DIY Home Alignment Info

[cdb95z28]

Owning a Gen 5 or Gen 6 Camaro is great but sometimes there are challenges. One of the challenges is finding a competent shop/technician to perform alignments. My frustration goes back many years, way back when I was driving a sweet '84 Chevrolet Caprice Classic. Had an alignment done and driving down the road the steering wheel was crooked.

When I had my '95 Z28, I started getting interested in better chassis performance. Fortunately when I had that Z28, I did have a shop/tech that was on the same wavelength as me in what I wanted in a performance alignment. Eventually he moved on and I eventually sold that car in 2009. Fast forward to 2014 and I picked up my '14 1LE.

From the start I wanted more control in the alignment. I knew it was going to be a learning experience and since I like to sweat the details and, as I've gotten older, have way more patience than I did when I was young, I thought I could figure out what the variables were and how to control them. Until a few months ago, I wrenched in a coal fired power plant. I'm still at the same department though, I am now an operator. To be successful in the wrenching on very expensive equipment meant paying attention to the details and taking your time.

This thread is meant to help those who want to do their own alignments at home and to give them an idea of what kind of setup it takes to do it precisely and consistently. My procedure and setup is by no means the only way to do it. But if you have a desire to learn and do the best you can, pay attention to the details and above all have a great deal of patience then you can do your own alignments. I will admit, doing your own will take more time than if you just drop off your hot rod at the shop. If you have a great shop then that is awesome. There are a bunch of excellent technicians and shops who understand what we want from and alignment.

As for the "economics" of a home alignment, there is an initial tool investment that will eventually pay for itself. How? By way of me not paying someone else to do the work. If you are not afraid to make changes or you like to experiment with your car, then the DIY method is cheaper. And you can also use the tools on your other vehicles or friends cars.

And, since we track day guys need alot of front negative camber, some of us have camber plates. Camber plates will let you dial in more negative camber easily, then if you need a more conservative camber for street driving, you can go back easily. But, at the front, when you change your camber , the toe also changes. So it is not as easy as just moving your camber plates one way or another. You'll have to reset your toe. Now, changing toe is easy, but MEASURING toe is another story. With the introduction of OEM camber plates on the Gen 6 ZL1 1LE, I've seen many people think those camber plates make a track/street camber # easy to manipulate. Not so, because of the toe factor.

But, the biggest thing with the DIY, is you control the variables. Variables that even a shop will over look or not find important. One variable that stands out on our cars vs. non performance cars is the tires. Our low profile tires demand perfection when it come to symmetrical toe and the resulting zero thrust. Otherwise, it will drive sloppy, it won't do the same thing turning either direction and it may pull one way or another.

To get you started, here is a great video to get an idea of DIY alignments.


If you don't know much about camber, caster, and toe then start at the beginning. If you know all about that stuff, go to 18:45, and he starts into the methods. There are different ways to go about getting the car into a static state for precise measurements. If you have a 4 post lift that is level in every spot where the tires sit, perfect! Why is that perfect? Because everything you do depends on having a perfect flat area that the car sits on. That way your front to rear, side to side, corner to corner tires are sitting on a perfectly flat plane. This is your foundation for perfect/precise alignments.

Here's another good page on what we are measuring:
http://racetrackdriving.com/car-setup/track-alignment/

But, this post is not about "what camber do i need...........?".
There are tons of posts here on Camaro 5/6 to guide you in that direction. The search button is your friend there.

And if you think string alignment is hokey or not as precise as your local shop's alignment machine, think again. Control the variables, be deliberate and consistent in your procedures and take your time. How many shop machines get calibrated on a regular basis?

Lots more info to come!!

[cdb95z28]

It all starts with a foundation.
If you can't find a flat, level spot then your #s will not be precise. And you will not have repeat ability. You have to put the car in the same spot every time.

