Having recently fitted my adjustable suspension gear to the front of Astro, i did a bunch of searches to find out what sort of settings to ask for when i go to the wheel aligner.

I've decided to condense the varied settings i found into one thread, I guess you could call it a F.A.Q. and it should (thanks to the keyword heavy subject line ) come up in searches more often. .

Feel free to add your own settings.

Using the same template would be helpfull aswell..

here's what i found..

Fat80y
===========
Front
Camber : -1° to -1.5°
Caster : -3 to -4°
Toe : Standard (1/16th inch out?)

Rear
Camber : 1°-1.5
Toe : 1mm in

Volodkovich
===========
Front
Camber : -2°
Caster : -5°
Toe : Standard (1/16th inch out?)

Rear
Camber : 0°
Toe : Dead Ahead

DrMini
======
Front
Camber : -.5°
Caster : -5°
Toe : Standard (1/16th inch out?)

Rear
Camber : -1°
Toe : 1.5mm in

TheMiniMan
==========
Road Car
--------
Front
Camber : -.5°
Caster : -5°
Toe : 1/16th inch out

Rear
Camber : -.5°
Toe : 1/16th inch out

Road/Race Car - Hoosiers
-------------
Front
Camber : 0°
Caster : -5°
Toe : 1/16th inch out

Rear
Camber : 0°
Toe : 1/16th inch out


The Scotsman
============
Front
Camber : -2°
Toe : A wee bit out

Rear
Camber : -.5°
Toe : A Touch out

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Lillee
======
Front
Camber : -1.5°
Caster : -3°
Toe : 1/16th inch out, tried 1/8th out but it was way too nervous at the front. 1/16th is best

Rear
Camber : -1°
Toe : 1/8th toed in

One thing to note: more importantly is your measurement difference between front axles and back axles as it is a common problem that minis have with crabbing (where the rear is at a diferent angle to the fronts). Only way to check this out is to find someone that has a machine to measure the relation of the front versus the back. Fixing this does miraculous things to your handling...

One of my TO DO's this year is to buy adjustable lower arms for the front as I already have adj tie rods

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Lillee - 1969 Morris Mini K

Is anyone able to give any descriptions on the handling characteristics of changing the front and rear geometry?

here you go

http://www.ozebiz.com.au/racetech/theory/align.html

Toe is all about "directional stability"

Caster is all about "straight-line stability"

Camber is all about maximising the tyre contact patch



Ok... We can broaden this conversation (not that anyone is involved)

to decide what are the best settings for performance, economy, etc...

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The race car spec for camber that i have stated was specifically for "Hoosier" Street TD tyres,,, they like running straight up & down, no camber at all

Most other tyres will definately like some neg camber tho, maybe 2 or even 3 deg, i`ve even seen some race minis with over 4 degs camber... mostly that all depends on the car & it`s stiffness in relation to shell rigidity & suspension stiffness & also what tyre & tyre pressure/temp,,, lots of variables including what type of race track etc etc etc,,, very few tyres these days are like the Hoosier side wall tho.

Just thought i`d clarify before people ask the obvious question, or even just think i`m a dork, or maybe have thought that Cush made a type-o

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No offence intended here but--> anyone writing a book about minis 30 years ago may not have experienced such worn or stuffed-with components as we are finding these days.

You should put your heart & soul into everything you do.

Hi guys,

Just wondering, how come all the castor settings are negative?
I thought cars only use positive castors (ie. top ball joint center is behind the bottom one or tilt towards the rear)??


Daniel

just wondering if anyone knows of anyone in adelaide with one of these jigs to check the geometry of front to rear because my car is crabbing as it has never been set

You are correct. All castor measurements are in fact positive.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

I'm just setting the rear camber and toe in on my mini before tonights work session begins , and I dug up this thread. (which could be useful in the how-to section actually....)


There's quite a difference with the rear toe settings, some point in. some point out....for the rest of the settings on the car, the values change, but don't change from one extreme to the other for anything except the rear toe.

Now these will give vastly different results as one wheel takes the weight through a corner, from oversteer to under steer.

Why the large variation in opinion/preference?

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SooperDooperMiniCooperExpertEngineering

All garage work involves equal measures of enthusiasm, ingenuity and a fair degree of irresponsibility.

Rear toe out on a Mini is a recipe for spin, spin, spin.. twitchy takes on a whole new meaning.

Take a Mini with rear toe-out on a dirt road, but take a change of undies with you.

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Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

How about a Morris 1100 with toe-out?

Dunno, never driven one

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Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

All Morris 1100s have toe out on the rear, they were made that way.
Toe out on the rear of a Mini is not bad as long as you know it is there. You won't spin with your foot on the throttle.

True enough, but I could probably count on one hand the number of people on Ausmini qualified to recognise that

_________________
Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

Morris 1100 needed toe-out on the rear to counter the dreaded understeer on the crossply tyres.
I had toe-out on the Mini rears when first put back on the road. Too scary when you HAD to go for the brakes, so I changed it... but was alright on the track if you were game.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.