I just got new front tires and was planning on getting these mounted and getting an alignment. The current fronts have worn on the inside wall very badly. Pressure was at 30psi - don't know if this contributed. Tried to keep the fronts at 34 psi for the last 5,000 miles.

Went out to check ride height before getting the tires mounted and found my ride height to be 1.5 - 2 inches low in the front and back. Also found I have Konis all around - always wondered what my red shocks were but saw the triangle on the shocks today. I like the way the car is set up now and don't really have issues with clearance.

Can the car be aligned at the lowered height without compromising tire wear?

 

Ride height shouldn't affect tire wear if the alignment is correct. Make sure your tie rods and steering rack mounts are solid before you do your alignment. High or low tire pressures will cause symmetrical problems accross the tread, unlike yours.

 

Unless you are really wedded to the lowered look, many people who have driven it both ways, recommend setting it at factory for best handling. Nicole for one has written on this a couple years ago. I've only looked under a few in my life, but all have suffered from bottoming and I can only think another 1.5" can't be good for 1) the a/c compressor, 2) drop links, 3) tie rods, especially. YMMV.

 

The inside wear on your front tires probably has less to do with the ride height and more to do with some shop lifting the car to do the last alignment. You have a classic symptom of that mistake. As stated above, make sure all related suspension and steering components are in proper working order as well.

 

BTW: How low can you go, and still align the car?
...

My tires stopped wearing on the inside after I took 500lbs out of the car.

IE, now that the front end sits like it would if you did the alignment after lifting the car.

 

Thanks for the responses.

Here's what I am wondering about. An alignment is a static set-up for when the wheels are pointing straight. I think I also understand the geometry is designed to maximize the tire surface area during cornering. My guess is, changing the set-up with a lowered suspension will change the tire patch while cornering.

I"ve always worn the inside thread on all the cars I have ever driven. But I'd like to get a sense for how significant the additional wear will be with a lowered suspension if any. I'd like to get at least 20K miles per tire opposed to 6K.

Anyone have a comment about whether/how much a lowered suspension will eat tires?

 

The tire wear from the geometry change of the suspension is not something I think you need to worry about, and there is going to be very little difference in that wear at different ride heights given the correct alignment. The tire wear from that is a pittance compared to what it is for an alignment at the incorrect ride height. I also suspect with a relatively stock suspension, the lean angle of the car is a greater factor than the geometry change of the suspension.

So a lowered suspension is not a concern for tire wear, just worry about the alignment.

 

The lowered suspension can be aligned and your static settings will be OK. The challenge is to maintain the correct toe when the suspension is displaced. In the lowered car, smaler changes in suspension hight make bigger changes in toe, since the tie rods now angle up from the ends of the rack to the outer tie rod ends at the spindle. A small amount of compression common with cornering and with any freeway driving will cause the front wheels to toe out. That toe-out is what eats the inside of the front tires. For the same reasons, a car that's aligned after having the front suspension liifted will cause the wheels to toe out as the suspension settles. At the original ride height, the tie rods are virtually level, and in fact are a little high at the steering rack ends. The factory allows some downward tolerance in the front, to the point where the tie rods are level. More than this means that there will alwas be toe change under normal suspension movement, of course. Lower car means bigger rate of change, so that should be avoided if possible.

Many folks like the stiff ride that sometimes comes with the lowered car. The shocks are valve progressively as they get closer to full compressed length, so they provide more damping and the "feel" that the car handles "better". The shocks do provide more compression damping but may give up some rebound damping when the car is lower.


The biggest downside of the lowered car, besides the bumpsteer 'impact' on handling and the resultant tire wear, is the exposure of the AC compressor and the alternator to road hazards. The compressor in particular is mounted on a fairly stout mounting bracket. A decent impact with something on the road, or even a parking-lot bumper or wheel stop, will break the bracket and compressor from the engine, pulling the bosses from the block in the process. The block is potentially destroyed, and there's certainly no reasonable way to remount the compressor to it.

So, will a lowered suspension eat tires? Yes. How long will it take? Depends on the alignment you start with, the conditio of your shocks and the rest of the suspension, and how you drive. Cars that have been raised during the alignment process have been know to chew through a set of fronts in less than 1000 miles. cars tha dropp some while driving after a "good" alignment can scrub a set a little slower. The best thing to do if you insist on keeping it low is to measure the tire wear (with a tread depth gauge, not your naked calibrated eyeball...) and catch inner-rib scrubbing damage before it becomes severe. Get the toe set again, and continue to monitor wear. Otherwise, get to know your tire store guys. They will quickly know you!

 

How does one measure and do ride height when you have changed form stock wheels to hollowspokes?

 

It really shouldn't change the ride height if the diameter of the tires are close. With that said, I know Brian's car sure looked higher in the rear when he got the new 997 wheels put on his 928. Best thing to do is to cut some wooden sticks (popsicle, skewers, etc) to the length you want your ride height to be (factory setting for front is 160mm to 180mm, not sure of rear off-hand) and use them at the factory measuring spot to see where you are at. If you don't know where the factory spot is, it would be easier to post a pic of the measuring spot than for me to try to describe it. I can get some pics later tonight if someone doesn't post them sooner.

Rich

 

https://rennlist.com/forums/showpost...4&postcount=11

 

Thanks Chris, that's exactly the place.

Rich

 

Thanks for all the input. Still not sure is a lowered suspension can be maintained easily, but I figure a little work (and a lot of driving) and I won't have to worry about it.

Broke down and borrowed a spanner wrench from Oldtee and put a few spins on the spring perch nuts. Drove around and got it about an inch higher. Still have a little further to go. Spanner tool wouldn't budge even after a couple of hours of PB Blaster. A cheater bar made easy work of it.

I like the heavy steering and stiff ride, but can do without the bumpsteer. If I lose the stiff ride, I can always get adjustable Konis and befriend an orthopedic.

 

Where does one obtain this spanner wrench?

 

I got one on line; it was a wrench for ATV shock adjustment. I've heard that a home center faucet wrench will work. Carl at 928 motorsports has one:

http://www.928motorsports.com/parts/shockcollartool.php