Wheel alignment done

[Duke]

I just had the wheel alignment done to Duke and it drives fine, much better than it did before. It was pulling to the right but now only has a very light pull to the right, I gather that is just part of these vans. Anyhow, I was told that the camber went to the maximum and is still way off. The reading for the right front camber is -5 degrees, it should be at 3 degrees. That sounds far out (and not in the hippie way either ). I'm wondering if there may be something bent or damaged underneath but I can't see anything that is out of place. Has any one else come across this as well, or is there something that can be done to fix this? 30" tires aren't cheap to replace. Any ideas would be great so that I can pass them on to my mechanic.
Thanks, Chris

[jessef]

If you take it to a shop that specializes in alignments, they should be able to tell you right off the bat.

Underneath it's the same thing as a Mitsubishi montero which they have north american specs on.

Could be your tie rods. Those go easily if they have not been replaced.

[ccautos]

These are not the same as Monteros . Monteros use a steering box not a rack and have all differnet ball joints and control arms . Pajeros are the same as Monteros and use almost all of the same steering components . First check is ride height before carrying out the alignment . Once the van is `level` then the angles can be set . We have found inner and outer tie rods wear commonly and also the upper ball joints wear if not regularly greased but rarely have any problems with lower ball joints . Camber and caster readings can be adjusted up and down to make the van drive straight but toe must be set correctly or it will wear tires . When setting up a van to drive straight we often adjust the down to -0.2 degrees but rarely below that or it tends to scrub the edge of the tire . One other thing to check is the upper control arm bushings for wear as this seems to be getting more common .

[jessef]

These are not the same as Monteros . Monteros use a steering box not a rack and have all differnet ball joints and control arms . Pajeros are the same as Monteros and use almost all of the same steering components . First check is ride height before carrying out the alignment . Once the van is `level` then the angles can be set . We have found inner and outer tie rods wear commonly and also the upper ball joints wear if not regularly greased but rarely have any problems with lower ball joints . Camber and caster readings can be adjusted up and down to make the van drive straight but toe must be set correctly or it will wear tires . When setting up a van to drive straight we often adjust the down to -0.2 degrees but rarely below that or it tends to scrub the edge of the tire . One other thing to check is the upper control arm bushings for wear as this seems to be getting more common .

my mistake. You're right Glen.

-5 degrees for the front is way out though. not good for the tires.

[EnviroImports.com]

with -5 degrees you must have a death wobble when driving on anything but perfectly flat pavement, we have a shop here in Victoria that does allignment , they have the actual Delica specs in there alignment computer, they set up a few of mine and my landcruiser also. I recomend getting it done, -5 degrees is Very far out of alignment. be carefull with that.
Noel

[Schwa]

What's the lower mainland shop that's been doing Delica alignments?

[jessef]

Westcoast Alignment on Powell st

[Erebus]

The reading for the right front camber is -5 degrees, it should be at 3 degrees.

Nitpick. I believe you are actually referring to castor, not camber. The numbers I have (from Mystery Machine) are:
camber: 0 deg, 30 min; +- 45 min
castor: 3 deg; +- 1 deg
toe-in (at rim) 0-3
toe-in (per wheel) +- 8 min.

Castor only sort-of adjustable. There was a thread on this forum a while ago where someone explained now to shim and adjust to get castor right. Try searching (sorry, I'm too lazy right now).

[Duke]

Ok, sorry for not getting back sooner but life happens ( mainly "I owe, I owe, so off to work I go", and the "Honeydoo" list). Anyways, the alignment is still out but none of the dreaded Death Wobble and it drives really well on the highway. I had to go to Burnaby on Saturday morning so on the way back stopped off at Japaniod and bought one of the repair manuals. I am going to take it back to the shop, with the manual, because it seems they may have got their numbers mixed up (thank you Erbus) so this may not be as bad as it sounds.
Thanks for the help.

[Erebus]

Ah, found the old thread called alignment specs that gives the details on how to adjust the caster.

[Keywords (for search purposes): castor, caster, wheel alignment, specs, specifications]

[thelazybrownfox]

Hey Duke
Is Japanoids manual useful and how much was it. Is it detailed enough? We have remnants of manuals in the Wiki but not enough detailed info.

Thanks Wayne

[Duke]

Wayne:
The manual is very detailed, lots of information on the mechanics, wiring, troubleshooting, but nothing on the interior or trim. When I first had it in my hands I thought, wow... not much there, cause it's a small book. Then I paid for it, almost $75 and I'm thinking this better be gold lined. I jumped into the van and opened up the manual and saw right away that it is very comprehensive.( I got to start waring my glasses, cause the print is small) I've had lots of the Hayes books for my vehicles and some of the instructions seemed vague, this seems more straight forward. It fills in the missing info from the wiki. Only problem is no pictures just drawings. Is it worth it? To me it is, but to someone who may not know the proper end of a hammer, no.

[thelazybrownfox]

Duke
Who wrote the manual? Hayes or (?)
wayne

[trendkiller]

sounds like the russek manual....

[Duke]

sounds like the russek manual....

Yup, Hayes was the first manual I looked for, could'nt find one.