swaped front struts - now the steering wheel isn't straight
 

This is weird !!!! this is like the 5th or 6th time i did my suspension, never had problems before and now after swaping front KYB AGX for set of front Tokico's the steering wheel is not straight.
I didn't mess with tie rods or the steering rods. what could be causing this ????
also i swaped the rear wheel for the front one because it didn't want to balance on the machine ( slightly bent rim)

the rear wheel had never been rotated(less than 3k since tires installed) so the thread is pretty good,
vice the one front that been there for same time ( but never bothered to do alignment- the tires weared very evenly), i did measure the thread depth but there was no major difference.

so after having one front driver side wheel that came from the front passenger side , and one on the passenger side that came from the rear passenger side would make the steering wheel off ???
:confused:

BTW the front Tokico's coupled with rear KYB AGX and H&R springs
ride great !!!!! very smoooth !!!! combo absorbs the bumps instead of jumping over them !!!!:)

Nick.

3KYB AGX for sale $250 shipped.
click here:
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....hreadid=235260

Loosen the lower bolts and pull positive camber (top twards you). Tighten it up while you are pulling on it. Do the same for the other side so both hubs have the max. positive camber you can get. Depending on weather or not your AGX install was set this way, your steering should come back centered or pretty close.

Your going to need another alignment even if the wheel does come back centered.

How do like the Tokico/AGX combo - rides pretty damn smooth huh?

my steering wheel did the exact same thing on Tuesday when i did my Sprint/AGX setup :(
....good thing i bought the Eibach Camber bolts to get the car back into spec when i go for my alignment.

Tom: How long should i wait to get my alignment done? people are tellin me up to two weeks to allow the suspension to fully settle in?

what do you think?

thanks,

Ant

thanks for replay !
 

I had the strut bolts tightned with impact wrench , but i will definitelly look into that. could you explain in more details how to pull the neg camber on those struts? , the way i did it was to put the assembled strut into the wheelwell, secure it up top with three nuts and than tighten the struts/to hub bolts.


Yes the combo rides great !!!!;)

Nick.

The play in the lower strut bolt holes will give you about a degree of camber adjustment. Get yourself a 19mm 1/2" drive 6 point socket and a braker bar. Loosen the two nuts on the lower mount so the hub/rotor can move slightly back and forth. Push, pull on the top of the rotor. You'll see it move about 1/4 inch inwards and outwards. If you look closely at the very front of the rotor,(twards the front of the car) watch it's movement while you push and pull the top of the rotor. That movement changes your toe setting drastically also do to how are suspension is configured. You can see the front of the rotor move inwards and outwards. When you pull outwards on the top of the rotor, your pulling in the direction of positive camber. Your also pulling your toe outwards. Thats what changes your steering wheel center point. If both sides are not set up the same way as before, your steering will be slightly off center because toe on one side is off. The reason I tell you to do both struts over again is so you have a starting point to go by from then on. If you change anything again and pull in the exact same direction when you tighten up the strut, your steering & toe settings should't change much at all if any.

So loosen the two nuts, pull the top of the rotor twards you and tighten them back up again. Do the same for the other side too than have your alignmnet set. Your car should come back with even camber readings on both sides. Mine is usually within .1 degree each side. I think that usually puts me at -.5 and -.6 degrees which is perfect.

thanks again , You are the Man !!!
 

It's like a bright bulb over my head now !!! I got it now !!!!
I was always wondering on how those aligment guys set the aligment on our cars , but now it all falls into place .

thanks again !!!
:bowdown:-njmaxseltd

Nick

one more question
 

what would be the good starting point when i push these rotors in and out? are you suggesting to push INward, or OUTward as far they go, put it back together and see how it rides, or is there like fixed point from which you make adjustments in and out ?

thanks again

Nick.

Set both of them outwards as far as they go. Pull the top twards you. Your dropped so you want to pull a bit more positive camber to offset the negative camber effect. Then just have your alignment set.

will do !!!
 

are you suggesting Nissan dealerships to get the alignment done ?
and $90 seems right ?

Nick.

Just go to your local Sears...
Most dealers don't have the alignment machines! at least not in IL.

Fair Oaks on Grand in Waukegan got one
 

and they will do it for 69.99 ( I hope so )
last time i brought it in with Sprints on , and they wouldn't even touch it , one guy said " get this lowrider out of here "

now om H&R got my fingers crossed.

Nick.

Sears? You must be kidding me. :laugh:

Go to a wheel and tire performance shop that does alignments. I pay $50 for a 4 wheel thrust angle alignemnt here in NJ. $90 at the dealers is a rip off.

The 2 Sears near my house have the latest Digital Units.

No problems at all.

I got mine done for $60 bucks after I put my tokico blue's on.

It's not the equipment that concerns me, it's the people who operate it.

I'd rather have experiance over fancy equipment.

True, True.

More high-tech the equipment = less screwups.
My sears gave me a printout of before and after stats!

This in my eyes eliminates any guess work by you and the fruit-cake working on your car since it all on paper with a guarantee.

Don't let them sell you a 4-wheel alignment. You can only do the front on a maxima with the rear beam setup they have. Aligning the rear would take a big torch and a winch...

MyGray96SE is correct! - Don't get screwed out of your money.

When Sears did my front the tech installed Cam Bolts for free!!!
because my camber was so screwed up.

I don't even work for Sears and I'm free advertising their butts...