Any reason why I can't get more than 4.5 degrees caster ... that is according to my alignment guy???

Oh yeah, for the record, my car is slowly starting to handle better. I have 1.2 degrees of camber on the front and 1.0 in the rear. I also have 0.05 degrees toe in on each wheel. After running with Howard Coleman's suggestions on tire pressure and the alignment the car drives much better. The car does pull slightly to the right despite have the car aligned many times.

 

Camber and caster are on the same eccentrics. Therefore, adjusting camber also changes caster. I had roughly the same available caster with my FD's alignment .... although it was ~5.0 degrees with -1.8 degrees of camber. Lastly, the amount of change is somewhat dependent on the car. Some cars seem to have been built with more range of caster than others.

 

After talking to Dave Disney, I think my subframe needs to be adjusted forward. Granted that is some work ... I wonder if it will be worth it when it is done? Ah, maybe I'll wait till the next time I pull the motor.

 

Probably not. Especially considering the cost associated with a frame machine. Unless your car is a dedicated track beast, caster is not that important. Ultimately, camber and toe will have much more profound effects on handling and grip for a street car.

 

I don't understand why you think I need a frame machine for this task?

 

Oops. I read frame instead of subframe. D'oh.

 

No problem .. just checking.

 

As Don said the lower eccentric bolts adjust both camber and caster. Once you start running lots of negative camber you limit yourself to how much caster you can get. Currently on the front of my car I have 1.75* negative camber and was still able to get 5.5* of caster. Most people can't get that far, it varies car to car.

 

I have no problem getting plenty of caster. When I ran 16" wheels with 1.5 degrees, I had over 7 degrees of caster.