s2000james

Hi guys! Just last week I've got all my suspension bushings changed (with MUGEN hard rubbers, and had Spoon sub-frame and steering rack rigid collars installed as well), along with it... new alignment setting. Right afterward, the ride of my S feels very strange: it wiggles (slightly) from side to side as if the car follows the road's uneveness left and right. It is very unsettling. I wonder if it is a problem with my new slignment setting.

To the surprise of my mechanic, the car came in with all toe-out for all wheels! Here is the old reading :

(Front)

-0.9' (Camber) -0.9'

3.0mm (Toe-out) 3.5mm


(Rear)

-1.7' (Camber) -2..2'

3.5mm (Toe-out) 3.0mm




After the bush change, the shop gave me new alignment:

(Front)

-1.1' (Camber) -1.1'

0.0mm (Toe-in) 0.0mm


(Rear)

-2.0' (Camber) -2..0'

4.5mm (Toe-in) 4.5mm



... and now, this "wiggle" feels like the car will follow whichever wheel that has a bigger bite of the road surface and nudges to that side, and it keeps nudging left and right along the road; and the tires screech all the way in indoor parking garage.

The front wheels were corrected from toe-out to 0.0 toe-in, which is Honda's suggested setting and should gives me better straight line stability. The most drastic change to my new alignment, I suppose, would be the rear, from 3.5mm toe-out to 4.5mm toe-in. However, Honda's factory specs even asks for 6.0mm toe-in. Wouldn't it be more "wiggly" if I had my rear set to 6.0mm toe-in? But aren't we all supposed to have toe-in for the rear wheels? How should this be a problem at all? (I would also rule out Spoon's sub-frame and steering rack rigid collars that are causing this, it wouldn't make sense).


Is the combination of -2.0' camber and 4.5mm toe-in makes the rear tires as if they stand on tip-toe, thus when the wheels's inner side bites the road, the car follows that wheels's angle favorably ? Would less camber and less toe-in makes things normal?

Thanks and appreciate any inputs!

Slowcrash_101

What is your caster set at? That can cause wandering. Your toe settings are conservative, and you don't have crazy camber. Maybe the new bushings give you better steering response and you're still getting used to it.

s2000james

Caster... not sure. The shop that changed my bushings didn't have computerized alignment machine. The guy used strings and ruler to set alignment for me, he couldn't measure caster with that; and he assumed that caster never changed from the factory setting.

But this "wiggle/nudge" doesn't feel like wandering front wheels caused by small caster. It feels more like bent wheels (which I'm sure is not the case) that nudge left and right on uneven pavement, very quick and sudden wiggles, it feels more pronounced at low speeds, like inside indoor parking.

I am scheduled to have my alignment re-set by a shop with computerized machine. I hope this will sort things out.

But before I go, I'd like to hear if there is any possible reason that causes these "wiggle/nudge". Since my suspensions were totally taken apart, any place that might have gone wrong when put back together? Rear axle nuts not torqued back enough or torqued up differently? The Spoon's steering rack rigid collars causing extreme steering sensitivity (thought I very much doubt that)?

Slowcrash_101

Guy aligned it by eye? I really hope whoever did it knows the exact track width of your car, or at least measured it accordingly. Something tells me your alignment is all sorts of off.

Car Analogy

+1 on alignment is off. I had this same effect from a bad alignment. Gas on, gas off, car would pull one way or the other. Felt anything but stable.

Get a real alignment, not a strings and ruler alignment.

zeroptzero

I think this explains everything. Get a proper alignment and everything will be solved.

freetors

Don't knock the string alignment. If the person doing it is meticulous and detailed the results will be as good or better than a computer alignment. Those fancy lasers and two decimal display are likely not as accurate or or repeatable as you might think. I do my own alignments with strings, rulers, and levels and can measure camber, toe, and caster. My car drives perfectly straight. Remember, the Egyptians built the pyramids with basically the same tools.

Slowcrash_101

I'm not knocking it, not at all, if you know what you're doing you can definitely use a string rulers and gauges. I'm a little skeptical that a shop that needs to do things on a timely basis would actually go through the trouble, that's all.

freetors

I'm not knocking it, not at all, if you know what you're doing you can definitely use a string rulers and gauges. I'm a little skeptical that a shop that needs to do things on a timely basis would actually go through the trouble, that's all.
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Well he is in Hong Kong. Maybe things are different over there.

Car Analogy

你在香港吗？我不知道你们有多S2000在 哪儿。。。