I have an s4. I recently have been trying to fix up the old worn suspension/steering components. So far I've replaced all the bushings in the front with polyurethane, replaced the ball joints and replaced the inner/outer tie rods with the T3 kit. I had a few issues getting the tie rods correct but now the toe is basically perfect in the front. The rear has already fallen out of alignment since I did an alignment two weeks ago. Not sure why but it's only moved a little so not the most concerning. However, the front camber and caster are completely off and uneven. Right side caster is almost 10° and camber is -1.5, while drivers side has 0.2 of positive camber and 6.2° of caster. I am certain my strut mounts are worn out but I wouldn't think it could cause something like this. As far as I can tell visually nothing is bent whatsoever. Since I recently removed control arms I'm certain they're good and straight. I plan on getting coilovers soon and I'll be able to adjust camber/caster but I want to make sure nothing else is wrong before I try to adjust it all out that way and potentially have other issues. Will camber/caster plates be enough to fix such large discrepancies? Pics include alignment numbers and my new tie rods because they look sweet.

 

i think you are chasing incorrect alignment machine setup practices or a miscalibrated machine.

i don't think 10 degrees of caster is even possible unless your lower control arm is about to fall off.

do 2 complete roll offs without touching any adjustments and see if the readings you get nearly match both times. if a sensor is slipping on your wheels, the machine cannot know the difference, a tighter fit is always better than looser. i also never trust a "raise vehicle to adjust" option, i try to make adjustments fully loaded on the turn plates unless it is a solid front axle 4X4, doing alignments is honestly a expertise and i've seen plenty of folks who think they know how to do them cause more issues than they fix because the machine gives them a false sense of security.

it's also a good practice to check your turn plates. the newer hunter racks tend to lose the center retaining bolt on the front stainless steel turnplates which cause a binding issue. the rear floating pads also tend to drop retaining bolts into the frame of the lift. crap quality, no loctite. i had to check our lift every 6 months and tighten components before fasteners would come out completely. the service manager started paying me to do it because i had to constantly hound him about the machine falling apart and the hunter techs never would check for any problems on the lift itself.

 

I did the alignment on the turn plates, suspension fully loaded. Car was centered on the rack. Maybe its possible I mounted passenger side sensor too far forward throwing the caster reading out of wack? Honestly the only thing I could think of because the machine seems to be fine otherwise. But that still doesn't explain the big difference in camber between sides. No binding in turn plates or anything like that. I had some difficulty setting it up but it's my 3rd time doing an alignment so I don't think anything's wrong with the machine. If anything I'm doing something wrong, or there's probably something wrong with the car.

 

Could it be the alignment machine that you're using?

I have an S5 that I'm looking to have the alignment checked. I was recently talking to a guy that used to work at NTB, and he told me to make sure their alignment machine will work on an older car. He said some of the newer machines won't work on older cars due to the machine's computerized setups.

 

Yeah as far as a I know as long as it pulls up the data from your vin you're good. I'm pretty sure I just did something wrong on the caster sweep or I moved on of the sensors

 

there's no reason why it wouldn't work, but yeah, ive had sensors slip on wheels while doing the roll up calibration or bearing plate issues with the rack itself. that's why when in doubt i redo the alignment from scratch and see if the readings are the same or change drastically indicating an issue with the machine or setup.