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Help!! How do i adjust camber?!?

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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 11:45 AM
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Help!! How do i adjust camber?!?

The inside of my tire is wearing off much quicker than the outside. You can even see my tires slanted when looking at the back of the car...that is camber right?? How do i adjust it? I dont see anything about adjusting it in my FSM, only about checking it with some tool i dont have Help i dont have enough money to keep buying tires
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 11:49 AM
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get an alignment done
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 01:02 PM
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i know thats what i should do but i got layed off a few weeks ago and i am fully broke...no other suggestions?
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 03:34 PM
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If it's a stock suspension....your shock/springs are worn out.

If its an aftermarket spring configuration....buy the camber adjuster/adjusters for the rear suspension from Mazdatrix.com

Springs do wear out especially if the shocks were dead for a long period of time.
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 08:33 PM
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are they easy to change?
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 08:41 PM
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yup, with a strut compressor tool that you could probably rent for free
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 08:50 PM
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cool...so is the spring the same thing as a strut...iim not an idiot and i have some mechanical ability but no experience with suspension components
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 08:54 PM
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naaa, the strut is what the spring is on
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 08:57 PM
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no dude, the spring goes around the strut/shock. you need a spring compressor to take tension off the strut so you can take the nut off the top and then take your spring off. if your springs and struts are wore out you probably don't even have to take them apart. Just buy replacement springs and struts, put them together and install.
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Old Oct 18, 2003 | 09:07 PM
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yeah, thats what I meant by it was ON the strut.
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 07:39 AM
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ok cool...and probably autozone will have the spring compressor tool for rent?? im 100% sure you guys are right because when i jack the car up the spring and shock thing looks and feels all loose and floppy. Also the *** end of my car sways wildly at high speeds...probably related wouldnt you think??
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 07:44 AM
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an alignment is like 50-60 bucks. Does your tires wear out in the front or back?
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 07:49 AM
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Originally posted by GTR
an alignment is like 50-60 bucks. Does your tires wear out in the front or back?
like i said i got layed off and 50-60 bucks is alot of money right now...and its the rear...you think its my springs and shocks too?
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 02:18 PM
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cant i take the whole shock absorber off without a spring compressor and swap a set off of my parts car?
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 02:21 PM
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Yeah. Try that. It cost nothing and might have positive results.
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 02:27 PM
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ok thanks hailers...the shock absorbers on my parts car seemed better than my current ones...and the tires didnt wear off the inside when my parts car was running...as im looking in my FSM on page 13-14 it only shows 3 things to take off 1: the nuts on top of the shock 2: the bolt near the bottom 3: the shock itself , is that correct? And will i need a spring compressor or will i be able to get it back on without one?
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 02:45 PM
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NO spring compressor needed. Just remember to NOT remove the LARGE nut at the TOP of the shockabsorber assy. Just the four small nuts on the top and the one large nut at the bottom of the shock strut.

You have to jack the rear up though. You'll need to be able to giggle which ever wheel assy your working on, up and down a touch in order to remove the shock from the shaft it sits on at the bottom. jThe top should just drop down once the four small nuts are removed.
**********WARNING****************
DO NOT REMOVE THE LARGE NUT AT THE TOP CENTER OF THE SHOCK STRUT ASSY. Just the four small ones. It should not be very difficult. A touch time consuming because your doing two cars in a sense.
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 02:49 PM
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well that is awesome info HAILERS thanks for the advice...i read a few threads on the subject when i searched but nothing that confirming. the rear strut tower top is in the speaker right?? i have to take the speaker out?
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Old Oct 19, 2003 | 06:26 PM
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Ok, I swapped over the rear shocks and I wont be able to tell if my camber is much better right off the bat except that my tires appear to be more straight up and down, but the entire *** end of my car is much much tighter, even with used suspension components... I will be switching the fronts over tomorrow to see how much they help. Anyone have any tips or tricks for the fronts? Any suggestions are appreciated!!

James

P.S. Thanks HAILERS

Last edited by Rotory; Oct 19, 2003 at 06:30 PM.
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Old Oct 20, 2003 | 11:26 AM
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bumpity
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Old Oct 20, 2003 | 01:17 PM
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now i got my front passenger shock off after a bunch of bullshit and now i cant get it on my new car...i cant get the holes to match up and i cant compress the spring at all
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Old Oct 20, 2003 | 01:29 PM
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damn it the book didnt say anything about having to compress the spring
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Old Oct 20, 2003 | 02:07 PM
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If your replacing strut/spring asembly as a unit, you don't need to compress the springs. You may need to disconnect the stabilizer bar to allow the front suspension to drop????
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Old Oct 20, 2003 | 02:17 PM
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Check the Mazdatrix website for rear camber adjustments. It could be links are worn allowing too much camber. Adj rods are available. I purchased the 2 rear on car adj links, but are a little pricey. With the extremely wide tires, and within factory specs, I was getting slight wear on the inside, so this corrected that.
While your under there, you might as well check the toe also, as that will wear tires quite rapidly.
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Old Oct 20, 2003 | 02:25 PM
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Like he said above, the spring does not need to be compressed. But you'll need to pry dowm the suspension so the holes line up.
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