front end alignment

[onebadmopar]

i just had a much needed front end alignment done on my 69 sitting in the garage i notice it leans slightly to the right i want to raise that side so it sits level im thinking no more than 2 turns outta do it will this throw the alignment way off again?.... what else could be making it lean more to the right?

[Ghoste]

Changing the ride height in the front can definitely affect the alignment.  As for what could be causing it, bent chassis?

[FLG]

Measure from floor to wheel lip on fender on both sides. How much of a difference are we talking? From what ive heard anything less then 1" wont effect alignment. Anything more will effect it some.

[onebadmopar]

i went ahead and turned it 3 turns sits level now and doesnt seem to have effected the alignment now if i can get the brakes to stop fading when its hot i,ll be all set

[Ghoste]

That's good.  I'd still keep an eye on tire wear for a while though.

[Charger-Bodie]

The alignment shop should have set the ride height before even starting the alignment. Id make them redo it.

[onebadmopar]

hes a friend of mine and did say i may have a problem with one of the control arms cause they couldnt get it in all the way said its possibly bent going to tubular arms soon enuff anyhow

[Plumcrazy]

The alignment shop should have set the ride height before even starting the alignment. Id make them redo it.

[gordo1968charger]

The alignment shop should have set the ride height before even starting the alignment. Id make them redo it.

true that!!

[tatrick2me]

Very few alignment shops today have a cxlue how to line up a T bar car. Anyway if you look at a repair book with photos you'll the outer ends of the control arms don't change in there arc as the car goes up and down. Your toe in is what changes 1/8" for each 1 1/2" of T bar ride hight change. It would take 3" of ride hight change to change the toe enough to wear tires. There is a company that advertize in Mopar Performance magazine, that sells a drum brake upgrade that works as good as disc brakes. 

[Steve P.]

The alignment shop should have set the ride height before even starting the alignment. Id make them redo it.

ABSOLUTELY... Ride height is the first part of the alignment. 

[1969chargerrtse]

i went ahead and turned it 3 turns sits level now and doesn't seem to have effected the alignment now if i can get the brakes to stop fading when its hot i,ll be all set

Gotta tell ya, I'm one of the lucky few that has factory front power disk, and they are as good as a new car would be. 

[375instroke]

...Anyway if you look at a repair book with photos you'll the outer ends of the control arms don't change in there arc as the car goes up and down. Your toe in is what changes 1/8" for each 1 1/2" of T bar ride hight change...

I disagree.  The upper and lower arms are different lengths.  When the wheel goes up, the camber goes negative.  When the wheel goes down, the camber goes negative again, but at a much lower rate compared to when it goes up.  At the very end of the wheels travel when it goes down, the camber goes negative very fast.  If everything is correct, the toe should not change.  The way these cars are built, that isn't always so, but that's what the engineers were shooting for.  The CD Chassis book tell you how to keep the toe from changing by making very small adjustments.  The toe change is called bump steer, and is undesirable for any car.  Hold a carpenters square next to the wheel and measure from it to the top of the wheel, and again from it to the bottom of the wheel.  If the difference is 1/4" greater at top compared to the bottom, you have 1 degree of negative camber.  1/8" gives you 1/2 degree.  Compare left to right to see if you have much change.

[tatrick2me]

Toe is what kills tires and camber does change when you turn, Or the suspenion travels more than 2". Toe is how the tires match each other going straight. If the toe is not right the tires scub as they roll. And you don't know it because toe wont make one pull left or right. Caster being out is what causes one to pull. So far as ride hight goes it don't matter so long as the car is ligned up to the hight the car is sitting at.

[FLG]

Incorrect toe will most definitely cause a pull.

[375instroke]

Camber causes pulls too.  I think the car drifts to the side the top of the tire is pointing to, and is why there is a difference called out in the FSM.  It's to compensate for the crown in the road.  Otherwise, the car would pull to the right most of the time.

[Tilar]

Incorrect toe in will generally cause it to feel like it's crab walking down the road. It doesn't neccesarily pull one way or the other, but it won't run exactly straight.