RE: Camber Plates (Long Rant)

[Ed Walters <EdW@xxxxxxxxx>]

I have the Ground Control E30 adjustable camber/caster plates in my E28.
A little corner shaving was needed to for better fit.  After 16 months I
can honestly recommend against them.  They were worn out in
approximately 6 months.

The thrust bearing that takes the load of the upper spring perch reacts
against the bottom of the c/c plate.  The problem is that the strut rod
is not perpendicular to the c/c plate.  This means that the top of the
spring is not aligned with the strut rod, which causes eccentric loading
of the thrust bearing.  The upper spring perch counterbore, where the
the thrust bearing sits, was ovalized by 1/8 inch after six months.
Also, the spherical bearing had noticable play after the same period of
time.

Beware of other high dollar c/c plates which suffer the same fate.  I do
not mean to single out Ground Control.  Most other brands are of the
same design.

"Its a racing part and has a limited lifespan," others may say.
Bullhork!  I know guys running coilovers with c/c plates on the street
in heavier cars with twice the horsepower, and after more than 75k
miles, the spherical bearings are still tight.  These c/c plates use a
giant teflon lined spherical bearing with the upper spring perch and
thrust bearing reacting against the bottom of the spherical bearing.
This keeps the spring axis aligned with the strut rod.  And the car
is........ a Mustang.  Blasphemy!  Carrera plates also use this design,
but with a small spherical bearing.  I will have the Mustang setup in my
car before I go back to work Jan. 4.  I am making plates so that the c/c
plate is a bolt in affair.  The three strut tower holes will need to be
drilled out to accommodate larger bolts, but there is no cutting of the
center hole or welding.  This means that it is SCCA Street Prepared
legal.  There is one downside: my strut brace will no longer fit, so
I'll have to make my own.

Total cost:  More that GC's plates but less than the $499 that certain
big name tuners get for just their poorly designed c/c plates.  For
about $550 and lots of my time,  I will have a complete adjustable
camber/caster plate set with threaded body spring adjusters and 2-1/2"
ID springs.  A true Team DFL upgrade:  Less expensive and more durable.

Ed

P.S.  MAF update:  203k miles is too many miles for injectors to go
without cleaning.  New ones are on the way.  I still haven't tried the
MAF conversion in another car.  Work sucks.  A certain Digester in
Bergen County, New Jersy has volunteered his '88 535i for a test.  His
car is allegedly running well.  I'll let you know.

- ------------------------------------------------------
Ed Walters
1988 BMW 535is 1997-1998 NNJR SCCA ESP SOLO II 1st Place
		   1998 Pizzafest Sport BMW 1st Place
		   1997 NJBMWCCA Points Series 2nd Place
		   BL/SSed, ERKed, coilovered, camber/castered
		   EW/MAFed
		   Chip? We don't need no stinking chip
1974 BMW 2002  The Safari Sled

Team DFL	   Bringing low-cost high performance to
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www.shortshifter.com, UUC Motorwerks, "Holy Shift!"

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