Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[rastiman]

Hi all

Can somebody please advise a newbie if there is a "reputable" company that can check the camber (and castor) of my Omega near to Cambridge? I've checked the web, and Gladwins appears to be the closest. Has anyone had any experience with them?

The reason I ask is my old girl pulls to the left (more noticeable under braking)  - I've had the tracking checked and adjusted which was out by a huge amount, and its made a difference. Im going to have the tyres replaced as they are starting to split, so will hold on until after this has been done.

It does look as though the front nearside wheel has negative camber, while the offside is more upright.

I've only had the car for a week, and despite being 11 years old, she has only done 29K miles with FSH. Its possible the lower suspension arms may have been changed a few years ago (they seem v clean and black with only a little surface rust) so Im wondering if the camber was checked at the time.

I've read the posts on the site which has been a great help - I never realised Omega's had such an adjustable suspension setup!!

[TheBoy]

before getting a full geometry check done, worth checking that all the suspension and steering components are in good order, then get it all aligned

I don't know of anywhere in East Anglia I'm afraid.

[rastiman]

Thanx for the reply - she is due a service in a few weeks, so I'll get the engineer to have a proper prod and poke in all the bushes etc just to make sure nothings perished etc.

[TheBoy]

Thanx for the reply - she is due a service in a few weeks, so I'll get the engineer to have a proper prod and poke in all the bushes etc just to make sure nothings perished etc.

Also check for inner edge wear on front tyres - poor camber can cause this, and obviously means new tyres if left for too long.

[Seth]

Get the camber angle correctly set, and then wheel alignment re-checked/re-aligned. Then fit a brand-new pair of tyres.
Voila ..... !

[Martin_1962]

How far are you from Chesham?

[rastiman]

Cheers for all the advice from everyone, its all very much appreciated!  

Im about 80 miles from Chesham, so quite a distance Im afraid.

[Seth]

Cheers for all the advice from everyone, its all very much appreciated!  

Im about 80 miles from Chesham, so quite a distance Im afraid.

I reckon that it'll be worth your while going to WIM at Chesham for the full monty.
I think that OOF members get discounted rates there too.

Your fuel bill should be less than the cost of a new tyre!

[bob.dent]

As said above, well worth the trip to Wheels in Motion at Chesham. Had mine re-done there last week following wishbones replacement and everything is now spot on. Mine was also prone to drifting to the left and it turned out to be a castor adjustment which was done by adjusting the sub-frame slightly. Tony at WIM was telling me that most wheel alignment centres will set the car up to manufacturers settings as they would be when the car is new. However, this doesn't allow for wear and tear in the suspension and steering components so Tony customises the settings to suit the car and it's age.

[Martin_1962]

Cheers for all the advice from everyone, its all very much appreciated!  

Im about 80 miles from Chesham, so quite a distance Im afraid.

Nice little trip then

I did a similar distance in December - well worth while

[rastiman]

Sounds like a nice day out to Chesham it is!  

It's really good to hear positive feedback about a company who know their onions (or cambers and castors!) - well worth the trip IMHO!

I'll get everything checked out first in case something has dropped off / perished / broke etc, then give Tony a bell to book an appointment.

A big thank you to everyone who has taken the time to give me advice on this issue - I'll re-post once everything has been sorted out!

[Sir Tigger KC]

Does anyone know anywhere in the South West that does camber adjustment?

I need a new set of tyres as mine are badly worn on the inside edge, really annoying as the rest of the tread is fine!!  I've had the tracking done about 3 months ago and despite handling well now, they've worn significantly since then.....

I've gotta bite the bullet as the MOT's due soon, but I don't want to wreck a new set of tyres :-/ The two worst worn are the OS front and the NS rear.....

Cheers

Steve

[Martin_1962]

Does anyone know anywhere in the South West that does camber adjustment?

I need a new set of tyres as mine are badly worn on the inside edge, really annoying as the rest of the tread is fine!!  I've had the tracking done about 3 months ago and despite handling well now, they've worn significantly since then.....

I've gotta bite the bullet as the MOT's due soon, but I don't want to wreck a new set of tyres :-/ The two worst worn are the OS front and the NS rear.....

Cheers

Steve

Just looked on an online map - WIM is not too bad!

[Sir Tigger KC]

To be fair their service sounds first rate! Plenty of recommendations on here!!

How long do they generally take? and any idea of an average cost?

To be honest I didn't realise they are so close to London, and I may have to go up there next week!!

[miniator]

is there adjustment for the camber on the rear wheels?

lower has pushed mine a little more negative