924Board.org

Patrick

HELLO ALL!
Finally finished my homemade P221 tool,looks crappy because of my limited mechanical skills, but it should work. I`ll be taking my 1979 U.S. version N.A. car to the neighborhood alignment shop where unfortunately the techs are not really familiar with my rear suspension, so i plan on coaching them through the process. I realize moving toe in or camber or ride hgt at the rear affects each other. So to my questions:

1) I have the 4 hole 7X15 ATS Phonedial rims w/ a + offset of 18 or 20mm wearing 225-50-15 tires. Would the FACTORY alignment specs be okay given the NON stock rims and tires, and that the car is for everyday use(with occasional higher speed fun rides on straights & corners)/

2)If say i wanted to adjust the toe only, do i ONLY loosen the 2 vertically oriented locking bolts for toe then insert my homemade tool, or do i also loosen the locking bolt for Height adjustment(the bolt you loosen prior to moving the Eccentric bolt for height adjustment)?
3) What if i wanted to adjust ONLY my rear camber? I did read a past alignment discussion where 924RACR mentions loosening the 3 bolts that connect the Rear Trailing arm to the Springplate prior to doing the rear alignment adjustments. Looking at the haynes pics and looking at the actual pieces in my car, it seems to me that the only place that the rear trailing arm connects to on the spring plate would be the vertically oriented locking bolts for toe, and the camber eccentric bolt.
4)So are the latter bolts i mentioned the 3 bolts 924RACR was referring to? If i understand what i see correctly, loosening the vertically oriented locking bolts for toe enables me to move the camber eccentric bolt as well?
5)Then the Height Adjusting is done ONLY when the vertically oriented bolts are tightened up?
6)Although from reading past discussions its been stated to adjust ride height FIRST, then adjust toe & camber NEXT?

I would appreciate your responses ASAP as i intend to go the alignment shop in bout 12 Hrs.
THANKS AGAIN! patrick

DOCO · Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2008 10:29 pm Post subject:

factory specs are ok to just get it set but a REAL alignment, front end specialist, will set the car for your ROADS as not all roads are created equal.so specs and setting them to specs is not always a good idea
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Doco "where am i going and why am i in this handbasket"author unknown
79 924 N/A "Webster"
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"WEBB STR"

Patrick · Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2008 11:38 pm Post subject:

I dont believe a REAL(as in really knowledgable) alignment specialist for the general public exists here. IF they exist, they`re likely doing work for racers. We do have GOODYEAR SERVITEK facilities over here, but my experience with most of their techs as compared to technicians in the U.S. is not all that great! Given that most of our roads over here are bad, i generally take the more acceptable ones. So my question about FACTORY alignment specs refers to cars driven on acceptably good roads(given my NON-stock rims & tires}.

Anybody else for my other Alignment Questions, PLS! I`m going to the alignment shop in 10 hrs from now. THANKS!

Smoothie

Chrenan · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 3903 Location: Canada

Don't you guys have the original VW Beetle in the Phillipines? Those things are everywhere, and the rear suspension on the 924 is basically the same.
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1987 951 - M193 Version for Japan

Patrick · Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 9:51 am Post subject:

SMOOTHIE- Thanks so much! Its very clear to me now.

CHRENAN- yes VW beetles are all over the place, but then this is a developing?? (most would say 3rd world) country, so things arent all as they seem...I`ve observed a real lack of what i call "western rationality" in our culture (likely typical of most 3rd world countries, no offense to anyone, just my observations). I dont mean to confuse you, but thats why i joined the 924.org club.
I gotta head on to the alignment shop, thanks for the responses!

924RACR · Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 10:26 pm Post subject:

Probably too late to do you any good... yes, use factory specs. Yes, you get to loosen all 3 bolts to change camber and/or toe. You can't achieve any change to the settings without loosening all 3. The only way to change only one setting is to hold the wrench on the other eccentric and hope to not move it.
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Vaughan Scott
Webmeister
'79 924 #77 SCCA H Prod racecar
'82 931 Plat. Silver
#25 Hidari Firefly P2 sports prototype

Patrick · Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 10:07 pm Post subject:

No it wasnt too late 924RACR, there was stormy weather brewing, so i had to cancel my trip to the alignment shop! But all the same THANK YOU everyone for the relatively speedy replies. Now that i feel confident enough to coach the technician into doing the alignment, my next challenge is UNDERSTANDING exactly how things move around to achieve this. I`ve read some of the past discussions by members including 924racr and Smoothie. But i hope to understand it better when i get to the alignment shop to actually see what moves and what doesnt move.

924RACR · Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 10:24 pm Post subject:

When you turn the camber eccentric (27mm hex, front one, that the swaybar bolts to if you have a later style swaybar) the whole trailing arm tilts forward and backwards, reducing or increasing negative camber.

To adjust toe, you use the P221 tool or equivalent, and the trailing arm is moved forwards or backwards relative to the body. Moving forward will add toe-in; backwards will be toe-out. Slight toe-in is desireable.
_________________
Vaughan Scott
Webmeister
'79 924 #77 SCCA H Prod racecar
'82 931 Plat. Silver
#25 Hidari Firefly P2 sports prototype

sandgroper · Joined: 07 Dec 2002 Posts: 108 Location: in limbo

Hi Patrick,abit off topic but did you import or buy your 924 already there in the phil,ive never been to manila but id love to be back surfing at cloud 9 in sargio,love it there.

Patrick · Posted: Tue Aug 05, 2008 10:08 pm Post subject:

Hi sandgroper! i bought my 924 over here(i might be the 4th owner?). They charge ASTRONOMICAL import taxes to bring new or old cars over here. Its not just the actual prices of say a late model or new 911 or ferrari or whatever, its they`re(Customs) perception of its worth. Even if i could prove i only paid say $700 for a 924, the fact that its a Porsche gives them a reason to charge me(not surprisingly) even 3 times that amount! In fact i believe that there`s a law now that doesnt allow used cars to be imported over here(dont know if that applies only to car dealers or private citizens as well). I dont know about surfing but there are quite a few beaches over here(like a place called Boracay) that are really nice for scuba diving and such. Oh,where is Sargio anyway?

924 RACR- Thanks for the info. i will observe the trailing arm when i finally bring my car to the alignment shop.

sandgroper · Joined: 07 Dec 2002 Posts: 108 Location: in limbo

Actually its Siargao island,a small island northwest of mindanao which is the biggest island,i went thru cebu,i love it there cruising round on a motorbike no helmet and eating fresh seafood,nice pace of life.I saw a few different imports there,early landrover and early mini but no porsches.

Patrick · Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2008 7:35 pm Post subject:

Siargao is obviously one of those obscure islands(at least to a manila person like me) that i decided to check on the net. If your not much a city person then you may not like manila. If your an ADVENTUROUS city person then you may want to check manila sometime. Not to scare you off, but be sure you do your homework, as i suppose any big city anywhere in the world(especially a non-1st world one) has its hidden dangers!