So what I did was I poured a second driveway. My house is on a corner lot and our primary driveway is actually on the side street. I had always wanted to do another driveway at the front of my house. So my intentions were do do a spot near the house that was almost level. Almost because I thought I would need some fall away from the house for water control. In doing this I knew I would make some pads for the car to sit on. I fabricated (4) 12"x12" pads from 1/4" stainless plate and I figured out 4 spots on the concrete where I wanted the car to sit. I marked these spots on the concrete so I could reinstall the pads in the same place every time. Since the concrete was not level I shimmed each pad so that they all would be level, front to rear, side to side and corner to corner. All of them are within .1* of each other. Also, the pads give a spot for the use of "turning plates". Turning plates allow the tire to move laterally, releasing any bind that the tires create with gravity and grip. There are turning plates available from some manufacturers, but they are very pricey. A cheap product to use is a pair of linoleum floor squares from your local Lowes. If you put them face to face with some oil on them and place them under each tire, that will minimize any bind. If your spot is not level, your car could move laterally because of the slippery nature of these homemade turning plates. The use of these plates is critical for getting precise results because any bind the tire creates will hinder free movement of your adjustments.



Now the biggest problem with just the pads was that if I had to adjust, I would have to raise the car to get under it to gain access to the adjustments.

In order to get the car up and be at static ride height without breaking the bank, I was able to procure steel scaffold planks and eventually I doubled them up to have the car up a fair amount for access. The car is stable on the planks, which can handle alot of weight.

The problem with jacking the car up everytime to make adjustments is that you will loose your ability to make precise measurements during adjustment. And some cars have stiff suspensions, and they will not easily return to their static ride height after you let the suspension go full droop. This is were a four post lift is great, you can get under the car safely and comfortably and keep it at ride height.









Here's an early pic from when I first started my procedure. just the leveling pads and linoleum squares. Good for precision measurement but no good if I had to adjust at the rear. Here I am checking caster. This requires the wheel/tire assembly be turned 15* (or 20*) either direction. The Longacre camber/caster gauge has a caster mode that calculates the caster. You can also calculate caster the old school way by measuring the camber # at both the 15* or 20* movement points. There is a short formula that gets you the caster # from these figures.

My Longacre AccuLevel digital level calculates caster at 15*, where as some bubble type gauges use 20*. I'll talk more about the Longacre setup and caster later.

[cdb95z28]

Here's a pic showing the doubled up scaffold planking. Plenty of room to get under the rear and make adjustments. Up front, If I have to adjust camber, yes, I have to jack the car up and remove a wheel. This is not a big deal as the order in which I perform the checks and adjustments is that I start at the front and check the camber and caster. I won't string the car until I get the front camber/caster where I want it. Once I get the camber/caster right, and if I had to jack the car up, I will drive the car off the ramps and move the car so the suspension compresses to ride height. I then go back on the ramps and proceed with the next step. And with the way my driveway terminates at the front of the car, I have easy access to the front tie rods for toe adjustment.

[cdb95z28]

Concerning the ride height, I will check it when I first pull onto the ramps. I check it with a tape measure that is in millimeters. (Pic shows in inches, but in mm allows for more precision). I check it from the lowest lip on the wheel up to the fender edge. If I do have to move the car or for the sake of keeping data on the variables, I can recheck the ride heights.

You can see in this pic I have a pair of linoleum tiles under the tire for bind reduction.



For the sake of consistency, have your tire pressure, fuel load and any other static weight the same each time you do the alignment. To get a pure baseline, your tires should be brand new as tires that wear will skew the camber readings a bit. This is especially true with tires that are used hard on the track as they wear very unevenly. It's not much, maybe a tenth of a degree or two, but it is a variable that plays a part.

[cdb95z28]

We are looking to check the following:
Camber
Caster
Toe
Thrust

I try to get the #s to match side to side. Getting the camber and caster the same is not as big of a deal as getting the toe the same. The toe then affects the thrust measurement. I'm OK with camber and caster being different by .2*, but I still strive to get them perfect. Any more than that they start to create forces that may pull the car one way or another. If you track, depending on the track configuration, you may actually want more negative camber on the left side or the right side. We call it an asymmetrical alignment. The NASCAR guys do it for the ovals because they are only turning left. The demands on the right side tires are very different than the lefts. But some road courses are right or left corner dominant, and you can break that down to the types of corners they are. Maybe your track has more right hand, tight heavy loading corners so you might want more negative camber on the lefts.

