agent75 37 Report post Posted September 2, 2015 Hi all Ive recently lowered my facelift E30 (for handling but to be honest I think it looks great too). I'll get plenty of flack no doubt but I went lows in the rear and super low kings in front. I have checked the camber in my own special back yard way and it is -1.6deg FL , -1.2deg FR, -1.2deg LR, -1.3deg LR. Is the 1.6deg front left a concern? also, from what i read about handling it's nice to have a little more in the rear than the front so it's not as tail happy, would one of those strut braces with the adjustable width be able to tune the front to have less or should i shut up an drive my car. I have put a rear sway bar in too but still have the standard 318i front sway so it's definitely set up for tail happy . driving in the rain and being a clutch popping dick the other night appeared to prove that (still looking for a 325 front sway) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_ethrty-Andy_ 2132 Report post Posted September 2, 2015 there is no camber adjustment front or rear on an E30, other than altering ride height. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agent75 37 Report post Posted September 2, 2015 I realise there is no factory camber setting ability but I thought there were strut braces with a certain amount of adjustment to push towers apart. So how do you do it 3pedals? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WYZEUP 283 Report post Posted September 2, 2015 strut braces do not alter camber all they are there for is to stop the inward flex of your body during hard cornering. only way to adjust camber in the front is to add camber plates, and without modifying your rear subframe or installing eccentric bolts there is no adjustment in the rear Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agent75 37 Report post Posted September 2, 2015 How about those ones with threaded width adjustment ? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thorburn 121 Report post Posted September 3, 2015 haha funny. But speaking of rough ways to fix a problem. You could slot the holes in the top of your strut towers a smidge. I'd look into reinforcing the strut tower while your at it.E36's have more options for camber adjustment because of the hub being a separate piece to the strut. Washers and cam bolts are used(not sure if cam bolts is the right name for them) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_ethrty-Andy_ 2132 Report post Posted September 3, 2015 just crank it up till you pop the welds in your strut towers, that out to correct the camber 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agent75 37 Report post Posted September 3, 2015 aint no welds in my strut towers but point taken. so whats the purpose of threaded strut braces? do they only exist for people like me to ask dumb questions about them? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_ethrty-Andy_ 2132 Report post Posted September 3, 2015 aint no welds in my strut towers but point taken. so whats the purpose of threaded strut braces? do they only exist for people like me to ask dumb questions about them? nah mate you wont be the first, or the last. just for ease of install, and also some models have different strut tower heights, eg E30 iX and non-iX have different heights, no doubt many hondas toyotas etc are the same. an adjustable one really should be called multi fit or something to avaoid confusion Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agent75 37 Report post Posted September 3, 2015 Ahh. Sounds logical. It's such a fun and good handling car that I get a case of obsessive compulsion to make it a funnerer and gooderer handling car. I think It's "shut up and drive it " time! ......... Still keen on 325 front sway! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_ethrty-Andy_ 2132 Report post Posted September 3, 2015 strut brace is just a cosmetic mod really some good tyres, good shocks, and leave the rest as is Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
E30 325i Rag-Top 2957 Report post Posted September 6, 2015 The front strut towers are not the strongest tbh, and will benefit from strengthening of some form. And in answer to your question yes, you can use an adjustable strut brace to pull them in, or push them out as in your case you are looking for LESS camber. The only draw back is that you can't really control which of the two towers will move... so rather than push out your -1.6 degree LH you might move your RHS. You can use the offset lower control arm bushes, but they would only give you more camber I think.. and would be the same on both sides, wouldn't recommend running on only one side. If you want any level of adjustability over the two sides then camber plates are the only real "proper" solution, but for those you will need a LVVT Cert which adds to the $$$s. WIth those, relatively small for a road car, differences between the four corners I wouldn't worry about it that much. There are probably bigger issues affecting the tail happiness, than the camber, which you might want to look at first. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agent75 37 Report post Posted September 22, 2015 Thanks guys. some valid points! I have already got offset bushes in the front, but i have now purchased and installed a 20mm 325 sway bar and new urethane super pro sway bar "D" bushes to match my already installed 12mm rear sway. It is amazing! The difference of just 1.5mm in sway diameter and some new bushes is noticeable and has transformed the car (along with the new shocks/springs all round and the E36 rack). The front sway immediately balanced the handling nicely back towards the front and i can say that i have a car that is a blast to drive with predictable handling (tested on a greasy wet road like i was 20 years younger than i actually am ). I'm sure the track will show up some different handling characteristics but I can confidently recommend the 325 front/rear sway. The Monroes are doing me just fine as I am too tight to buy any of those fancy ones! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hotwire 352 Report post Posted September 22, 2015 Monroes + BMW = YUK! Sorry, but been there/ done that.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agent75 37 Report post Posted September 22, 2015 Monroes + BMW = YUK! Sorry, but been there/ done that.... pfft. BMW + worn out shocks = YUK Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hotwire 352 Report post Posted September 22, 2015 Only giving my experience Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agent75 37 Report post Posted September 24, 2015 Only giving my experience Gee, I'd better not tell you about my 14 inch wheels, 45mm struts and M40 engine lest i get your un-asked for opinion on those too eh Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites