[calvin07]

When I took my car to a performance shop to get an alignment done they told me that the rear camber is not adjustable. Could this be bc my car is too low for any adjustments to be made to camber with stock suspension setup (except springs)? Or the guy doing the alignment didn't know what he was doing?

[atlas]

Thanks for this informative post - will take it to my shop next time i get an alignment done

[D.Yooras]

Originally Posted by calvin07

When I took my car to a performance shop to get an alignment done they told me that the rear camber is not adjustable. Could this be bc my car is too low for any adjustments to be made to camber with stock suspension setup (except springs)? Or the guy doing the alignment didn't know what he was doing?

He probably didn't have the tools or the knowledge. Modern BMWs have a standard design architecture so the 2/3/4 series have the same adjusters and, in most cases, the same parts. There are two different chassis, the standard and the "M" chassis which have different styles of rear adjustment. The camber is generally on the inboard lower control arm bushing so it's easy to see and access, toe varies significantly between M and standard chassis though.

The funny part is, the standard chassis is actually slightly harder to adjust because you need an E-Torx set to do it right. Camber, though, is very easy to adjust but it needs a big wrench or ratchet 21mm or 24mm on the larger vehicles and a lot of torque to ensure it's clamping properly. It also changes toe when you change camber and vise versa so most shops don't like messing it, especially if they're using old school methods.

As a side note, I've had many lowered and slammed BMWs in for alignment that come back into spec using the factory camber adjuster.

[calvin07]

Originally Posted by D.Yooras

He probably didn't have the tools or the knowledge. Modern BMWs have a standard design architecture so the 2/3/4 series have the same adjusters and, in most cases, the same parts. There are two different chassis, the standard and the "M" chassis which have different styles of rear adjustment. The camber is generally on the inboard lower control arm bushing so it's easy to see and access, toe varies significantly between M and standard chassis though.

The funny part is, the standard chassis is actually slightly harder to adjust because you need an E-Torx set to do it right. Camber, though, is very easy to adjust but it needs a big wrench or ratchet 21mm or 24mm on the larger vehicles and a lot of torque to ensure it's clamping properly. It also changes toe when you change camber and vise versa so most shops don't like messing it, especially if they're using old school methods.

As a side note, I've had many lowered and slammed BMWs in for alignment that come back into spec using the factory camber adjuster.

Thanks for the info.
Sounds like I need to take it to another shop who is more capable and experienced with BMWs.

[calvin07]

Is it normal to have different camber in the front left and front right side? I’m on lowering springs and otherwise stock suspension. In this case, camber isn’t adjustable right? Font driver is -1.60 and front passanger is -1.90. Will the imbalance have a negative effect on handling or tire wear?

[D.Yooras]

Originally Posted by calvin07

Is it normal to have different camber in the front left and front right side? I’m on lowering springs and otherwise stock suspension. In this case, camber isn’t adjustable right? Font driver is -1.60 and front passanger is -1.90. Will the imbalance have a negative effect on handling or tire wear?

That depends on what the ride heights are at (even in the front or not) and whether the camber was measured with or without driver weight. Most modern vehicles are measured at 1G (full weight of car with no extra ballast) and the camber/casters numbers are generally spec-ed the same on both sides. However, some chassis will specific (or design) less camber on the driver side front by .2-.4 degrees to induce a slight bit of pull against the road crown that helps the car go straight down the road on roads with standard crown. Also, when you load driver weight into a car the camber numbers will change because the 1G height changes.

Short version of the story, it's fairly normal to have cross camber even if both front corners are the same height. Though it isn't ideal, there isn't an easy way to adjust it on modern BMWs. If you're lucky, you can loosen the in-board lower control bushing bolt on the side with LESS negative camber (with the weight of the car at 1G) and gain some negative camber by allowing the control arm to move further out-board now that it isn't clamped. It's only worth .1-.2 on most cars but it can help correct the problem.

[drp087]

So I am dropped on KWV3's, Front 592, Rear 597, with 10mm spacers all around.
About -1.4 degrees camber up front, but I am still hitting the right fender on dips at 45+mph.

Before I resort to removing the spacers, I'm hoping to get away by getting up to -1.9 degrees camber (without camber plates).

What height should I be at to get to around -1.9 camber?

[D.Yooras]

Originally Posted by drp087

So I am dropped on KWV3's, Front 592, Rear 597, with 10mm spacers all around.
About -1.4 degrees camber up front, but I am still hitting the right fender on dips at 45+mph.

Before I resort to removing the spacers, I'm hoping to get away by getting up to -1.9 degrees camber (without camber plates).

What height should I be at to get to around -1.9 camber?

The problem is that no matter what ride height you run the car at, the wheel will be in the same spot relative to the fender throughout the travel. In other words, changing height doesn't change the path of travel of the wheel, it simply changes the range you use frequently.

If you want to help with the rubbing you have three options:
1) Raise the car to reduce the amount of time the cars spends in the range of the suspension travel that rubs
2) Remove the spacers to physically move the wheel in further
2.5) Get narrower/shorter front tires
3) Add camber plates to adjust the angle of the whole suspension to change where the wheel is in the range of travel

Other than that, trim and hope.