A, you could also use the same size tire all the way around, and rotate. It made a HUGE difference in tire wear on my car. I've since gone back to factory sizes, because the 235/50's all the way around with 4.10's was just too much at todays fuel prices.

[fastblackmerc]

Does this work for lowered mm's?

:dunno: Why wouldn't it??

[Egon Spengler]

With your 300A, you could also use the same size tire all the way around, and rotate. It made a HUGE difference in tire wear on my car. I've since gone back to factory sizes, because the 235/50's all the way around with 4.10's was just too much at todays fuel prices.

Yes it was very convenient... but I want to do the right factory settings and I want it aligned CORRECTLY so I don't have bald tires in 20,000 miles!!!

[MENINBLK]

How many miles are on those tires ???
Most of us get between 20,000 and 35,000...

[Egon Spengler]

How many miles are on those tires ???
Most of us get between 20,000 and 35,000...

About that... WITH ROTATION!

[jabird56]

Along with CARFIXer's alignment specs, you need to find a place that has an alignment machine (such as a John Beam) that will NOT screw up your rims when they attach their alignment gear to your wheels.

[Egon Spengler]

My tires came in from The Tire Rack and they look good! I called my local installer and they are free tomorrow morning to install the tires and align the front end to whatever spec I want! So tomorrow I get to sleep in a little and go into work late!
http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/HPM/SM1583%7ECartman-Sweet-Posters.jpg
Bad day to take the bike to work, because now I have to take the bike home and grab the car to come back here to work to load the tires up! Oh well... and I guess I can't do any burnouts at the summer nationals either!!!

Anybody have a spare set of rims and tires for me to burn off at the summer nationals her in new england!?!?!

[jabird56]

My tires came in from The Tire Rack and they look good! I called my local installer and they are free tomorrow morning to install the tires and align the front end to whatever spec I want! So tomorrow I get to sleep in a little and go into work late!


MAKE SURE THEY CAN DO YOUR FRONT END ALIGNMENT WITHOUT DAMAGING YOUR RIMS! Not all places have the right setup.

[red]

The recommended alignment specs are captured in the review section here (http://www.mercurymarauder.net/reviews/showproduct.php/product/34/sort/2/cat/19/page/1). There's nothing magical about them and they are within the current manufacturer specification ranges, so any dealership should do them. Simply zero the camber and toe to reduce the wear and have the right front lead. On my car, it requires almost .8 degrees of additional caster on the right, which is slightly out of range.

[Egon Spengler]

Got my new wheels and alignment!! Looks and feels good... hopefully they don't go bald in 20k!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Grand total for tire, mounting/balancing, and alignment = $800.00

(no damage to wheels from alignment machine)

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

Simply zero the camber and toe to reduce the wear and have the right front lead. On my car, it requires almost .8 degrees of additional camber on the right, which is slightly out of range.

You lead w/ caster. Camber gets split slightly due to a crowned road, but a caster lead compensates for the crown by inducing a pull, without affecting tire wearing angles (camber and toe). 3/10 caster lead on my car is enough to cause a little too much of a caster pull. It counteracts normal road crown, and then some. I am going to back it off to almost even caster next time I am able to borrow the alignment rack at my friend's shop

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

Simply zero the camber and toe to reduce the wear and have the right front lead. On my car, it requires almost .8 degrees of additional camber on the right, which is slightly out of range.

You lead w/ caster. Camber gets split slightly due to a crowned road, but a caster lead compensates for the crown by inducing a pull, without affecting tire wearing angles (camber and toe). 3/10 caster lead on my car is enough to cause a little too much of a caster pull. It counteracts normal road crown, and then some. I am going to back it off to almost even caster next time I am able to borrow the alignment rack at my friend's shop

I hope you got an alignment printout. Without one, you won't know that the job was done properly.

[red]

You lead w/ caster. Camber gets split slightly due to a crowned road, but a caster lead compensates for the crown by inducing a pull, without affecting tire wearing angles (camber and toe). 3/10 caster lead on my car is enough to cause a little too much of a caster pull. It counteracts normal road crown, and then some. I am going to back it off to almost even caster next time I am able to borrow the alignment rack at my friend's shop

I hope you got an alignment printout. Without one, you won't know that the job was done properly.

Sorry, that was a mistake on my part (should review before submitting). Anyway, thanks for catching that... it's been corrected. I have .8 degree lead (yes, caster) on the right. Zero-ed tow and -.2 degree camber on my setup. Also, I am right there when they're doing the alignment, so I'm watching the machine (and I always get a printout). I've experimented with a range of settings, but have found that a relatively large right lead is necessary on my car.

[Egon Spengler]

Got the print out....

Camber: -0.7 degrees maxed out
Tow: -0.05
Caster: 5.5 degrees

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

That is still too much negative camber, he should have gone in the postive direction. If the flags from the factory are still installed, you needed to pry them off first so that the camber cam gives you the full range of adjustment. You are likely still going to burn the inside edges off set up like that. It will corner well though.