alignment help.....

[jmv]

okay so i had Mazda do an alignment on the car today. I didn't have any pulling issues, but the inside edges of my front tires were wearing badly, leading me to guess that the toe was out of spec....

well i was right, and when i asked what they had to change they said the front toe. However now the car pulls to the left. Also, even though perhaps no one would notice it except for my anal-retentive self, the steering wheel is marginally crooked when going straight.

They gave me a sheet with the specs, on which i was able to figure out what numbers were toe and camber (i think), but i was wondering if anybody could help me out with what all these symbols and whatnot mean.....

also it seems like some of the settings are perhaps a bit too different from the opposite side, but i don't know much about alignments. I've already talked to them and will be bringing the car in again tomorrow to have them look at it again....

 

[iracemine]

subscribing, cause that seems like a drunk monky set your car up. or you car has been in a accident. but what whould I know.

 

[jmv]

geee thanks, lol.

the car has not been in an accident to my knowledge...

 

[jmv]

FWIW, this is what the protege FAQ has to say about MSP alignment specs.....


I am performing an alignment on my MazdaSpeed Proteg. Are there any special settings?
Yes, the suspension geometry on the MazdaSpeed Proteg must be significantly altered
from the normal 3rd generation Proteg's to ensure proper handling and reduced tire
wear. The special settings are:
Front and rear toe-in: -1.01.0mm, -0.040.04", -06'6'
Caster angle (front): 201'1
Kingpin angle (front): 1259'
Camber angle (front): -058'1
Camber angle (rear): -048'1
Tire pressures must be at 32 psi (cold) on all 4 tires as well as a full fuel tank when
performing the alignment. Vehicle must be unladen (no cargo or passengers) to perform
proper alignment.



Thanks to Edwin (TheMAN) for the info

 

[peajay]

It looks to me, though im not used to that machine either. that your caster is greater in the right side, thus causing you to pull left. though in spec they vary pretty greatly from each other side to side.
get it realigned and tell them that its now pulling, it should be covered

 

[jmv]

we discovered that it wasn't the settings that made it pull so much as the tires. Oh well....

Oh and peajay i do for a car to drive straight it has to be biased a little to 'pull' left, due to the fact that nearly all public roads are crowned in the middle.

 

[red95_240sx]

i just aligned my car up today.

the side witht he most positive camber ive read can cause a pull, which is slightly seen in ur sheet. and road crown goes to the right, in which you would pull to the right

 

[thepepperman]

we discovered that it wasn't the settings that made it pull so much as the tires. Oh well....

Oh and peajay i do for a car to drive straight it has to be biased a little to 'pull' left, due to the fact that nearly all public roads are crowned in the middle.

If the car ALWAYS pulls to one side it is not just the tires. Is the car pulling to both sides, depending on the road, or still only to the left all the time?

 

[jmv]

Its always been to the left. We rotated out the tires since all the specs checked out, and it might've pulled to the left a hair.... but it was damn hard to tell. With the tires back the other way, it pulls left. Or i guess rather it drifts left.

 

[Gobbracing]

Check your front top plates to make sure that the green dots are aiming outward toward the front or the back. Depending on where the dots are aimed at, it changes the camber and caster on the front. So if they are not symetric, it unblances the car quite a bit.

And I would suggest go somewhere else for you alignment.
It's not easy to find a good place that know the MSP's settings. Ask your dealer for them or do better; do a search on this forum to find the answer.

 

[jmv]

i checked with the dealer to clarify that it needed different specs than a regular protege, they said they were using them.

The car won't be driven much at all over the summer, i'm going to be gone for 3 months straight. When i get back i'll be going for new tires, and at that point i think i may try taking it to JC Autospec which is a nearby shop run by one of the top Mazda techs in the country....