2.0Si

Really desperate to get my tracking done, its always eaten the insides of the tyres since ive had it about a year ago, ive recently fitted new lower arms, and now the passenger side wheel sits severely on the piss like ' / ' and i have to hold the steering wheel to the left otherwise it pulls to the right, its a right chore to drive and dangerous, but everywhere ive been has turned me away because the car is too low, you can just about get your little finger between the front wing and the tyre top

Where can i take it ?

CabbyRS

somebody with dunlop gauges can do it, easier set-up than modern trackin gear matey, if ur cambers out though matey get thatsorted before trackin as they'll still scrub

SS1

iTrader: (3)

what car for a start would help

mines low as fook so lazer tracking wont work on it

because it works on standard car settings not custom low jobbys

its all computerized for standard settings "ie make of car what year"

2.0Si

Its a 2.0 Fiesta Si, Mk3.5 1995

It had Gmax gas shocks and 60mm springs, now changed to 35mm springs but still far too low !

SS1

iTrader: (3)

where you from would help also

2.0Si

Midlands area near coventry..

CozzyBrom

i can track it and set camber if needed £80

xr4x4rs

iTrader: (5)

what wheels do you have on it?

put sum small steel ones on with skinny tyres

as there would be room to get the gear in the arch


try ats in nuneaton

edd

double what we charge. nice

The Youth.

iTrader: (1)

hang on this guy (brom)is a specialist in this field and do you set the camber ?
also can you advice AND manufacture adjustable arms for his car to cure and camber problems?
I think not

steve

edd

we set camber toe for £30+vat and the £80 probably doesnt include custom arms being built just a bit expensive imo

Anonymous

Why this approach, just state your price & let people make up their mind.
Being proffessional is one thing people look for when deciding where to take their car.

Jim Galbally

i wouldnt expect even CLOSE to a decent job for 30quid.

when i got mine done, it took them 2 hours on tens of thousands of pounds worth of gear.

i slipped the guy 80quid and was laughing.

for 30quid i'd expect a quickfit mechanic to whack on some laser bits and slap an adjustable spanner on the steering arm till the lines point in more or less the same direction

Damo V

Depends on overheads as to what one needs to charge doesnt it....

With respect Edd, nobody here knows his level of competence do they??

I dont...

I mean this with the greatest respect also, he "could" actually be more experienced and knowledgable than Brom?? could he not?? Do you all know different??...

Life isnt just about how much you pay for something IMO... My dad is a time served motor engineer (not a "fitter"), been in the trade since he was 16 and owned his own business since he was 19, has employed numerous people, had two workshops, commercial and car etc etc, survived recessions blah blah, 40 yrs later he is still trading from same place, same co name etc ...BUT he DOES NOT charge enough... I have told him this since I was 12 yrs old!! Does that put his level of expertise and knowledge below that of a technician in a main dealer with 5 years experiance of changing cambelts on VW's because they charge 60-80£ p/h ????

I honestly doubt it and I am NOT being biased.... ...

Granted in this instance, the guy lives in the midlands Brom Quoted 80 quid, (which I would pay for a full on 4 wheel check and adjust in Kent/London). So he will prob just go there, I doubt he is going to want to trapse down to Hampshire to save 50 quid

Damo V

Perhaps they didnt know how to work that "expensive" equipment properly

Jim Galbally

na, just took ages to get it perfect. as soon as you adjust the camber, iot throws the toe out etc. etc. plus my TCAs are a right c*nt to adjust.

camber and toe are now within 0.01 degree of perfection

Jim Galbally

plus it takes 30minutes to set the equipment up and take it off again

scruffythefirst

Just had mine done, took them 3 hours and I had to go get more shims halfway through, damn kit cars

Cost me £100 and that was good value i reckon.

2.0Si

Be jesus paddy, 80 - 100 quid for tracking ! Its a god damn mark 3 fiesta! The camber isnt adjustable as far as i know/remember.

Usually between 20 - 30 quid round here it costs to get it tracked.

Had it on 195/45/16s before, now on 14 inch steelies with 185/55/14s

Don't see the point in trying to defeat the object by putting smaller wheels or thinner tyres on as when i refit the usual wheels its just going to throw it out again surely?

Is there anything i can do to the shocks on the front to stop the springs fully compressing, may be dodgy as hell but the garage is only 2 minutes down the road... Ive tried 60mm and 35mm springs i think its just the weight of the 2.0 engine...

edd

i reakon he was laughing mate

well yeah your right jim our machine cost 14k and we do the job properly and not for fucking rip off prices. go wank 80 quid is fair enough if you reakon more is better

foreigneRS

whereabouts in hants are you edd? need mine doing.

heeman10

edd - Take Damo's comments in as opposed to the others. You've come on here and slated a well-known trader on this forum, so expect some comments back for that. No-one's doubting anyone's competence..hell, maybe you should be charging more! A more professional approach would be nice to see though You charge your prices, Brom will charge his

2.0Si - I have a Mk3 Fiesta too, and recently fitted coilovers all round and lowered it another 15mm or so on those. I tracked the car up myself, which took about an hour and a half all in, with it on the floor, reaching under the car with molegrips and an adjustable spanner. If you have room to get your arm under the sills/skirts, it can be tracked

2.0Si

How do you track it without guages, i remember smashing up my escort into a kerb fitted new shock and lower arm but couldnt figure out how you adjust it, which way does what, which way makes the wheel sits in more and which makes it sit out more..

