SEVERE tire wear

James Scott · #1 04-12-2005, 02:15 PM

After 7 months [about 13,000 miles] with Hankook V102 245 45 16's all around....(my tires were rotated/balanced once after about 3 months)...the inside edge of the rear tires were worn to the steel! I know this is because of rigid drop springs/Koni strut inserts....BUT can you tell me the corrected camber setting I can use in back to get a little wear from the tires?

THANKS!...for any suggestions...[the alignment was performed after installing drop springs (4 wheel) at factory specs]

mbtoloczko · #2 04-12-2005, 02:39 PM

From the factory, the SVX has no rear camber adjustment. Did you install camber adjusting bolts for the rear?

The tire wear probably isn't due directly to the Koni struts and drop springs. Factory spec for the rear camber covers a pretty wide range, if the camber were at the negative end of the range, that would easily cause the tire wear you mentioned. This is especially true if the rear toe is also out of spec or nearly out of spec. Did the alignment shop give you sheet showing the alignment numbers?

If you haven't already installed camber bolts, do that, and then take the car to a good alignment shop and have the rear camber set at -0.6 deg with 0" inches of toe. Have them print out the alignment specs before and after they make adjustments.

Beav · #3 04-12-2005, 02:47 PM

Are the tires 'feathered' or just worn on the inside edges? (treads have a sawtooth appearance) Feathering would indicate a camber issue, it results from trying to make the tire like a dixie cup on its side. Smaller diameter inside, larger outside. Spins at different speeds inside to out. If the tires are just smoothly worn on the inside it's probably an incorrect toe setting, the most common cause of edge wear. Toe is the most critical spec. Also, when tires wear on the inside edges from toe it could be due to worn/loose parts that allow the tires to toe-out, causing the inside edges to be the leading edges and catch heck.

James Scott · #4 04-16-2005, 04:01 AM

Thanks for the great info guys!! The shop I use is expensive, old-fashioned, and should be as good as any......I will have them check rear figures, then adjust to the -0.6 and zero toe values you have suggested...

Thanks again!

P.S. I didn't install the adjustment bolts in rear because the shop said they weren't necessary to achieve the stock camber figure! But, i have them still, so I will have them installed to get the -0.6 camber position.

mbtoloczko · #5 04-16-2005, 10:30 AM

Without the aftermarket camber bolts, the rear camber cannot be adjusted. You can try do to an alignment without the bolts, but its a crap shoot. Maybe the camber will be acceptable,... maybe it will not. And chances are that it will be different on each side. And since you've lowered the car, its a reasonable bet that you need the camber bolts to get an acceptable camber value.

There's nothing to loose in installing the bolts. They are about $30 for a set of two bolts, and since you've already disassembled your rear struts, the old bolts will easily come off, and the camber bolts can be easily installed. Shouldn't take more than 1/2 to install both bolts yourself.