BS on changing tire alignment specs from stock.

[toolmanmike]

Yes I have aligned my Satellite. Manual steering car. I have played with the caster and camber quite a bit. Stock suspension I started by adjusting the right side caster as high as possible, I think it was 3.75 caster and -1/4 camber. I adjusted the left side to match less 1/4 degree caster. The car drove great and straight. I liked everything about it except the parking lot maneuvering. After several hours and several test drives repeated. I found that right side 3 caster 0 camber. Left side 2.75 caster 0 camber. My car drives great, parking lot maneuvering is ok
Caster Has a great influence on cornering and straight line stability. Castor trail or mechanical trail helps with bringing the wheel back to center.
I believe that our cars can drive ok using that chart, but cars are individuals just like us.. Play with the numbers and road test to see what fit your car and driving style.
Also with our B bodies having torsion bars, make sure you set the ride height to where you want it before you have it aligned.
Remember there are other angles in play that need to be checked during a proper alignment
S.I.A. And included angle are diagnostic angles.

Thanks for chiming in Scott. 0 camber with a 1/4° caster spread. Is that for road crown? With new and tight steering linkage do you set toe at 0 or a smidge in?

 

[gtxrt]

stop in at the shop asked what was my exact specs. he said .2 degrees negative camber. .1 degree negative caster and 3/32 toe in. I asked about positive caster. he said for a manual steering that is where he likes it. he asked me why how does it drive. i said not that hard to steer even with manual steering, the steering wheel is dead on center, it does not pull at all even on the side roads and handles nice around curves. then he said good bye. lol

 

[Kern Dog]

stop in at the shop asked what was my exact specs. he said .2 degrees negative camber. .1 degree negative caster and 3/32 toe in. I asked about positive caster. he said for a manual steering that is where he likes it. he asked me why how does it drive. i said not that hard to steer even with manual steering, the steering wheel is dead on center, it does not pull at all even on the side roads and handles nice around curves. then he said good bye. lol

I don't see why you think that is funny enough to laugh about.
Who cares what HE likes to set the alignment to? He isn't the one that will be driving them. Maybe if you drive extremely careful, don't go over 55, rarely encounter moderate winds, never take a corner fast enough to make the tires squeal and obey all speed laws, you might be okay.
Good luck with the car.

 

[Scott Engelhardt]

Yes the caster split is for road crown. Some cars require 1/2 degree less on the left side to hold the crown. I set my toe at .1 degree toe in

 

[gtxrt]

ok will change my opinion somewhat. on manual steering for me I do not want to go crazy on positive caster for steering effort so 1/2 to 1 degree positive caster and no more than a 1/4 degree negative camber I could live with. on my Newport I will try the same camber but more caster at about 2 degrees positive. Not sure where the Newport is at but like the RT it drives very nice now. for me am not interested in going around curves at great speeds but am interested in going fast in a straight line and both cars now at 110 mph drive very stable at that speed before the alignment the RT was very unstable. like I said in my first post this is my opinion only.

 

[Scott Engelhardt]

I am lucky enough to have an alignment machine and a very flat bay in my shop, within 3/8 of an inch. Nice for alignment but have to squidgy that floor to remove the water.
I also have a customer that will let me use his equipment to make sure I am good.