I made it! A question about Rear Camber and lowering springs

[Kalevera]

Today I drove my e34, which was sitting in someone's yard for the past two years, about 400+ miles from Charlotte to Cleveland. With the new suspension, she drove like a dream. The speedo came back to life for about 100 miles of the trip, which was nice. Otherwise, I drove by the tach. OBC went a little haywire after the speedo went out again - the temp got stuck at 25oF, the range as well.

Question:

In installing the rear BavAuto springs on (what appear to be) a set of Sachs struts, I didn't change anything beyond the strut mounts. Now, I have a wicked toe out - the car looks like it's riding on the inner center of the tires.

I know that the issue has been beaten to death on the board. I've done a search but came up with few conclusive answers. Do I install eccentric bushings, camber plates? Winfred posted info on BavAuto's $34/pop x 4 eccentric bushings. Anything cheaper out there?


Otherwise, she drove like a brand new car...really nice power and a very comfortable ride.

Best, Whit

[George M]

...not much recourse other than live with the increased camber or install eccentric bushings. The Bav Auto springs take a rear suspension already with a fair amount of neg camber and dial in even more also affecting the toe...purely due to the arc the suspension follows the higher the wheels tuck up into the body due to a shorter and lower rate spring.
Good Luck,
George

[bimmerd00d]

how much will the eccentric bushings cure?

[George M]

my guess is will restore the rear suspension close to original camber and toe. Not to be negative but my view is...two wrongs don't make a right. The height of the rear suspension on these cars is pretty close to where I think it should be as typically the front needs to be dropped a fair amount and the rear of the car sits about the right height. The Bav Auto springs really slam both the front and rear of the car which is not conducive to any kind of ride and to my eye does not look good either...had this set up on my E-32 and hated it....but is in the eye of the beholder. I prefer the M-technik drop of 1 inch or so looks better IMHO and provides if anything an improvement in handling with little downside to ride.
If you are going real big wheels however...18-19 inch dia...the Bav Auto springs cosmetically will look better because you need a lower beltline to visually work with the big wheels. You will be stuck with the same poor ride however....2 inches of wheel travel is a lot to give up on these heavy cars and will be aggravated by the higher unsprung mass of the bigger wheels and shorter side wall. All what you want.
George

[Johntee540]

The car is designed to perform with a -1 camber from the factory with stock suspension. If you put wider tires on it without lowering springs you would be riding on the inside of your tires in the rear.

My concern with the Camber plates is that they may not improve the handling characteristics that you went for by lowering the car in the first place. I just plan on buying tires for the rear as needed over time to enjoy the rather robust cornering I now have with the HR spring set up I have along with the Bilstien Sports and RD Sways. I also did the Road Race Technology Thrust/Control Arms with the Milspec Bearing in place of the Bushing and boy does it turn in nice!

Thats the 2 cents I have. Anybody got change for a nickel? - JT

[Kalevera]

I'd originally thought I'd ixnay the bavauto springs, but now that they're on - I like them a lot, and I really like the way the car rides. I wasn't looking for a harsh ride to begin with, so it worked out nicely.

I'm planning on putting a set of 17's on with 235's. I don't see how changing the tire size will fix the camber issue, but my ignorance is more likely the cause of that.

...It looks like I'll be installing rear eccentric bushings...


LOWELL

[Johntee540]

I was just saying that the car - unaltered - has a negative camber. Putting wider tires on merely exagerates the negative camber - then lowering it exacerbates it. So just plan on having excessive inner rear tire wear - thats all I was saying - JT

[George M]

changing the tire size will not so call fix your camber issue. First both tire size and camber including wear are all relative....a matter of degree. Increased negative camber which is a natural by-product of lowering will cause any tire to ride more on its inside edge. When you widen the tire, the inside edge is farther from wheel centerline and hence you have a higher magnitude of wear comparative to a stock tire width/footprint.
HTH,
George

[George M]

sorry brother but just wanted to set the record straight...you mis-stated again....putting wider tires on you car does NOT exaggerate negative camber.
Changing tires does NOT change the camber.
I am not sure if you understand the dynamic as you said it again. Re-read what I wrote and perhaps it will become clear.
George

[Johntee540]

I re-read your post - I think we are saying the same things. I may not be descibing it as technically elegantly. My observation was soley based on "looking at the back end of my car" - purely no science involved. Hopefully that clears up my assertions. - Jt