S Body Alignment Thread

[tooley]

Thought we should start an alignment thread. All be it for Daily to Drift to Racing etc. Thought it would be good to see what people have used / tried.


Drift Alignments

Measurements are in degrees' and minutes" (not . of a degree!) For example - 1'30" is ONE DEGREE AND 30 MINUTES, NOT one point three degrees.
Before alignment, check your tyre pressures! 32PSI front and 40PSI rear is a good start point.
Traction links are set at standard length for these settings.
If you over centre the steering too much, then reduce the castor angle. This applies to all settings.
THESE SETTINGS ARE BASED ON THE S14 / S15 PLATFORM. They should work with S13 variants with a touch less castor for each.
TOE SETTINGS ARE PER SIDE.


STREET / DRIFT / DAILY

FRONT
camber 2'50"
castor 7'30"
toe 0'00"

REAR
camber 1'10"
toe 0'00"

RESULT:

Positive steering feel
Will not grab or snap
Stable and consistent control


MINIMAL STREET / DRIFT USE

FRONT
camber 2'50"
castor 7'30"
toe 0'05" OUT

REAR
camber 1'10"
toe 0'10" IN

RESULT

Stable but reactive steering
Strong rear end grip, will push you forwards
Stable, but needs accurate driver input.


JAPANESE STYLE DRIFT ONLY

Using a trackday tire on the front (123 Radial, AD08, V70A, R888, RSR, etc... no not FK452, R1R)

FRONT
camber 3'20"
castor 7'30"
toe 0'15" OUT

REAR
camber 1'10"
toe 0'10" IN

RESULT:

Front end bites on drift
Understeer without commitment to drift
FAST direction change
Stable, but needs accurate driver input

WESTERN STYLE DRIFT ONLY

FRONT
camber 3'20"
castor 6'50"
toe 0'05" OUT

REAR
camber 0'30"
toe 0'10" IN

RESULT
Flat grip level, consistent to drive
More driver steering input required
Much more grip out of corners
Reduced aggression in car
More power required



Stats taken from Mitto's thread on DW.

I have ran all of these at some point and I alternate between them depending on what track.

My last setup was a modified version of Western style

FRONT
camber 3'20"
castor 7'30
toe 0'05" OUT

REAR
camber 0'50"
toe 0'10" IN

This worked quite well for big tracks but a 3.6 ratio diff is not recommended. Upgrade to a 3.9 Ratio minimum.

 

[tooley]

Nice update, and what a wicked response Tooley. I've always wanted to try zero toe, but get told I am mad and I should have toe in. I knew I was right all along! What effect does caster have, and also what do you do with the rear traction arm length setting for bump steer? Or do you just not have bump because suspension is so firm?

Castor will change the speed / rate that the car will self center. The higher the number the more it will self center and less driver input needed.

As for bump steer the only way to fully get rid of that is to run drop knuckles. They move the wheels centers but keep the suspension arms in its OEM position so you do no lose any bump / rebound travel.

If you run OEM knuckles it will not be much of a problem unless your car is stupidly low.

 

[sibbers]

Ah ok, like a shopping trolley wheel then. Are there any nuances to be aware of, as it could be interpreted that more is better and even morer is even betterer

im not very low, and was just thinking about extended my standard arms as far as possible on the adjustable olive thing to cope with the extra width of the wheels which may not be what's causing my bump steer at all, but under heavy compression it feels as though the outside (rear) wheel toes out a bit.

Thanks for the thread btw, brilliant idea.

 

[mbb]

Just got this aligned, I feel like I should have went 7 Castor

Might go drifting this weekend to test out the new alignment

 

[sibbers]

So what happens when you have bucket loads of rear camber? loads of grip round corners??