Alignment Setup

[Braydog]

Can I get your opinions and suggestions on a good alignment setup for me?

I have done numerous searches, so far with not much luck on a good setup for me.

I want a good all around setup for both street and autocross. On the street I run 17" wheels with 275/40/17's as tires.

For autocross I use 17" wheels with 225/45/17's as tires.

I am using coilvers as suspension.

Is a -2 all around camber with 0 toe good, or what would you suggest? I basically want the most optimal race setup I can get, without having to replace my street tires every month as this car is my daily driver as well.

Last note, it is all wheel drive.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[sperry]

275's on the street? Why?

for Subaru autocrossers I recommend around -1.5 front, -1 rear, 0 toe all around. Then on race days, knock the front over to about -2.5 front camber, which also dials in a little toe-out due to the location of the steering tie-rod ends on the Subarus. Not sure how that would work on an EVO.

Either way, I'd run a little bit more negative camber up front than in the rear, but without knowing your suspension geometry, spring rates, swaybar stiffness, and driving style, it's hard to be too specific.

To really sort things out, get a tire pyrometer and take inner/middle/outer tire temps after each autocross run. Use the tire temps to evaluate how the tire is being used against the tarmac. When the car feels good and you've got a linear temp change from inside to outside, you've got your camber/toe/tire pressures correct.

Usually due to braking on cambered tires the inner temps will be hotter than outer, but if it's like 220I-180M-160O for example, you're looking pretty good... 220I-200M180O is even better... 220I-200M-150O means too much air pressure... 220I-160M-160O means too little air pressure... 260I-200M-180O means too much negative camber, and so on.

[Braydog]

275's on the street? Why?

for Subaru autocrossers I recommend around -1.5 front, -1 rear, 0 toe all around. Then on race days, knock the front over to about -2.5 front camber, which also dials in a little toe-out due to the location of the steering tie-rod ends on the Subarus. Not sure how that would work on an EVO.

Either way, I'd run a little bit more negative camber up front than in the rear, but without knowing your suspension geometry, spring rates, swaybar stiffness, and driving style, it's hard to be too specific.

To really sort things out, get a tire pyrometer and take inner/middle/outer tire temps after each autocross run. Use the tire temps to evaluate how the tire is being used against the tarmac. When the car feels good and you've got a linear temp change from inside to outside, you've got your camber/toe/tire pressures correct.

Usually due to braking on cambered tires the inner temps will be hotter than outer, but if it's like 220I-180M-160O for example, you're looking pretty good... 220I-200M180O is even better... 220I-200M-150O means too much air pressure... 220I-160M-160O means too little air pressure... 260I-200M-180O means too much negative camber, and so on.

Thanks for your help, I'll do as you said and get a tire pyrometer.

I prefer wider tires on the street due to the hillclimbs, and downhill runs I frequently do.

[Cody]

I run -2.2 front, -2 rear, 0 toe all around. The pyrometer shows that it's perfect for my car on 225/45/17 and I don't wear tires unevenly. The conventional wisdom (with sedan Imprezas) is to make the rear about 2/3 of whatever neg. number you front camber is represented by. So if your running -2 in the front come race day, you should be running about -1.3 in the rear. Wagons have 80 lb in the top rear and the rear tires sometimes rub, which is why I have to run a F/R ratio that's closer to 1:1.

I can't believe that you can't find info like this for an Evo. I know you're on pain meds right now so let me know if you need help with Google. :P

[dsmith]

You'll find that, like trying to understand women, alignment settings and suspension tuning is a science that requires endless testing and experimentation. And even if you find it, the sweet spot is transitory - never staying in the same place for very long.

[S2kreno]

You'll find that, like trying to understand women, alignment settings and suspension tuning is a science that requires endless testing and experimentation. And even if you find it, the sweet spot is transitory - never staying in the same place for very long.:lol: :lol: :lol: