just curious whats the stock alignment for the car (Just curious)? i am going tomorrow to get mine done and i was just going to go with pettits street setting unless their is something better you know about.

Front Rear
Toe: 1/16" in 0
Camber: -0.9 -0.3
Caster: +6.0

says to keep thrust angle to zero.

 

I've found for AutoX (don't to track days yet) that these settings have worked out best.

Camber F -1.8 R -1.0
Toe F 1.8th out R 0
Castor +6

 

thats 1 imput, thanks. anyone else have other settings they use for street?

 

just read the first post....

https://www.rx7club.com/suspension-wheels-tires-brakes-20/howard-colemans-fd-chassis-setup-723617/

 

im not looking for something that will eat up my tires, just street and some spirited driving

 

this is what Howard Coleman recommends:

Toe in front between a 1/16 and 1/8th inch
Toe in rear zero
Camber front and rear 1.2 degrees negative
Caster equal minimal
Zero rear thrust angle.

That is a conservative alignment and will not eat up your tires.

The pettit stats are here: http://www.pettitracing.com/rx7/index_information.htm

I've been using the long track settings and it really wakes the car up. Greater turn in, more grip imo. I daily drive my car, before I did the alignment with my old tire, I was getting wear on the outsides of the tires, gee I wonder why..., after the alignment, I am getting much more even wear.

 

I recently got the Pettit street alignment and really like how stable it makes the car feel. It is a little more aggressive than a stock alignment so I was expecting some nervousness or tracking on the motorway but neither is the case. My alignment report is here:



Caster ended up a little more than the Pettit recommended +6. The spread between the left and right caster is to compensate for road crowning.

Ignore the pre-alignment numbers - I did a complete Mazdapseed bushing swap on all control arms so everything was in a random position.

 

where did you guys take the car to get it done? i didnt have a chance to go before.. i was going to let fire stone or pepboys do it. but if you guys have any better recommendations

 

One of the best places in the Bay Area is Custom Alignment in Mountain View - but that will not help you much in Florida.

This shop will put a driver-specified weight in the driver seat when aligning (as with any decent shop). Try getting Pep Boys to do that.

 

^What he said. Search the regional section of the forums here and also search the regional miata.net forums or bmw forums to find where the local autox and track guys get their alignments.

Find a place that allows you to sit in the car and will align to your specs as it will be more accurate. When I sat in my car on the alignment rack, the camber changed by .2 to .3

 

I would just goto a Firestone and get the lifetime alignment and make sure you goto one that will let you tell them what you want the specs to be. Since I work for firestone I know that the lifetime is the best deal because you can take it in for free for the life of the car after the first time. You can go there during the week before a track day and change it then go back on monday and have them change it back at no charge to you. Keep that in mind.

 

and how much is this lifetime warranty?

 

The lifetime alignment should be between 119 to 169. But that is for how ever long you own the car.

 

i went there today to get my tires changed and asked them. they said no i wouldnt be able to sit in the car while they do that

 

Also if they have the Hunter alignment machines ask to have the tolerance set to half to have tighter tolerances so at least it'll be really close to spec.

 

Definitely find a shop that works with racers. They will know how to use their Hunter machine to get the best possible results.

Chain stores generally don't keep their machine in calibration and they simply don't take the time to get the numbers dead on.

Dave

 

anyone know of a shop that uses the hunter machine here in north FL?

 

Hmm? Driver weight in the seat is really not that important for alignment as much as it is for a corner balance. Are you sure they weren't doing a corner balance at the same time??

In any event, if you want to, just bring some weights and put them in the seat.

EXACTLY.

Keep in mind though that they aren't the "best" deal. Most tuner shops charge $200 for an alignment and another $150 for corner balancing. I bought the 5yr $200 package from NTB and I made friends with a kid there. I just throw him a $20 bill each time I go in. So I get to watch him, talk with him, and we spend lots more time dialing it in perfectly. It literally takes 2 to 3 times longer to align a car properly than by the normal standards of chain shops.

 

I suspect that would depend on your suspension setup. On Koni shocks with H&R springs, the above was my experience.





I've done the same. When I lived in san Diego, I used Vista Brake. They had a Hunter machine and the alignment and suspension guy was older and a former SCCA autox-er. Cost me quite a bit less than $100 each time I went. I recently tried Auto Innovations in Milpitas up here. Eventually I will spring for one of the racer places to redo my alignment and probably corner balance but the suspension is coming apart in a few months to revalve my Konis for my Ground Control coil over springs so its not worth spending big on an alignment right now.

 

whats corner balance and a hunter machine?

 

Hunter = state of the art alignment machine. Most good shops have them.

Corner balance = adjusting the ride height at each corner so that all four corners take an equal portion of the weight. This improves the maximum grip of the car. This can only be done with ride-height-adjustable suspensions (coilovers)