Alignment and MPG

[prchrman]

Did not want to hyjack Mac's thread on sucky gas mileage so I started this one. Had my car aligned to the specs on the board (carfixer's I think) and was wondering if anyone saw a change in MPG after they aligned theirs utilizing these specs? Side note is that my steering became stiffer but outside that I can not detect any other change other than the tires do look more vertical. My fronts were worn on the inside, again, so I did the MM net specs. He got it to .00 and -.1, 5.5 and 6.0, 0 and 0. He said it was out of spec and I had it aligned less than 6 months ago. I live in the mountains and have not noticed any difference in handling and I put it through the paces pretty good. The 1.7 mile secondary road to my house has serious curves and it handled it with ease. Any who the question is, did the new improved alignment specs change anyones gas mileage?
Thanks up front for your help and support,
wranglin

[SergntMac]

There's good reason a correct alignment will improve MPG. Less forward friction = less need for throttle. I'm an advocate of running higher than usual PSI in the tires as well, and for the same reason. Reduce rolling resistance = better MPG.

[RF Overlord]

Willie, you ol' woodhick...how the heck are you? :)

I didn't pay any attention to the mileage after having my alignment (some time ago), although I did notice as you did that the steering felt "tighter"...not that it took more effort to turn the wheel, but that it felt more responsive. I concur with Mac's analysis.

[Dragcity]

Will these alignment specs work well with my winter tire setup as well as the OEM?

I am going in for service next week and may have them utilize CARFIXER data.

[TripleTransAm]

I don't think camber will change any forward friction, but toe certainly will. When you've got your tires pointing in directions other than straight ahead as you're trying to drive straight ahead, you will get some scrubbing. Caster might affect this as well but only during turning (ie. a 0 degree toe difference will still be 0 degrees no matter what caster you have, when the wheels are pointed straight ahead).

I usually ask for 0 toe on all my cars.

And yes, the (less aggressive) alignment specs should be good for any tire.

[rayjay]

Will these alignment specs work well with my winter tire setup as well as the OEM?

I am going in for service next week and may have them utilize CARFIXER data.

Yes, I had it done Christmas week. I can actually "feel" the road now. I much prefer these specs over OEM.

[Dragcity]

I'll have it done then. I hope they don't give me any crap about the OVERSIZED tires thowing the milage off....

[duhtroll]

Could someone post a link to the carfixer alignment data or just post it?

Mine gets aligned every winter when the steelies are on. It goes in Monday.

Thanks

[Dragcity]

And I copied this from one of the other threads. I ain't no plagerist either!

copied it from the above to make it even easier!

CARFIXERS POST COPIED BELOW ( I ain't no plagerist. )

The inside edge wear of the front tires is caused by 2 things: negative camber and negative toe (toe out). Caster is not a tire wearing angle. The outside edge wear can be caused by excessive toe in and aggressive cornering.

Factory camber spec is -.5 degrees +or- .75 degrees
Factory toe spec is -.15 degrees +or- .20 degrees
(BTW, this info came from their website which is updated periodically and may differ from previously published material, such as cd's and paper manuals)

That means your alignment could have -1.25 degrees of camber and toe out of -.35 degrees and still be in the "green". This will wipe out the inside edges in <20K miles IMO.

All of the MM's I've aligned (about 10) had at least -1.0 degrees of camber and always toe out of -.10 degrees or more from the factory. That's why almost all MM's you see have excessive inside edge tire wear.

For best tire wear, here is what I use on all MM alignments:
Camber: 0 to -.3 degrees.*
Toe: Zero degrees.
Caster: 5-6.5 degrees positive with .3 degree lead on the right side.

*Camber can affect cornering feel. The more negative camber you have, the better it will handle corners. Most drivers will never feel the difference, especially on the street.


Do Dah, Do Dah

[JohnE]

Here's a nice write-up about the general effects of Toe, Camber & Caster. Well worth reading.

Pointed the Right Way (http://www.ozebiz.com.au/racetech/theory/align.html)


There's quite a few tradeoffs between handling, tire life & tracking. I'm trying to figure this stuff out myself. My car likes to pull the the right a little bit and is a a bit of work to keep straight on uneven surfaces. This is with factory style settings. I had a bit more aggressive setting prior to that. These were without the right pull yet it was much more of a handfull (all over the place) on uneven surfaces.


John