I was luckier. I changed mine *because* it was pulling to one side slightly
and 'bonging' when going to full lock when stationary, new arms and bushes
cured both. Mind you, having done the V8 I now notice the roadster doing
the same thing.
It certainly is the castor angle that makes the steering self-centring, and
hence different angles will cause stronger self-centring one side than the
other i.e. pulling to one side (rather than the tracking which is a common
misconception and affects both wheels equally). If you know which one need
less angle and which more, you could try slackening the inner and outer
A-arm nuts and bolts and retightening them whilst applying pressure to the
bottom of the king-pin in the appropriate direction, you could also try the
same with the shock absorber mounting bolts. I know these items are
supposed to align the suspension in a known and repeatable position but
there has to be some clearance in order to get the bolts in without a press,
and clearance means variation. Did you also only tighten the inner A-arm
nuts when the suspension was compressed into its normal running position?
----- Original Message -----
From: "Philip S Jones" <philip.s.jones@attbi.com>
To: <mgs@autox.team.net>
Sent: Wednesday, November 13, 2002 3:44 AM
Subject: Castor adjustability
> ... A while ago I had the
> lower A-arms replaced; and when I later switched tires and wheels to try
to
> address a vibration issue, I noticed a slight but consistent pull to the
left.
> I checked tire pressure and wear, and even swapped the front tires left
and
> right; and the pull is still there.
>
> ... I took the GT into a frame and alignment specialty
> shop, and had them check both the front and rear. The rear was fine; and
on
> the front, the toe-in and camber were both fine, but they said that there
was
> a difference of 1.25 degrees in the castor - and that there was no
> adjustability. They also said that the frame was straight and they saw no
> reason why the castor was different between the two sides.
>
> The questions, then: does the diagnosis ring true - is this difference in
> castor enought to cause the pull? And is there really no adjustability?
If
> so, is it possible that one of the lower A-arms is out of spec, and
causing
> the problem?
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