Still cant adjust toe properly on W201 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

John5788 · #1 05-29-2010, 04:35 PM

So I had the Karlyn brand tie rods which I suspected were the reason why my toe was not able to be adjusted perfectly. I replaced them with ones I bought from the dealership, but it turns out the tie rod is "too long" to bring my toe more negative on my passenger side. The driver side has lots of room for adjustment there.

I am now suspecting my center drag link (also karlyn brand) is out of spec as well. maybe the entire reason why I cant get it aligned right is that the center link is too long? has anyone ever encountered this problem before? I plan to replace the center link with a dealership part.

tjts1 · #2 05-29-2010, 04:44 PM

You can also adjust toe with the offset cam bolts on the control arms.

John5788 · #3 05-29-2010, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tjts1

You can also adjust toe with the offset cam bolts on the control arms.

interesting, i didnt know that. any details on this on how to use the cam bolts to adjust? by cam bolts you are referring to the concentric bolts right?

tjts1 · #4 05-29-2010, 06:18 PM

I adjusted the bolt on my passenger side control arm when the car was pulling to the right. Its a lot easier than the tie rods. Just loosen the nut on the front bolt then rotate the bolt to the desired angle. The bolts have offset washers welded onto the head so you can tell if you're adjusting the arm in or out. It worked out nicely. I do my own alignment at home the old fashion way.
http://www.pelicanparts.com/bmw/techarticles/Borrowed/home_toe_in.htm

John5788 · #5 05-29-2010, 06:19 PM

adjusting from that point also changes camber/caster doesnt it? as of right now, my camber is negative because the car is lowered, but caster is adjusted properly. can caster and toe be adjusted within spec with the control arm bolts?

tjts1 · #6 05-29-2010, 06:24 PM

Yes, it won't affect camber or caster significantly. If you really want to get it spot on, you can use both the front and rear cam bolts to get camber, caster and toe just right. But the issue about the tie rod being too long has to be resolved first.

John5788 · #7 05-29-2010, 06:29 PM

the thing is, now that I know there is an adjustment for toe on the control arms, i'm not sure where my problem lies. I really hope its the center drag link being too long and thats the reason why i cannot get toe on passenger to be correct.

but if its the control arm bolts adjusted wrong because the previous alignment shop attempted to correct my negative camber by offsetting toe too much to be brought into spec, then I can just install a set of camber plates to fix camber properly.

thoughts?

tjts1 · #8 05-29-2010, 06:32 PM

Try and find a different alignment shop in your area that is familiar with the specifics of Mercedes alignment. Here is quote from someone on 190rev.

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisfball12

I was at my alignment class and I got a chance to bring in my 16V on the newest/up to date Hunter machine.

17x7.5 with a offset of 30. 205 tires front and 215 in the rear.

The machine has 12 different settings for the W201 alone: 3.2 amg, w201 sport shocks sls and non sls, evo 1/2, ect.

I picked the setting for the Evo2 since I had 17inch wheels and the offset was only different by 6 mm.

190E 201.029/128 spec
camber left 0.0 camber right 0.2
caster 10.0 caster 10.0
toe .17 toe .17
turning angle diff. -1.58 both sides

rear toe .21 both sides

Evo 1/2 spec
camber left -1.6 camber right -1.6
caster 10.9 caster 10.9
toe -.33 both sides
turning angle diff. -0.33 both sides

rear toe .21 both sides.

^yeah we definitely needed a spreader bar to hold everything in place as we adjusted the front suspension the best we could do.

It took us 2 hours just to go from the picture above to the one below plus straightening out my crocked steering wheel. We never got a chance to touch the rear.

^We couldn't get the caster into spec (Note this is the evo 1/2 specs). I'll try the 2.3-16V spec.

My rear tires are pointed to the right causing my car to drift right.

Overall the difference is huge it feels like the car drives faster now. Yeah it was tricky getting everything in to spec for now. I'll try the 2.3-16v setting on 3-16-09 I'm sure by then I'll have the camber plates and I'll be able to get the caster in to spec much easier even with lowering springs

Any one who is going to go in for an alignment I would recommend that when you visit a shop you should ask some questions first.

1. Can you do an Alignment on a Mercedes?
2. Do you have a Spreader Bar for the front Suspension?
^If they say No just leave and find someone else.

The spreader bar pushes on the inside wheels of the car applying 25 foot pounds keeping everything still while being adjusted. This tool is needed and required by all the Hunter alignment machines

If they say yes make sure to ask them to use it and have them put that on the work order.

good luck
Justin