Excessive camber and alignment

[babyduke]

2005 X5 3.0i Sports

Many people have told me that negative camber on my X5 is rather normal. I've talked to tire guys and they too said that BMW just makes them like that which they cannot figure why. My mechanic says it's got to do with independent suspension.

In any case, the bottom part of the rear wheels were sticking out noticeably and the inner corner part of the tires were terribly worn out. They have about 50K miles on 'em which is also the last time I got the alignment done. So I ordered new tires and got them installed then took it to a reputable shop who specializes on wheel alignment.

Here is the result. Everything was within the specs except:

Rear R camber was at -2.5 degrees and corrected to -1.9. Specified range is -2.2 to -1.5 degrees Its toe was at -1/8" and corrected to 1/16". SR is 1/16" to 1/8".

Rear L camber was at -2.4 and was corrected -1.8 degrees. Toe was at -1/4" and corrected to 1/8". Specified range is same as above.

Both front toes were at 1/8" and corrected to 1/16". SR is 1/16" to 1/8".

My wheels look much straighter now. Looking at the above number, can someone tell me how off the alignment was before the service? What causes excessive camber? I don't drive like a maniac.