4 Wheel Alignment

[BlackTypeR]

Hey

i just got my service + 4 Wheel alignment done last week in London (booked through the jaguar website, was surprised they were open!)

Just looking at the print out (i am no expert), still a bit confused by camber and caster on the left side, as the numbers are in red. I've been assured that this is correct, however still a bit unsure

grateful for any feedback!

[Lunar]

I'd certainly be interested to hear them elaborate on that - the fact that the figures are still in the red seems to give a pretty strong clue.
Also this has been done with CCD type alignment gear - so basically bolted into the wheel rims, or car sits on plates.
In itself that has inherent issues as the connection points are roughly 10" offset to the axle centre-line - assuming a 20" wheel.
My bet is that the LH camber and caster have not been adjusted and that the slight differences are just tolerance in the measuring gear.
If I was a suspicious person I'd say maybe with a little judicious leaning on the wheel in the desired direction.
I would also clarify that I don't know how or indeed if the caster and camber are easily adjusted.

The more current and best way to set the alignment is with gear that works directly on the axles, such as shown below.
When I had someone hit my front wheel recently the full alignment was achieved with the below type of device to ensure accuracy.
Unfortunately they (Premier Panel Skills) were working so hard to get the car back to me - literally before locking down - that I didn't get the print out.
When I do I'll try to remember to ask them about these adjustments and post up the details.

[Jaguandy]

I had my alignment checked a few months ago. No adjustment needed after 25,000 miles. So routine alignment checks should not be needed unless suspicious or hit a wheel?

[Dan_Veluwe]

I have 28k km's , dealer said alignment is off. But I also need new front tires [ rears done in october], so I 'll combine it.

I read somewhere toe-in front should be less then factory to improve agility, anybody ??

[mickjaguar]

Yes there is some truth in this. When I replaced all four tyres I had the alignment done, as the front tyres were worn on the inner edge. It must have come from the factory with a few degrees of toe out, rather than toe in. After the alignment, the turn in wasn't quite as sharp, but the straight line stability was better. The differences were very subtle and the alignment tech, said I probably wouldn't notice any difference after he'd done it. Drives better with the correct geometry.

Apparently race cars have a toe out set up as they are mostly doing corners on circuits, whereas road cars spend more time driving straight and will have a more toe in bias.

[cj10jeeper]

I have 28k km's , dealer said alignment is off. But I also need new front tires [ rears done in october], so I 'll combine it.

I read somewhere toe-in front should be less then factory to improve agility, anybody ??

Factory set up is a compromised position between safety, comfort, ease to drive, tyre wear and even fuel economy
You can do all sorts of things, but depends if you want a road car or track car

Change the toe in and make it twitchy and unstable, following tramlines, etc on road driving, but ultimately corners better
Increase the camber (inward lean) and make it corner better, but strip the inside edge of the tyres
Change Castor (not sure if possible on the F) and make the self-centering different

(not looking for an 'argument' on geometry setup, just illustrating different settings away from a standard can cause different benefits or adverse issues)

[Chrissyg]

I'm slightly questioning them using the right derivative (sometimes the geometry changes each model year due to slight mass changes/weight balances, due to new options or reduced options). I've had a look at the JLR internal specs for service rigs for your car, and it looks like your camber is within specification, but the castor looks to be a bit on the low side (as is only further reinforced by the red numbers - the tolerances listed 6.78 +/- 0.75), show the car out of specification, which also tallies with the specs I've found for your model year. I'd be asking to see if there's any adjustment (sorry, can't remember if F Types have castor adjustment) to bring that back into spec personally..

[cj10jeeper]

I'm slightly questioning them using the right derivative (sometimes the geometry changes each model year due to slight mass changes/weight balances, due to new options or reduced options). I've had a look at the JLR internal specs for service rigs for your car, and it looks like your camber is within specification, but the castor looks to be a bit on the low side (as is only further reinforced by the red numbers - the tolerances listed 6.78 +/- 0.75), show the car out of specification, which also tallies with the specs I've found for your model year. I'd be asking to see if there's any adjustment (sorry, can't remember if F Types have castor adjustment) to bring that back into spec personally..

Totally agree. Did a lot of work on my Z4 and there were different specs by model, year and type of suspension fitted (sport vs standard where one was 30mm lower). You even had to have a full tank of fuel and place 50kg of weight in each seat to load the car
I know Hunter systems well and they have a database of each model and year to make sure all is correct for the car

[Chrissyg]

I'm slightly questioning them using the right derivative (sometimes the geometry changes each model year due to slight mass changes/weight balances, due to new options or reduced options). I've had a look at the JLR internal specs for service rigs for your car, and it looks like your camber is within specification, but the castor looks to be a bit on the low side (as is only further reinforced by the red numbers - the tolerances listed 6.78 +/- 0.75), show the car out of specification, which also tallies with the specs I've found for your model year. I'd be asking to see if there's any adjustment (sorry, can't remember if F Types have castor adjustment) to bring that back into spec personally..

Totally agree. Did a lot of work on my Z4 and there were different specs by model, year and type of suspension fitted (sport vs standard where one was 30mm lower). You even had to have a full tank of fuel and place 50kg of weight in each seat to load the car
I know Hunter systems well and they have a database of each model and year to make sure all is correct for the car

Very true! Forgot about the different mass conditions - in this case, the figures your alignment centre will be working to (in terms of ideal conditions) are full fluids (inc. full fuel) and no passengers or luggage.

[BlackTypeR]

Thanks all, I will email them and questions that.

I did question it at the time, and been told that all is good, but should have been a bit more vocal.

It wasn't really necessary, but just put 4 new tires on and since they were doing the service I thought I will also get them to check the geo. I used to go to kwikfit in Edgware, they have the hunter machine which I total agree is a lot more accurate, but didn't trust them with the ftype.

Not gonna name the dealer, but it is a jaguar/Landrover specialist...

Here was me thinking giving them all the business in order to start building a relationship, defo overpaid for the geo (270) but thought of it more as an investment haha