They both at the moment are sitting in at the top and at the back and sticking out at the bottom...

I thought about maybe taking the track rod ends out of the hubs, sitting the wheels so they were straight then adjusting the track rod ends so they meet with the hubs again ?


The phrase ' doing things on the cheap always costs more in the long run springs to mind here '

James how on earth did or did you do it without guages?

GARETH T

you can track the car up by using a piece of string and get it very very accurate! but taking too someone who knows what they are doing is always a good option!

BTW 80 quid isnt a rip off,,,, it wont be a 5 min wonder

xr4x4rs

iTrader: (5)

the way you describe the wheels are sitting in at the top and out at the bottom means its the camber that needs adjusting

here is 2 pics of toe and camber which one is yours doing?

if its camber the only way to solve this is to by adjustable arms

if its toe then there are places that can track it, ut you will still have camber, toe is so both wheels are pointing in straight line instead of fighting or pulling against each other,


camber



toe

2.0Si

its toeing out, and both wheels are on the piss facing inwards at the top, ill go get a pic

edd

i wasnt saying he was unable to do the job just that i know for a fact i can do the same thing for half the price. but im not a registered trader and he doesnt have a logo either that u can asee so i'm not going to say where i work anyway.

i know of main dealers that charge over £100 for doing this sort of thing and then we have the customer in a week later asking to sort the shit out. like i said fair play if brom knows his shit but i was mearly stating hes not all that cheap everyone want the job done right at the right price and if £80 is acceptable then go for it

edd

true that, my brother did his 300zx and we checked it only less then 2mm out

2.0Si

Photobucket is being gay, wont let me upload, i log in and it throws me out again and when i do manage to get in there is no option for uploading.

Its definaely toeing out with negative camber, but the camber on MK3s isnt adjustable unless you have adjustable arms.

xr4x4rs

iTrader: (5)

yes thats rite

only way to solve that is to have adjustable arms fitted so the camber can be adjusted

the only thing you can have done is toe which is just tracking

bttom pic above

so the wheels are straight you will still have the camber though

Jim Galbally

edd, 30quid is far too cheap IMHO, do you live in scotland or something

round here i wouldnt expect to get an oil change for 30quid but then i do live in the most expensive part of the country

edd

aye, its 30+vat for front camber and toe 40+vat for that and rear toe camber 50+ for that plus castor sweep and setting.

i keep telling the boss hes a twat for doing it so cheap

2.0Si

Got the pics up, i can't even be asked to drive it, the drivers side tyre is squealing like a pig everytime i take the slightest of bends, its turned a brand new tyre into this within 2 days..

With the steering wheel straight, this is how the drivers side wheel sits:





Passenger side:



The reason why it can't be tracked :

too low:



Thats with 35mm lowering springs on too

I can't work out why the tyre is squealing so easily either, is there any way to telling if the brakes are working up front, or the calipers?

Also when i stopped earlier i had smoke coming from the bonnet stunk to high even like rotten eggs, the power steering rack is leaking the fluid onto the exhaust, and the fluid level in the resovoir was below minumum so had to top it up..

Really pissed off, for one its eaten a pair of mint tyres, for two i cant work out whether its the tracking, the power steering rack or the brake system that is causing this never ending nightmare...

It is literally undriveable, the faster you go the more it throws you about the road, shit myself earlier so im not driving it till ive got it sorted..

Its just the way i have to hold the steering tight and fit with it or it throws me across the road, if you rock the steering wheel from side to side at idle the whole car rocks with it too which i found strange?

ballin

iTrader: (1)

think you've got more serious issues than just the tracking in that case

Jim Galbally

agree with balin.

thats not just dodgy tracking

tonyk

No offence but that car is never going to drive ok on the road. Its far to low and that splitter at the front serves no purpose. Take that off and get the car set properly.

£80 for a full tracking setup seems ok to me.

Edd so your top price was £58.75 inc vat, not quite the same as the £30+vat you where leading everyone to believe. Jim posted what he received for £80.

Speedy Gonzalez

i paid £90 plus vat 2 have my tracking on my RS2K set up properly and thought i got it at a reasonable price

xr4x4rs

iTrader: (5)

rite

lokking at them pics you need to get your tracking done asap as the wheels are facing away rom each other so each will is trying to go in a different direction and in your case outwards hence this is why your tyres are squeling

the canber issues you will have still until you gt some proper adjustable jobbies on there to adjust so you will get the tyre wear but wont be as bad once you have had it tracked


and the tracking gauges will go under the arches fine as my car is lower than that on trust me

as said above take teh splitter off and find a place with a flat ramp who does tracking

where abouts are you as you just say near coventry and obviouly you dont want to drive far

DAN P

iTrader: (1)

down in bristol its 30 just to get it on there machine then its 5 pounds to move each thing so 80 pounds to get a good job is a good price

Mike1

It looks like you've got a serious amount of toe-out there? Plus as soon as you put the power on in fwd car the natural tendency is for the wheels to toe-out even more so it must be pulling all over the place?


I'd recommend Brom as if you are in Coventry he's quite close.