nlieber

Took my car (2001 CL500 not sport) in for some new tires (Continental same size as OEM tires). The alignment operator was unable to get the camber adjustment any better than

Left front -0.9 (red or bad)
right front -2.5 (red or bad)
left rear -1.4 (but this was green or good)
right rear --2.2 (red or bad)

total toe on rear was bad -0.83 (red or bad)

He mentioned something about getting a camber kit to be able to finish alignment.

My questions:
How bad are these readings?
What part(s) are causing this to be bad?
Is there such a kit available? cost? Is it better to get the kit or repair whatever is causing these issues?

Thx not very informed on steering linkage parts and would appreciate hearing from others more knowledgeable than myself.

biker349

yes, there is a kit. it's cheap. prob. less than $10 a wheel plus installation. i have this on one whell. the rest are in spec.

nlieber

Where did you purchase the kit? Still have any information on it p/n etc?

Thx for replying

nlieber

Well lots of views but only one response. I ended up going to an area dealer and getting kits for the front at 20 dollars a piece. The service manager said the rear "wasn't that bad and lots of time their customers do not replace the parts if nothing seems affected handling/wear wise.
I will look for a local alignment shop to put these kits on and see what their result is with alignment.
I should mention that after the alignment I notice no pull/vibration or affect to the steering/handling.

fatmike

That's cause they don't have any factory parts to adjust the rear camber that much. KMAC makes front/rear camber bolts however.

grane

Fatmike is right, as usual.

http://www.k-mac.com/pages/newprods/...ercedes_05.htm

Dealer's opinion is suspect, as usual.

Get the MB area rep involved if you have no satisfaction.

The car needs be aligned from the rear first. It throws off the front.

"Anyone who can afford a MB can afford to replace tires even if the alignment is off."

True quote from an MB service direct to moi.

benz5001

Reviving this thread to keep it all together.

nlieber, How did you go with the kits?

I had a 4 wheel thrust alignment done today, (2002 CL500) at cost of $145 at suspension specialist. Copy of details below.

Indy said this was best camber he could achieve without camber bolts.

Some questions for the experts please-

1. Is negative camber of 1.5deg going to severely reduce tyre life?
2. Will camber bolts bring this back to within spec?
3. What is acceptable camber range?
4. This alignment was done with car at lowest ABC setting, curious as to what difference ABC at middle and highest setting would make to camber readings?

Thanks in advance.

nlieber

I ended up going to someone that was a suspension/alignment specialist vs a high volume tire shop to resolve me issue. I had already purchased the kits for the front from the dealer so I had them installed at the start before proceding with the alighnment.
The first thing we noticed after he successfully performed my alignment was the person that that did the first alignment set the machine up for a C class vs a CL !!! (I have received a refund from the original shop).
I did not get the aftermarket rear kit because I was with in specs with out it. I believe there are several threads on this site that mention it costs around 500 dollars US for the rear.
I do not think 1.5 neg in the rear is going to cause you any severe issues just remember these are heavy cars and go through tires at a quicker rate especially if you are a "spirited" driver.
The alignment specs are for the "low" setting unless you have had someone reprogram your height setting and then they should be the ones to tell you what changes you should make to alignment to compensate.
I don't think want to be running around on either of the other two highers settings on a regular basis as they are intended to compensate for road/snow conditions.

Thanks for bumping this so I would be prompted to fill out the rest of the story with my issue. I hate reading partial threads and here I was creating one.

fatmike

1.5 degrees is considered in the normal range. Yes it will affect tire wear, but it's fairly typical. You won't notice much. You basically want to align the car at the height you drive it. For example, when you align it lowered (all the way down) but you ride say 1 inch higher all around, you're going to have less camber while you drive. But the toe will change as the camber does. So if you align at the lowest setting, but drive higher...then you're still going to have wear issues. (Toe is the biggest killer of tires for most of you I'd say). Camber bolts provide about 2 degrees off adjustment IIRC.

My new stance is at -4.2 degrees at ride height and probably somewhere around -6 degrees all the way down for rear camber. :P whoops

With -4.2 degrees I'm still sitting at .1 toe front, .35 rear. Get your toe done fellas.

benz5001

Thanks for the prompt replies Guys.

Just to be clear, the 1.5 deg neg camber is on the front. At over $500 a throw on the rubber, I want some comfort that they're not going to be prematurely trashed. I dont drive like a maniac all the time, but i'm no driving Miss Daisy either.

I'll keep an eye on the wear and report back.

biker349

okay, maybe somone can help. 2004 cl600 with staggered stock 18" wheels and tires. i've had the car aligned on 3 different occasions over the past 1 1/2 years. the car is pretty much in specs and has 1 adjustment bolt in the front. front tires are wearing evenly. rear tires have always worne faster on the outside tread on both rear tires. i am running michellin 101y 265 40 18's on the rear which is stock. is there anyway to get the rear tires to wear evenly, or is this attributable the stance of the car, or the attributes of the tires. i've spoken to the alignment specialist and was told that that is just the way the car rides. i drive in the high suspension setting and had the car aligned in the same high setting. my rear alignment was rear left camber -1.1, toe 0.15. rear right camber
-0.9, toe 0.26. rear total toe 0.41, thrust angle -0.06.
do these check out. is there any adjustments you would recommend? would adjustment bolts help? the tech says this shouldn't cause wear and it's the best settings he can get.
what's your thoughts. i would say the outside of the tires are wearing about 15% faster than the rest of the tire and the wear is even with no cupping. the tires on the rear are michelin pilot sports ps2 101y.