V-AMG

Seriously considering lowering my wagon, KW HAS kit if I go through with it. Their seems to have the least drop, less than in inch.

For the fear of tearing the insides of tires like my E55 did, few alignment questions for the guys who already took the plunge:

(1) do we have rear toe adjustment in stock form?
(2) how much negative camber are you guys seeing with a mild drop (approx 1")?
(3) has anyone installed both top and bottom camber adjustment bolts in the front? Apparently upper and lower are available for our W212 platform, so i imagine that's enough to correct the front. Yes?
(4) Has about the rear? Are toe links necessary in junction with adjustable camber arms?
(5) How much positive toe are you guys running? Front and rear.
(6) How long are your tires lasting?

And I might as well share my little secret... i don't understand the point of aftermarket toe links if our stock ones are adjustable. :smash

MikeDWerks

V-AMG

Rehabguy

After KW my alignment sheet reads:

Camber
FL -2.5
FR -2.4
RL -2.5
RR -2.4

Toe
FL 1/16"
FR 1/16"
Total 1/8"
RL 3/32"
RR 3/32"
Total 3/16"

And I have no clue as to how long/much tires will last... I have driven this car with current set up less than 1K since last summer and shared that mileage with two sets of tires. As far as I know, Toe is the only adjustment we have in STOCK form.

V-AMG

Rehabguy

I used to have a WRX in which I squeezed 18x9.5's and 255's (from 16x7's and 215's lol) I ran -3.5 camber in order to achieve that. There were endless discussions and back and forth arguments on NASIOC about this very same subject. People who had been driving their Subaru's with such set ups claimed that so long as you set your toe to Zero, your tires should last just as long as a vehicle with "normal camber settings"... the difference being your tires will only wear on the inside... but, not wear any faster. I cant attest to that either... since I barely drove that car too! lol!
And, no, it does NOT corner like NO PORSCHE! LMAO! This fat pig!
Cheers!

fallen

I have my sedan lowered on KW HAS after a year on H&R.
Did the alignment a week after the installation - toe was corrected and brought within spec, while camber was already within spec although negative as expected.
I don't have the exact alignment spec sheet for the car, but it feels a lot better on KW; however definitely NOT Porsche like
This is a great mode - you will not regret it.

Rehabguy

I was actually pleasantly surprised by how well the car rides on the HAS. I had done springs on a couple of my previous cars and while I liked the look, I wasn't very pleased with the ride. I was pretty much convinced that the only way to go for lowering a car (for me) would be via actual coilover shocks (I consider the HAS kit springs with adjustability). And as for Quasi-Porsche cornering... maybe we need two more "shock absorber lights" on the center console

MikeDWerks

I recently did the KW HAS kit as well

Of all the cars I have lowered over the years on either traditional springs or air ride, I would say the the ride on the E63 was compromised the least compared to stock. Which is good because I don't think the ride is all that great stock, a bit harsher than it should be IMO

I have only 5mm of thread left on the front perches, so its is pretty close to as low as you can go on the KW HAS

On the alignment topic, my experience has been that out of spec toe kills tires fast. Some negative camber, even 2+, not all that much. On my last car, 2013 S6, my toe got out of spec and it killed a brand new set of Pilot Sports in just a few thousand miles.

amgboy916

I'm lowered and my fronts are eating tires bad with camber wear. rear has camber wear too. ive gotten alignment done at stealership everytime. do i need to buy aftermarket camber kit to get reasonable tire wear?

V-AMG

Fallen, MikeDWerks and Rehabguy - I hate all three of you for posting pics, now I am gonna have to do this!

I am very happy to hear that the ride didn't change drastically. I definitely agree with Mike that the ride is a bit rough on these cars stock. I deal with NYC potholes, bumps, etc., so i wouldn't want much rougher than it is now.

What have you guys done with the camber? Or just letting it be for now to see the impacts? Has anyone installed the upper correction bolts for the front? Dealer claims they exist but I have yet to get a real world confirmation that we can use uppers and lowers at the same time.

Rehabguy

Ditch the stealership and find yourself a good speed shop with an alignment rack.

I haven't done anything about the camber nor will I be doing anything about it. I happen to like the look. If the tires wear on the inside.... they wear on the inside... "if he dies... he dies..." I don't worry about it much since I barely drive this thing.
This is how the 305's contact the ground:

V-AMG

Oh yeah, looks road course ready!

Contact patch is heavy on the inside and light on the outside, but i suppose if you don't drive it a ton, doesn't really matter. Traction will be a bit compromised in the rear but good thing we are AWD. .

Ed99

K-Mac

The reality is the often quoted FULL FRONT & REAR ALIGNMENT comes down to only "Toe directional adjustment"

With the best alignment expertise (and alignment rack) this Toe adjustment is all they have to work with.

Can fit inaccurate (one offset position) Camber, Caster correction bolts - for the front only, but they offer a minuscule 1/8' (0.3 degree) change ......then often quoting because of wide alignment parameters - "now within spec".

We saw the need therefore to "fix it right the 1st time" - by re-instating full, precise front Camber, Caster and rear Camber (and extra Toe adjustment). Allowing to adjust tire contact angles.

To cater for other than showroom height conditions - high cambered roads, altered height through load carrying or lowering, wide profile tires, curb knocks.

The unique K-MAC patented design replaces the 4 front and rear highest wearing bushings. Is precise single wrench adjustment - accurately (under load) direct on alignment rack.

Providing more than 4 times the adjustment range of the one position offset bolts.

Note: Also manufacture for coil spring models "front replacement top strut mounts" (Camber and Caster adjustable) This patented design providing fast adjustment from engine bay (see web site re unique features). Track days the extra adjustment to further reduce understeer in the pursuit of front row of the grid lap times.

While the front lower arm adjustable bushings - Camber resolving costly premature edge tire wear, improving traction. Thrust arm bushings allowing to readjust / compensate Caster and correctly resolve steering pull!

These K-MAC Caster bushings are Monoball / 2 axis design. Result is also noticeably improved brake and steering response.

Constant, ongoing development has allowed now In 2019 “design breakthrough / new generation" Mono ball bushings. Superseding the industry standard "steel spherical bearings" (with their wafer thin liners soon create noise and pound out) - K-MAC having more than two and a half times their load bearing area for noiseless, long term durability.

Rear Camber bushings (like front) adjust lower arms to reduce inner edge tire wear (or outwards to increase track width). Unlike upper adjustable rear arms that reduce essential clearance - top of tire to outer fender when wanting to reduce inner edge wear.

Another popular kit manufactured - uprated replacement bushes for the 6 rear multi link arms - less twitch, flex, loss of traction, especially when applying power lane changing / overtaking.

Front Camber & Caster Bush Kit #502916 K $480

Rear Camber (& extra Toe) Bush Kit #502226 K $480

Front Upper Strut Mounts (Coil Spring Suspension) Camber & Caster
Stage 2 (Street/Race) #502916-2 L $545
Stage 3 (Full Race) #502916-3 L $545

Rear Multi Link Arm Uprated Bushing Kit #502628 K $480

Delivery $30 one kit, $20 each additional.