alignment after leveling

[digglesworth]

well i got the truck in for its second alignment in a week.... i cranked my torsion bars up to 23.75 and drove it for a couple days... i took it in and got an alignment. when i got it back it drove good but the front end seemed high.... well it was at 25-25.5 so i brought it back down to 23.75 again.... i measured it again before i took it in this morning to get it checked again... it was low so i got it up to 23.6 or so and brought it to the shop... i just picked it up and once again, it seems high.... im gonna resist temptation and let it go for a couple days to see if it settles back down.... i made it a point to tell the guys at firestone what i was trying to accomplish and not to crank on the torsion bolts.... i have a feeling theyre gonna get real tired of me gettin the alignment checked over and over as i try to get it set where i want.... lol is it normal for the suspension to be a little high but settle back down after an alignment?

 

[amrg]

Technically, maybe. I just leveled mine 3 days ago. Crank the bars, rock the truck left and right and then measure again. Once I got the front end completely off the ground in order to get the new bump stops in and then brought the truck back down, the measurement would be completely off. I made sure everytime I adjust, I lift the car and bring it back down until I finally was able to reach the level I want. So maybe when they try to get the truck on for the alignment, once they lift it off the ground the tires drop and the torsion bars decide to do whatever they wana do, hence whats happening with you.

Drive the car a day or two, and then go do an alignment. I think its the best in ur case.

 

[arkalpha]

When I leveled mine I went with small adjustments and just drove around the block. I did this till it was exactly where I wanted it. I then drove it around town that day and got the alignment the next day. No issues after.I think its gonna settle after the first short drive and be finished.
TAPADROID

 

[TAPDH3T]

When I leveled mine I went with small adjustments and just drove around the block. I did this till it was exactly where I wanted it. I then drove it around town that day and got the alignment the next day. No issues after.I think its gonna settle after the first short drive and be finished.
TAPADROID

After today's experience I agree with u.. I am waiting until Tuesday to get my alignment that way it have plenty of time to settle and I can make final tweaks...

 

[arkalpha]

Good luck, just make sure you tell the alignment guy and your salesman you want it to stay level. I worked in a tire store for 11 years and I let my old guy do mine. I told him, keep it level, no tire wear, and steering wheel straight. "Set the toe and let it go".

TAPADROID

 

[digglesworth]

The first time I got it aligned, the toe was way out. The steering wheel was pointing at 11o clock... When I got it back, it was straight and it drove good.... Now, after alignment #2, the steering wheel isn't quite straight anymore and it seems to have a slight pull to the right...Im gonna get it back in the garage and make a few tweaks to it over the next couple days. Then make sure it's good and settled and take it back to the first firestone I took it to. Hopefully it'll be good after that....

 

[Mr_Rich]

I would be interested to know how much of a difference in adjustment of toe and camber is made when the torsion bars are adjusted up at various levels.

 

[digglesworth]

Mine was way out from when I got it from the dealer. It was around 23" before I cranked the t bars. I would think that cranking them would mostly effect camber.... Not so much the toe. But that's my .02......

 

[GreatDaneHummer]

I have had issues with camber being 1 degree off at 23.5" but at 22.75" I have no issues. The camber adjustment bolt hits my frame at 23.5" and I cannot get it to align correct.

 

[southernhummerguy]

Leveling the front by adjusting the torsion bar definitely effects the alignment. I had 4 General Grabbers installed back in 2011. Never had wear problems until I adjusted tightened the torsion to lift the front end. That was about a year ago. The outer tread on the front tires started wearing down significantly faster and actually caused a split that couldn't be patched. Finally gave in and replaced them yesterday. I was waiting to align them until they needed replacing because toe adjustments are relatively easy. Now I'm not sure whether it was toe or the camber that caused the wear. I've been trying to figure it out, but haven't come across anything definitive. Can anybody help clear up this issue?

 

[650Hawk]

Simply lifting the truck (on jacks) and then setting it back down won't tell you anything; you have to drive it a bit (even 20' will work). In fact, other than making it easier to tighten the torsion bolts, jacking it up accomplishes nothing. When you jack the truck up, the suspension droops and the tires actually move in a bit towards the centerline of the truck. Setting the truck back down, the tires contact the ground before the truck is back in normal resting position, so they are "binding" once the full weight of the truck is on the suspension. Moving the truck will allow the tires and suspension to settle back into their normal position. Driving around the block is better, but even 20' or so will work. THEN you can measure the ride height.

 

[SedonaBound]

"Leveling" changes the caster angle. That could cause the need for constant minor course correction, leading to heavier edge wear on tires. Just a thought. I put it in quotes because its only visual leveling. The suspension is neutral with the rear high; when "leveled" it adds stress in the front end and shifts the CG a little toward the rear.

 

[southernhummerguy]

Camber. Increasing the torsion causes increased stress on the upper control arm. To compensate for the stress, the upper control arm pushes out more causing positive camber on the tire. This site helps explain what can influence all three (camber, caster, and toe). I actually understood it a little better when it gave the opposite example. A sagging suspension causes the tires to fold in causing negative camber.

:edit:
*EDIT*

Since I thought it was the camber I took it to firestone since camber is a little more trickier than toe. Come to find out it was severly toed-in. The camber on the driver side was a little off, but not by much. Here's the specs they gave me:

Incase the photo doesn't work, toe is supposed to fall between -0.05 and 0.15 degrees. The left side was at 0.48 and the right side was at 0.59. Crow doesn't taste as bad as it sounds

 

[owlxxx]

I dont even bother aligning mine anymore. It always pulls hard right no matter what. last time i got it aligned, it started pulling after 2 days.

 

[4speedfunk]

String. Level. Carpenters square. Tape measure.
That's all you need to get it perfect. For some reason, all the high tech alignment racks and professionally trained technicians can't seem to come close.

 

[amrg]

Ive had mine aligned and it was good for a month, then syarted slowly pulling to the left (esp when braking). I guess the looseness in the control arms play a part in this?

I do wheel every other week so Im not easy on the susp either!

 

[GreatDaneHummer]

Solid axle swap from Thor Parts and never worry about it ever again. Next on my bucket list.

 

[amrg]

I wish but my type of wheeling, SA isn't best suited (I would love to be 4-6" high and better geared)