Since we don't align the car with the driver, we can compensate. I have found on my car that when I add my weight (200lbs) to the driver's seat, the car gains about .1* of negative camber at the LF and LR. Every setup can be different though depending on spring rate and driver weight.

Here's a pic describing what thrust is:



Thrust is a big deal, it's one of those forces that can alter whether the car drives straight or not. Since our Camaros are independent rear suspension, the thrust is easily manipulated. Getting a great alignment is more contingent upon getting the rear wheels aligned to perfection than the fronts.

In the past, I have been fortunate to be able to do my own alignments on a alignment rack at a local shop. But I have not had my car on an alignment machine for 3+ years. I mentioned this in my build thread, and I still have this option, but I believe my setup and procedure allows for more precision. I have questioned the accuracy of that alignment rack as it has shown inconsistent variation throughout my times there. Here are a few pics I took of the screen. From the top, you can see caster, camber, and toe at the front and camber toe and thrust at the rear, then the third pic is the entire car alignment.

[newz1]

Thanks for the info and pictures. Will be useful in the coming track season .

[hesster]

Can't beat a Dealer alignment, worth the $$$ to align my car to the specs I wanted (aggressive street) - if you can find a GM willing to take the time. After a complete suspension thrash, I used a inexpensive alignment tool to get me "close", but knew I needed a seasoned dealer alignment person to adjust the Moreno Camber/Caster plates to give me the right Caster numbers, which is not adjustable on these cars w/o the plates. The pic of the Moreno Plate is PRE adjustment, Caster is obtained by rotating the plate, so achieving the desired Frt Camber/Caster spec is a "Iterative" process.
It took more than 2 hrs by the tech to dial it in, but everything was w/in .01 degree! Notice the much wider variation of the Stock Specs , and the desired higher Caster Specs in a "Aggressive Street" Spec.

Alignment specs for the 2010 Camaro SS:

STOCK SPECIFICATIONS-STOCK SPRINGS
FRONT:
· CAMBER: 0° to -1.6°
· CASTER 6.70° - 7.10°
· TOE: 0 TO 1/8” TOTAL TOE IN

REAR:
· CAMBER: 0° to -1.0°
· TOE: 0 TO 1/8” TOTAL TOE IN

The following Aggressive Street settings are recommended based on an average drop of 1 inch:
Front:
Camber to -1.0 degrees
caster 7.4 to 7.8 degrees (requires adding caster Pedders Caster eccentrics to get into this range of caster, or something like Moreno Camber Plates
Toe: .1 degrees toe out each wheel.
This amount of toe out will reduce tire scrub and understeer, and will not add to tire wear.

Rear
Camber to -.5 degrees. Reducing the camber to this level will reduce understeer. With a 1 inch drop or lower, you cannot obtain this number without Pedders rear camber eccentrics
Toe to .05 degrees toe in each wheel.

My Specs:
Frt Cm = -.9/-1.0
Frt Cs = 7.6/7/7 (more than stock target of 6.7 to 7.1 is a good thing)
Frt Toe = 0.07/0.07
Rr Camber = -0.7/-0.6 (cam bolts just about maxed out)
Rr Toe = 0.01/0.01

Note how all R/L results are within 0.1 degree or less!

[cdb95z28]

More to come!

