caster adjustment shims?

[htyei]

What are your thoughts on this? My local alignment shops said i might need
aftermarket caster alignment shims
to adjust my alignment if its bad,
he even said they may need to drill.

I know the oem caster cant be adjusted.

But I would like to know
How much do they cost?
Are they reliable?
any personal experiences with these things on an svx?

[svx_commuter]

It is possible that the strut or lower control arm is bent or the subframe. Then a caster adjustment would correct the problem. However, if the strut is bent, then turning the nut at the top with a wrench should let you see the the top of the strut shell move while turning the nut.

I have changed struts, upper strut mount and lower ball joint on my car. All of these parts have very little room to move from side to side. The connecting bolts center the parts very well.

Unless the holes have opened up a lot for centering the ball joint or the strut mount, then it should be close to the original position.

The strut fits tightly into the steering knuckle. No looseness in that area other than in and out for the camber adjustment.

How long have you had your car?

[htyei]

ive had it for a year,
its a 92.
It has 59800 miles on it.
When i first bought it, it already drifted to the right. I got an alignment a year ago and the mechanic said the frame maybe possibly bent, andthat they couldnt align it perfectly because the caster was not adjustable.

This time I got an alignment again, and the(different mechanic) warned me I might have to pay to have aftermarket caster shims installed to correct my alignment if it was bad.


They did the alignment, and didnt install the shims, they noted no problems.

Unfortuanately, it still drifts to the right.

its not a strong pull, but on a straight road, you can see it veer of to the right.

I've trained my self to hold the wheel abit left to compensate.

I was just wonder if these shims could possible fix that?

[svx_commuter]

I really do not know if the caster can fix that. I ahve no experience with that. Is your steering really tight? Little or no play in the steering wheel? With the car turned off, release the steering wheel and rock the steering wheel from side to side about an inch both ways. Do you feel any knocking? If you do it is the tie rods. Check to make sure your tires move when you move the steering wheel.

The SVX has a very low ratio steering rack. A little movement of the steering wheel causes the wheels to move a lot relative to other cars.

Did you get a four wheel alignment?

[1994SubaruSVX]

after putting 17" wheels on the car. it through my alignment off. my alignment guy drilled the slot a little deeper so that the wheel could be shifted more and could ulimately aligned. put if you are riding on stock wheels and suspension there should be plenty of play and adjustment to properly align your car.