Re: <All> Rear Wheel Alignment - First hand experience.

[Richard Nott <gis@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 13:08:08 -0800 (PST)
>From: Kyle Mark <kyle_5r@domain.elided>
>Subject: Can E-34 rear wheels be aligned?
>
>Is there such thing as a 4-wheel alignment on an E-34?. . . . Does
anyone
>know why BMW E-34's have no camber adjustment on all four corners?
>Kyle


There have been a few responses to this, but as I'd gone through
the experience myself I thought I'd share mine.

KMac also manufacture an eccentric trailing arm bush (urethane) used
to adjust both toe and camber on the rear wheels. For example if you
had a lowered car where the bottom of the wheels stick out too far.
I had this fitted to my 86 535i.  It was the first they'd done, so I had
to
take it back to them 3 times! to get the Bush size perfect. The first
time
it was too thick and made the rear suspension firmer than it should have

been.  It felt as hard as a rock to push on.  Second time still too
thick even
after a few weeks... The price you pay for being the test bed.

It's fairly easy for a suspension specialist whose never installed one
before
to do it. When you rotate the eccentric bush it affects BOTH toe and
camber at the same time, so adjustment of one affects the other.  This
requires a few attempts to get it right, But as long as they've got the
right
equipment (computer printout of toe, camber, etc) it's quite easy for
them
to do - and you to check!.

I'm happy with it now, so I'd recommend it for an E28 5 Series, but
wouldn't for a different model... unless you can take it to them, I
doubt
they would do the development work to make it fit 'perfectly'.  I'd ask
them how many they've sold for a particular model.

Someone mentioned that BMW sell an eccentric trailing arm bush. Do
they sell them for all BMW models or only some?.

Cheers,
Richard

74 3.0S (Since New!)
86 535i
This info and more can be found at
Richard Nott's BMW Database:
http://www.gis.nsw.gov.au/staff/rnott/bmw/bmw.html

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