[cdb95z28]

Originally Posted by hesster

Can't beat a Dealer alignment, worth the $$$ to align my car to the specs I wanted (aggressive street) - if you can find a GM willing to take the time. After a complete suspension thrash, I used a inexpensive alignment tool to get me "close", but knew I needed a seasoned dealer alignment person to adjust the Moreno Camber/Caster plates to give me the right Caster numbers, which is not adjustable on these cars w/o the plates. The pic of the Moreno Plate is PRE adjustment, Caster is obtained by rotating the plate, so achieving the desired Frt Camber/Caster spec is a "Iterative" process.
It took more than 2 hrs by the tech to dial it in, but everything was w/in .01 degree! Notice the much wider variation of the Stock Specs , and the desired higher Caster Specs in a "Aggressive Street" Spec.

Alignment specs for the 2010 Camaro SS:

STOCK SPECIFICATIONS-STOCK SPRINGS
FRONT:
· CAMBER: 0° to -1.6°
· CASTER 6.70° - 7.10°
· TOE: 0 TO 1/8” TOTAL TOE IN

REAR:
· CAMBER: 0° to -1.0°
· TOE: 0 TO 1/8” TOTAL TOE IN

The following Aggressive Street settings are recommended based on an average drop of 1 inch:
Front:
Camber to -1.0 degrees
caster 7.4 to 7.8 degrees (requires adding caster Pedders Caster eccentrics to get into this range of caster, or something like Moreno Camber Plates
Toe: .1 degrees toe out each wheel.
This amount of toe out will reduce tire scrub and understeer, and will not add to tire wear.

Rear
Camber to -.5 degrees. Reducing the camber to this level will reduce understeer. With a 1 inch drop or lower, you cannot obtain this number without Pedders rear camber eccentrics
Toe to .05 degrees toe in each wheel.

My Specs:
Frt Cm = -.9/-1.0
Frt Cs = 7.6/7/7 (more than stock target of 6.7 to 7.1 is a good thing)
Frt Toe = 0.07/0.07
Rr Camber = -0.7/-0.6 (cam bolts just about maxed out)
Rr Toe = 0.01/0.01

Note how all R/L results are within 0.1 degree or less!

I agree, if you can find a good shop/tech, that is worth the $. But if you can't find someone and like to tweek or suspect your alignment is moving (some Gen 6 guys have movement), then DIY is an option.

We can also adjust the caster at the front radius rod mount by way of ovaling the bolt holes and using caster blocks> I made my own caster blocks but Detroit Speed sells them also. I had the first Gen Morenos and they are nice. At one time I had +9.5* of caster.

[cdb95z28]

Here is what I use to hold the steering wheel solid and straight










It can be found on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/SAVEMORE4U18-...2738416&sr=8-1

When making changes to the front toe, you must hold the steering wheel rigidly. This tool works perfect to do that. Otherwise the steering wheel can move a small amount and you will start chasing your adjustments. Good alignment shops use something similar but their's also holds the brake pedal down so the car cannot move. But I find that unnecessary as the application of the parking brake holds the car.

The tool is adjustable and user friendly. When adjusting, center your steering wheel. I rock it back and forth quickly a little when I drive the car onto the alignment pads. The previously mentioned linoleum squares allow the steering to work smoothly and easily with no bind. If I am not making any changes to camber or caster I will install the tool immediately after getting the car on the alignment pads. If you need to change camber or caster, you'l have to wait to install it until you are ready to check toe and thrust.

I will center the steering wheel then install the holder. The arms of the tool fit perfectly with the flat bottom steering wheel of the 1LE. But any shape steering wheel will fit great too. Push down hard so the tool depresses into the seat. It has to be firmly installed. Now on my suede 1LE seats the tool will leave a ring when removed. But the ring can be brushed away with no harm.

If you must raise the car for whatever reason, always check the steering wheel straightness. The tool will hold very firmly but any strong movement of the steering system may allow the tool to lose its grip.

[cdb95z28]

The info up to this point has been about laying the foundations. Get the car on a level, flat surface and that is a huge step for precision and repeat ability. Do you have a four post lift? Can you get it perfectly level and flat where the car will sit? That would be easier than what I am working with. That is what alignment shops use, but make sure the lift will give you a flat, level surface.

Once we have the car on a flat, level foundation we can start the checking of our alignment.

The procedure should be as follows:
1)Camber
2)Caster
3)Toe/Thrust

If you have coilovers, we can add ride height and scaling the car before the above checks. I'm not going to cover these as they are inter-related and require weigh scales to properly setup a coilover setup.

As I mentioned in post #4, I do check my ride height even though I do not have coilovers on my car. I like to know that the car is sitting at a natural unbound state. If I change a suspension component I will verify the suspension has settled to it's previous state. If I jack up the car to change the front camber, I will again check the ride height to make sure the car settled back down. The alignment settings change as the wheel (ride height) moves up and down. So it is good to understand the suspension is in the same state every time otherwise it is a (small) variable.

This is the tool I use to check camber and caster



Longacre Digital Camber Caster Gauge, #52-78298
http://www.longacreracing.com/produc...-Wheel-Adapter

It is expensive, but once set up for your wheel size, it is super easy to use. And you can use it on other vehicles also.

It will sit on the the outer edge of the wheel lip, but I never trusted it to stay so I use a bungee cord (yellow arrow) to hold it to the wheel.

More to come!

[h018871]

Sub'd, Thx for this cdb, interested in upcoming updates

[cdb95z28]

Originally Posted by h018871

Sub'd, Thx for this cdb, interested in upcoming updates

Once we get thru the holidays I'll add more! Lots of info to add

[cdb95z28]

Continued........

Let's stay with the tools that I use.

In addition to the Longacre Digital Camber/Caster Tool and the Steering Wheel Holder:

-Torpedo level-8” Empire Tru Blu EM71.8 (Home Depot) https://www.homedepot.com/p/Empire-8...71-8/203811785

-Digital vernier caliper https://www.harborfreight.com/6-in-d...per-63711.html

-Locking compass-Helix #18803, Locking https://www.amazon.com/Helix-Univers...0424588&sr=8-2

-2” Blue painter's tape https://www.homedepot.com/p/3M-Scotc...48CP/100550611

-(2) Bungee Cords

-(2or 4) Quick Grip clamps to help hold the conduit onto the rigs. Once we get everything set, we don't want them to move! https://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-4...3191/204987956

-Braided fishing line, Derala Super PE X4, 50lb, 125yd, .36mm I couldn't find the Derala anymore, so I found this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/300-1000M-S...Cclp%3A2334524

-(2) Weights, around 2-2.5lbs each, both same weight. I used some brass rod I had laying around. But a a couple big diameter bolts will work. Something that has good mass and won't be too large.

-300mm steel rule, .5mm increments, Shinwa #H-101C (13013), 300 mm rigid. i previously used a 150mm long rule but found this larger 300mm rule is easier to hold steady.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

-(2) 1” x10’ EMT metal conduit cut to 92”
I use one piece of the EMT conduit at the front, and a 92" long piece of 2" square aluminum tube at the rear
https://www.homedepot.com/p/1-in-x-1...0000/304229415

-Toe bar, Longacre #52-79622 http://www.longacreracing.com/produc...etitle=Toe-Bar

-Tape measure, millimeter, Stanley 3.5m/12’ https://www.homedepot.com/p/Stanley-...3754530?NCNI-5

-(8) 12x12 peel and stick linoleum floor squares, with adhesive, something like this, get the thick ones, they are more durable: https://www.homedepot.com/p/TrafficM...1212/206403282

-Small amount of gear oil to lubricate the linoleum floor squares. We will be putting two squares face to face to create a slippery pad that the tires sit on. This is done to minimize any bind between the tire and ground. And it helps when we check caster. Add some oil between the squares so the there is no bind. BUT! It is important that your car and platform are level, because the car could slid off the squares if there is any lateral force on the car!!! When you drive your car onto the squares, they will slide very easy when you apply the brakes or if you are accelerating onto them. You must be soft and gentle when driving onto and off of the linoleum squares!! See below pics with circled linoleum squares

- Notebook, pen/pencil, Sharpie



















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