[clg82]

I may get better responses in the 1LE section so here is my question:

Hey everyone, finally got around to mounting the GM 1LE wheels and tires I got from wildhammer. I read countless posts about some needing to grind/shave the top of the strut to get the fronts to fit. I did in fact have to grind both sides, but the passenger is being a total pain in my ass. As you can see from the pictures it appears the front alignment or something else up front is out of whack. The drivers side tires/wheel stick out at least a half inch outside of the fender while the passenger is tucked in a lot more. Which is probably the reason for the extra grinding required on that side. I had an alignment performed about a year ago, after I installed the eibach lowering springs. Everything tracks perfectly fine when driving the car, doesn’t pull one way or the other so what could the issue be with the front end? Or is the alignment out of sorts and i need to get it done again? I do swap wheels out frequently from race to summer to winter, could that cause the issue (taking wheels on and off again a lot)? Thanks for any help and sorry for the long post.

Can anyone verify this is how one side is supposed to be? Or post pictures of a top down view of their front ZL1 1LE stock setup? Thanks for any help!

[Hotwheeltat]

From the looks of it the camber is not even left to right. Looks to have more negative camber on the right side. That will pull the top of the tire in. Have your alignment checked.

[clg82]

Originally Posted by Hotwheeltat

From the looks of it the camber is not even left to right. Looks to have more negative camber on the right side. That will pull the top of the tire in. Have your alignment checked.

I think you’re on the right track with your thought process, not sure how it would get so out of whack, i haven’t tracked it since the alignment and only driven it a hand full of times, unless the swapping of tires will affect it…..

[N Camarolina]

I think the bolts to set the alignment have a high torque value. Could be that whoever did it didn't tighten it properly and the camber has slipped. Not sure though that it would slip to a higher value (more tipped in at top at passenger side) if it was loose, rather than a lower value (more tipped out).

Is it possible that the 1LE wheel you purchased has a different offset than your ZL1 OEM wheel and thus has the inside edge of the wheel riding closer to the strut?

[clg82]

Originally Posted by N Camarolina

I think the bolts to set the alignment have a high torque value. Could be that whoever did it didn't tighten it properly and the camber has slipped. Not sure though that it would slip to a higher value (more tipped in at top at passenger side) if it was loose, rather than a lower value (more tipped out).

Is it possible that the 1LE wheel you purchased has a different offset than your ZL1 OEM wheel and thus has the inside edge of the wheel riding closer to the strut?

You are correct the 1LE wheels have a different offset than the stock ZL1 and i was aware of that going in to purchasing them. But all that would need to be modified is the upper strut assembly may need to be shaved down. I believe you’re probably on to something with the alignment bolts. I am going to add some positive camber to the passenger side to bring it out some, but will that affect the whole alignment setup? And how can you get an accurate reading on what the drivers side is? Just eyeball it?

[N Camarolina]

When you change the camber, it automatically affects the toe setting. Toe is what tends to cause premature tire wear moreso than the camber. Toe can be set AFTER setting the camber to ensure both are correct.

You'll likely need to get an alignment, but you'd need one anyway as it's obvious from your pictures that the camber is currently quite different in your two front wheels. Probably makes sense to start with that, and see if it fixes your struct clearance problem on the passenger side.

If you don't intend to track your car, go with the street alignment settings, as the lower camber will cause less interference with the strut (= less need for grinding to clear the new 1LE wheels).

[clg82]

Originally Posted by N Camarolina

When you change the camber, it automatically affects the toe setting. Toe is what tends to cause premature tire wear moreso than the camber. Toe can be set AFTER setting the camber to ensure both are correct.

You'll likely need to get an alignment, but you'd need one anyway as it's obvious from your pictures that the camber is currently quite different in your two front wheels. Probably makes sense to start with that, and see if it fixes your struct clearance problem on the passenger side.

If you don't intend to track your car, go with the street alignment settings, as the lower camber will cause less interference with the strut (= less need for grinding to clear the new 1LE wheels).

I have adjusted the camber on the passenger side and boy does it make a difference in clearance for the new wheels. I will still take the car to get an alignment this week to verify i get everything set to street alignment. I appreciate the help! I am starting to think I change out my wheels to much and i may have (over time) started moving the camber around and not knowing it.

[N Camarolina]

Originally Posted by clg82

I have adjusted the camber on the passenger side and boy does it make a difference in clearance for the new wheels. I will still take the car to get an alignment this week to verify i get everything set to street alignment. I appreciate the help! I am starting to think I change out my wheels to much and i may have (over time) started moving the camber around and not knowing it.

Changing your wheels (removing them from the mounts)should not change the camber. I have two sets that get changed out whenever I track the car, which is about 6 weekends (so 12 times) a year. Camber is still what it was set at 2 years ago.

But then again I'm usually using a Quickjack to raise the car in my garage (straight vertical raise all at once), and only do the floor jack thing (one side, then the other), when I'm changing wheels at the track. I have wondered though if repeated floor jacking (tilting the car on it's side) would mess with the alignment.

[synolimit]

is it just me or is a rear wheel on the drives side and a front wheel is on the passenger side?

OP they should be even on both sides. if your OEM wheels look like this then you have a problem, if this is only happening with these wheels, then something else is up. doesnt make sense. alignment shouldnt have anything to do with it if again the oem wheels look fine.

[clg82]

Originally Posted by synolimit

is it just me or is a rear wheel on the drives side and a front wheel is on the passenger side?

OP they should be even on both sides. if your OEM wheels look like this then you have a problem, if this is only happening with these wheels, then something else is up. doesnt make sense. alignment shouldnt have anything to do with it if again the oem wheels look fine.

These are both fronts...

[synolimit]

Originally Posted by clg82

These are both fronts...

damn, you got me stumped