Alignment Settings - 300ce AMG - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

#1 08-01-2002, 04:05 AM

Dear All

I have recently changed my tyres (235/40/17) from the Michelin Pilot Sport to the NEW Firestone Firehawk SZ40.

The Michelins were excellent, however the treadwear was very poor .The tyres lasted about 25000 miles (The stones have a treadwear of 400).

This is my daily driver so I searched for an all round tyre to give me good performance, low road noise, longer lasting and astetically pleasing. After a month of research, I am pleased to say the Firestones are superb... and meets all these requirements!

I have a 1990 300CE AMG with about a 30mm drop. The car has therefore a negative camber and I usually rotate, balance and align them every 5000 miles.

I have never yet found an alignment shop that has these AMG settings on their computers...

They usually use the settings of the 300E to do the alignment. It does work as the car runs straight, but I am not sure that these are 100%.

Does anyone out there have these settings for me as I do not want to damage my new Stones'...

Holson Adi · #2 08-02-2002, 08:54 AM

Have you ever asked your local MB dealer? They might have a clue...*might*

good luck

-fad · #3 08-02-2002, 12:24 PM

...perhaps OEM Sportline specs would be more appropriate?

I'd also look for a camber kit to correct that issue.

good luck
-fad

JCE · #4 08-02-2002, 03:53 PM

This thread talks about the Sportline allignment settings. My Sportline kit dropped the height about 3/4" overall - 1/2" when first installed, about another 1/4" as things settled in. I have used these settings for about 2 years with no tire problems. Hope this helps.

Sportline allignment

need2speed · #5 08-02-2002, 08:07 PM

Okay, I really do have an interest in other cars besides the 500E/E500

According to an AMG specs brochure I've posted at need2speed, the front wheel camber for all Hammer models is -0 degree 45', front caster is 10 degrees 10', toe-in is 0 degree 20'.

Rear wheel camber is -1 degree and toe-in is 0 degree 20' also.

Hope this helps,

omegabenz · #6 10-22-2003, 07:25 PM

I had my car (124.020) aligned today to AMG specs which are:

Front suspension
-camber -0 degree 45'
-caster 10 degrees 10' (straight ahead position)
-toe-in 0 degree 20'

Rear Suspension
-camber -1 degree
-toe-in is 0 degree 20'

My car came in to the shop with bad tire wear in the back inner
edges (9/32 on the outside 6/32 inside tires have 800
miles on them.)

(I replaced all the links, shocks, etc, and I wanted everything to get settled in. Maybe thats a bad idea.)

Before

Front suspension
-camber left -.7 degree
right -.5 degree
-Caster left 7.9 degree
right 9.9 degree
-Toe Left .65 degree
right .30 degree
total .95 degree
-Set Back -.64 Degree

Rear Suspension
-Camber Left -1.2 Degree
Right -.7 degree
-toe left -1.75 degree
right -.40 degree
total -2.15 degree
Thrust Angle -.67 degree

After results
Front suspension
-camber left -.9 degree
right -.7 degree
-Caster left 8.9 degree
right 8.9 degree
-Toe Left .10 degree
right .11 degree
total .21 degree
-Set Back -.27 Degree

Rear Suspension
-Camber Left -.9 Degree
Right -1.0 degree
-toe left .10 degree
right .07 degree
total .17 degree
Thrust Angle .01 degree

It took them a little over three hours to align the
car, it costed $225. I was thinking more like 100
bucks, but I guess it took longer than expected, but
those are really close to what AMG called out for on
that car.

What do you think?

ksing44 · #7 10-23-2003, 06:20 AM

I have the alignment specifications from when my 1995 E320 was aligned after I added the Eibach springs. The Porsche race-tuner mechanic found specifications for Mercedes Benz, 92-95, 124.034, "Sport Suspension". I asked for the minimum front toe so that the tires would not get worn-out on the outside edge, like they did with the OEM set-up. I also asked to have the rear camber adjusted to within the same range as specified for the front camber. I figured the rear camber wasn’t specified because it isn’t adjustable from the factory, but I installed the K-MAC rear bushings so that it could be adjusted.

Front
Camber: Min -1.33, Nominal -1.00, Max -0.83, Actual Left -1.2, Actual Right -1.1
Caster: Min 9.92, Nominal 10.42, Max 10.92, Actual Left 10.5, Actual Right10.1
Toe: Min 0.08, Nominal 0.17, Max 0.25, Actual left 0.09, Actual Right 0.08

Cross Camber: Min -0.33, Nominal 0.00, Max 0.33, Actual -0.00
Cross caster: Min -0.50, Nominal 0.00, Max 0.50, Actual 0.8
Total Toe 0.17 0.33 0.50 0.18

Rear
Camber: Actual Left -1.2, Actual Right -1.3
Toe: Min 0.13, Nominal 0.21, Max 0.29, Actual Left 0.14, Actual Right 0.15

Total Toe: Min 0.25, Nominal 0.42, Max 0.59, Actual 0.29

It was nice that the mechanic found a published range of measurements that specified Minimum, Nominal, and Maximum. In a general way, however, I suppose you could say Camber = –1, Castor = 10, and Toe = 0.1, just to keep rather simple.

My car has a sporty look with the visible negative camber, it handles very well, it tracks straight, and so far my tires do not seem to be worn on the outside edge like they were when the car was stock. I have seen no indication that the tires have any kind of unusual wear pattern. In fact, the wear is so uniform I almost don’t feel like I need to rotate the tires.

I hope this helps you,

Ken

omegabenz · #8 10-23-2003, 12:32 PM

Maybe post a picture so we can see what those settings are like. Do you have pictures of your kmac install?

ksing44 · #9 10-23-2003, 02:36 PM

I apologize if I misled you about the K-MAC install. I had them installed. I did not install the K-MAC bushings. I have pretty pictures of my car, but nothing to really show the bushings or the alignment details.

ksing44 · #10 10-23-2003, 02:41 PM

Better view to see camber? Not really, but at least I had a chance to show you another picture.