Camber Question for the all knowledgadablers

[RussMan]

Hey,

Well brought fto back to dealer yesterday thanks to lend of two wheels from Neil (thanks again). Showed him my two blown tyres and he seemed genuine and wanted to help. So i drove down with one of the staff to their contract mechanics to take a look. For those not bothered reading on the end result was two replacement tyres. Result!

The mechanic said that the problem was down to the camber setting, advising that it was set this way for improved handling in corners and that the tracking probably needed to be done again. I was pretty pissed about the whole situation as if the blowout happened on the M50 i wouldn't be alive no doubt! I further explained to the mechanic that no matter what camber the cars suspension was running that i shouldn't eat up two new tyres in 1K miles unless i was on a track... he agreed.

Quick questions:

Initially the mechanic advised that the camber cannot be changed on these shocks as the shocks are non-adjustable? Then I said they should (didn't really know this - he asked had i be reading up on this) - they are standard fto gp shocks as far as i am aware. After saying this to him he went.... oh well er em they are adjustable so your lucky? Is he speaking ar$e? Any advise on things to check when i get the car back so this doesn't happen again and i never have to go back to these guys?

Thanks
Russ

[CJ]

OK, you don't mention but I'm assuming the blowouts were on the front? You can't adjust the front camber on standard shocks so they must have been aftermarket. It is possible, however, to fit camber bolts onto the front shocks for adjustment purposes, theses should be readily visible on the shock body. Get in there and see if you can spot any parts numbers on the shocks, Front Mitsi GPvR p/ns are MR333513 and MR333514. Best to see what you have before you look into ity any further.

Did the mechanic say how much out the camber was? Was it +/-? Did he track it or stick it up onto a 4-wheel alignment system?

CJ

[Myfeckin FTO]

Are you still running with coilovers on the back and standard dampers on the front? Did you find out what dampers they put on the front?

[soc]

Initially the mechanic advised that the camber cannot be changed on these shocks as the shocks are non-adjustable? Then I said they should (didn't really know this - he asked had i be reading up on this) - they are standard fto gp shocks as far as i am aware. After saying this to him he went.... oh well er em they are adjustable so your lucky? Is he speaking backside? Any advise on things to check when i get the car back so this doesn't happen again and i never have to go back to these guys?

Thanks
Russ

Mate, it sounds like they haven't a clue what they're talking about.

As standard the FTO has not camber adjustment on the front (only on the rear).

You can fit (as CJ mentioned) some adjustable camber bolts which allow you modify the camber from +2 deg to -2 deg. These bolts are located in where the shock attaches to the hub - can't remember if it's top or bottom set of bolts that are changed. I had them fitted to my old GR and with excessive negative camber found turn in was amazing but straight running was scary!

The other possibility is that there may be adjustable top mounts fitted which will also allow you adjust the camber but from within the engine bay at the top of the shock.

My adivce for when you get the car back is 2-fold,

1. Meet up with one of the longer-term members and get them to have a look at the shocks (check for adjustable top mounts and/or camber bolts, compare front to rear shocks, etc.)

2. Get over to Dave McCanns and get a laser wheel alignment done!

[RussMan]

Cheers guys. I managed to get the fto back yesterday and i'm pretty happy. The car feels completely different to what i've been used to... it feels really solid / firm on the road unlike the fiat uno type handling i've been used to. They put two new tyres on the front also.
I didn't get an engineers report as the mechanics are a 3rd party and collected p&j from dealer who I am thinking a bit higher of now due to a better experience this time round!
I'm going to try my best to make this meet so i can get some opinions from you lot in the "know"
Thanks again to Neill for the lend of wheels ... must drop them back later