garretthes

Just took the Z to the alignment shop.
Here is the readout:
Front
Left camber -0.5
Right camber -2.3
This seems a bit strange. I'm wondering if struts will fix this or do I need new springs?
Maybe the suspension is warped?

garretthes

I guess I should add the rest of the read out from the alignment shop. He asked me if the car had ever been wrecked. I have no idea.

Front Left
Camber -0.5
Caster 4.3
Toe 0.29

Front Right
Camber -2.3
Caster 3.8
Toe 0.7

Rear Left
Camber -0.4
Toe -0.23

Rear Right
Camber -0.6
Toe 0.27

NismoPick

I'm surprised he didn't tell you what was causing the difference... he's an alignment / suspension specialist no?

280zx camber is affected by vertical travel, so a quick left and right height measure (on level ground, pick a spot on the fenders) will tell you if a spring is sagging. Toe and caster can be adjusted by the tie rods and tension rods.

garretthes

Yes, he did tell me. He suggested I replace the struts then return for an alignment. He didn't mention the springs. I have an 83 parts car. I plan to replace the struts and swap the springs with the 83.

SHADY280

the spinde is bent. i do alignments as well. used to do 5 a day sometimes. telling you the sai would confirms this. sai tells you the relationship between camber angle of the tire and supposed angle of the strut. he may also want to add a sand bag of 150 lbs to the drivers seat as well to compensate for a driver, some cars likey bmw do alignments with supposed passengers to equal everything out. hows the thrust angle as well. most likely its been hit in the front right on the tire and nobody really fixed the suspension. would be checking the lower control arm as well if it got hit that hard. the caster is also backwards, this thing should pull right most likely. to compensate for road crown it should be the other way around larger on the right. may need to add washers to the tension rods even

garretthes

It doesn't look like it has been hit. (doesn't mean it wasn't). Can I swap the 83 spindle with the 79? The 83 has R&P. My guess is no. I have the springs out and they are the same height left and right. The 83 springs are a maybe 3/8 taller. Of course the springs could still have different tension.

Going to put it all back together with new strut cartridges in the morning. Have to pick up a set of bellows in the morning.

SHADY280

the strut/spindle is the same for all the cars from 79-83 so your good to swap it in. i had a honda that hit a curb and the camer was +3 and the spindle didnt look bent even next the new one but boy did it make a huge difference when the new one went in, right back down to -.7 deg!!!

garretthes

Thanks for the help. The car sits noticeably higher. It handles tighter and there is no play.

NismoPick

Did you use the other springs? Fatigued springs will still sit normally when you just flop them on the cement next to each other, but when you put an 800lb load on it, the coils will lose their strength.