Spirited Drive -- Now rear Camber Negative

[andrewwynn]

Actually it was directly fore-aft.

[RocketyMan]

Well...here it is. I took out the wishbone control arm. The ball joint in it is of course very "loose" feeling--but I'm not sure how that would translate into a bad control arm. I cant feel any clicking, of course, in my hand when i'm articulating the ball joint with my fingers.

In comparison, the front tiny control arm was much stiffer articulating the joint on it.

How else would I even be able to prove the wishbone is bad just because the joint feels really loose? Is that grounds for a bad joint?

P.S. I looked up what I bought, and it is REIN brand. They were $55 for each side. Let's see if I can try with the 2 year warranty...

[oldskewel]

Originally Posted by RocketyMan

Well...here it is. I took out the wishbone control arm. The ball joint in it is of course very "loose" feeling--but I'm not sure how that would translate into a bad control arm. I cant feel any clicking, of course, in my hand when i'm articulating the ball joint with my fingers.

In comparison, the front tiny control arm was much stiffer articulating the joint on it.

How else would I even be able to prove the wishbone is bad just because the joint feels really loose? Is that grounds for a bad joint?

P.S. I looked up what I bought, and it is REIN brand. They were $55 for each side. Let's see if I can try with the 2 year warranty...

Looking at that photo, the bushing end of it (i.e., the opposite end from the ball joint) seems to be internally displaced by a couple of millimeters. That would give you at least a couple of extra degrees of camber right there, and this is unloaded, so perhaps more when installed.

[crystalworks]

I would have thought the Rein would hold up. Is there any lateral play in the ball joint itself? Or it just feels loose? Wouldn't think that would cause excessive negative camber alone.

Could this be a really bad swing arm bushing(s)? Didn't see them mentioned in your first post of checks.

[andrewwynn]

When my ball joint failed the slop was mostly axial not radial meaning more toe problem than camber.

When the rubber bush side fails on the control arm or wishbone that can cause instant and dramatic change of the toe or camber.

It won't usually move from people power because the donut is still squeezed pretty tight just no longer centered. You may be able to get a Maddie from bolt to bolt to compare left and right sides and help determine but if you can't camber to spec it's almost always the wishbone.

[andrewwynn]

First: it shouldn't be easy to move with your fingers but I'm not sure how much that changes before becoming a problem.

Second: put the arm in a vice and see if you can pull either side in the long axis of the arm.

Mine was very sloppy and moved about 1-1.5 mm.

It only takes 1-2mm to really throw off the alignment because the pivot point is so close to the center of the axle. It would be good to know the length spec. Is it possible the whole arm is bent a little more than new? ) To make it shorter)?

[RocketyMan]

I'm not having issues with getting my camber to adjust. It's all my toe. I cannot adjust ANY amount of camber to get ANY amount of toe-in. Best I can do is like 3mm toe out--which I guess is crap.

My bushings in my lower A-arms are urethane. I'm at max adjust on the guide-link, control arm.

[RocketyMan]

FCP Euro has the Lemfoerder wishbones for $75 each with free shipping and supposedly lifetime warranty. I guess I'll try ordering these.

I wouldn't imagine a bad wheel bearing contributing to this as I think it would be sloppy all around and very noticeable.

[Fifty150hs]

Originally Posted by RocketyMan

FCP Euro has the Lemfoerder wishbones for $75 each with free shipping and supposedly lifetime warranty. I guess I'll try ordering these.

I wouldn't imagine a bad wheel bearing contributing to this as I think it would be sloppy all around and very noticeable.

Are you at stock ride height?

[RocketyMan]

Originally Posted by Fifty150hs

Are you at stock ride height?

Once I adjusted the correct camber, my left wheel was at 28" and the right side was at 28.5" measuring on 20" wheels.