Driveability.....

s55c

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so I got my new kumho's installed, alignment, overall suspension checkout... now this 95 is new to me so I am not to familiar with how they are supposed to handle but I was hoping the new tires would would help..... this car seems to wander and follow every groove, rut in the road.... is this normal??? when I get on it it in winding roads it's a roller skate but when I city drive it it has a mind of its own,,,,normal?????
 

plumcrazy

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yes, this is normal for a vehicle with wide tires. the roller skate comment doesnt sound right though.

who did the alignment, what are the specs ?
 

AndyMac

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As usual, Phil is correct. These wide ass tires don't like the cups in the roads made by the regular pizza cutter wheels on most passenger cars.
 
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s55c

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by roller skate I mean,, it hugs the road crazy,, guess that didnt come out right,,,,, the faster it goes the better it handles,,,, thanks for the info
 

Bexar80

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Add some negative camber to the front and rear. It will track like an arrow afterwards, with no wandering or jerking in the steering wheel. The car becomes very easy to drive and it is a huge night and day difference. The stock camber specs ****, on the street and the track.

On my 2000 gts, I am -.2* past the factory specs for the front and rear camber. Front is -.7* and rear is -.9*. Toe is dead center of the factory range for both the front and rear. I don't recall the caster measurements off the top of my head. Keep in mind that the alignment specs may differ for your '95 rt/10.
 
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eucharistos

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normal, yes.....you must grip (not just be touching) the wheel at all times with at least 1 hand
 

DrumrBoy

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Normal, annoyingly normal. The comment about alignment is worth heeding. Play with different camber settings. Negative camber helps mine....won't go away but gets better.
 
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s55c

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Ok specs as as follows :

FRONT

CASTOR LEFT 5.9
...........RIGHT 5.9

CAMBER LEFT -0.4
...........RIGHT -0.4

TOE LEFT 0.10
........... RIGHT 0.10
...........TOTAL 0.20
...........................................................................................................................................................................................
REAR


CAMBER LEFT -0.02
........RIGHT -0.03

TOE LEFT 0.08
.........RIGHT 0.10
.........TOTAL 0.18
 
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Bexar80

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Ok specs as as follows :

FRONT

CASTOR LEFT 5.9
...........RIGHT 5.9

CAMBER LEFT -0.4
...........RIGHT -0.4

TOE LEFT 0.10
........... RIGHT 0.10
...........TOTAL 0.20
...........................................................................................................................................................................................
REAR


CAMBER LEFT -0.02
........RIGHT -0.03

TOE LEFT 0.08
.........RIGHT 0.10
.........TOTAL 0.18

Not knowing the exact specs for your model year I would recommend no less than -.5* camber for the front or rear.

There is no excuses that that the toe and camber should not match side to side. It typically is the sign of a lazy tech doing the alignment. That type of work would make me wonder if they properly torqued the cam bolts and jam nuts. Now if they cannot get the toe to stay the same for each side then there is too much play in the tie rod ends or ball joints.
 
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jdeft1

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Leave it at the stock settings if you drive the car (not just at the track). Trust me, the stock settings will give you good tread life and only slightly less than optimum performance. Do you track it is the question...? A track alignment is a tad more toe-in and a bit more neg. camber but wastes your tires pretty fast in normal driving. The stock settings for a '95 will give you 25k or more miles on PS2s. (I know..)


Enjoy your gen 1!!!
 

DrumrBoy

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I would add some more neg. camber. -1.25 front and -.75 rear

+1 on those recs. I think if you're interested in turn in you'd want some toe out (not toe in as recommended above).
 

jmasin

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Do you track your car or just street? Or both?

These cars have wide front tires and they are doing what you want them to, gripping the road. Imperfect roads are going to result in the car hunting a bit. To some extent it is a way of life of sport car ownership.

If you are happy with the corner handling, as you say you are, why mess with camber to change straight-line handling? Makes little sense to me. If you want more corner capability then yes, by all means add more negative camber. It will result in some increased wear on the inside of your tires though.

Toe-in will have an impact on straight-line handling, but too much toe in either direction will eat tires fast on the street. Toe-in will improve straight line handling as your front tires will each be pushing toward each other. Toe-out will improve turn in, but the front end will feel like it wants to go different directions. On the track I run a 1/16" toe OUT in front to improve turn-in, but you need to HOLD ON at speed on the straights.

But at the end of the day, understand these are wide, new, sticky tires, and they are going to want to follow ruts. Any alignment adjustment is a compromise to improve one thing and sacrifice another. If your primary usage is street driving, very often factory settings are best.
 
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s55c

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thanks everyone,,, I DONT track it,,, just a weekend toy,,, that lately is more of a garage decoration due to weather,,, Is it ever gonna stop raining? lol, yea I know its oregon but enuf already. BACK to the alignment, my goal is handle good, be safe, have fun but not eat up the tires in short order. I have had lots of hot rods over the years but none had this wide of tire front and rear.... I would have thought the wider tire would track better with more road contact but then i've never been a road race guy,, never was a drag race issue,,, again thanks everyone I welcome all ideas.
 
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