Car Pulling Need Help Diagnosing

[Christine2016]

Greetings all:

I recently purchased a new 2016 340i and within 1000mi had a set of KW v1's installed. Immediately, the car pulled (not tracked), pulled to the right such that if I'm driving on a left leaning crowned road the car tracks straight. The car was alignment at the same time the coilovers were installed and were all within specifications:

Camber: LF = -0.6; RF = -0.4
LR = -1.9; RR = 1.6

Caster: LF = 6.7; RF = 6.6

Toe: LF = .04; RF = .11
LR = .21; RR = .18

Total Toe Front = 0.15
Total Toe Rear = 0.39
Steer Ahead = -0.04
Thrust Angle = 0.02

I wasn't pleased with the front ride height and since the car was pulling anyway, I lowered the front coils and had another alignment completed which resulted in the following:

Camber: LF = -1.3; RF = -0.6
LR = -1.7; RR = 1.5

Caster: LF = 6.8; RF = 6.6

Toe: LF = .10; RF = .12
LR = .19; RR = .11

Total Toe Front = 0.21
Total Toe Rear = 0.30
Steer Ahead = -0.01
Thrust Angle = 0.04

The car continued to pull (no change) despite the changes in ride height and the new alignment. The shop that did the suspension asserts that the cross camber is causing the pull and suggested I have camber plates installed. I was skeptical given that the original alignment numbers were within tolerance and nevertheless resulted in a pull. I challenged the folks to explain how the lack of cross camber following the initial install and alignment still resulted in the car pulling and they seemed clueless and continued to insist on the need for plates. Before shelling out another 1K for plates and labor and had another alignment completed:
____________
Camber: LF = -0.6; RF = -1.1
LR = -1.6; RR = 1.8

Caster: LF = 7.0; RF = 6.8

Toe: LF = .11; RF = .11
LR = .10; RR = .21

Total Toe = 0.31
Thrust Angle = -0.05

And while the front camber is still out of tolerance, this time the it's the front right. My appreciation is that the car should be pulling to the left now if the camber difference was the problem (i.e., pulls to the side with the most positive camber); however the car still pulls right. I have checked all the ride heights having measured from fender to wheel center and they are equivalent. I have checked all the tire air pressures and they are equivalent. To the best of my knowledge I don't have a stuck caliper in that I don't see brake dust or experience differences in rotor temp when touched. I bought the car new and it did not pull until after the coilovers. I don't hear any new noises sounds that suggest a problem.

I plan on rotating my tires (staggered setup) to see if that helps. Should the tire rotation not fix this I plan on going back to the install shop to problem solve.

I remain skeptical that camber plates are the fix here for the pull, though I will shell out the cash to fix this problem. Is is possible that one of the coils is bad? If so, would the bad suspension component cause the pull (i.e., I should assume it's on the right side of the car) What else should I look for? Thanks in advance for any help. I just got back from a long road trip and my shoulders are tired.

[SlackTube]

Have you checked for a radial pull by swapping front tires side to side?
Where did you get your specs your trying to achieve from?
can you provide the recommended specs in addition to your actual specs?

[Christine2016]

Hi. Thanks for the assist. I was planning to swap the fronts this week just to rule that out; however, given there was no pull prior to the coilovers I'm thinking it's the least likely of possible culprits - unless the coilovers uncovered an existing problem?
Firestone did the alignment. The specs listed on the printout were for a "BMW 12-16 F30 4x2 Sport 19" Wheel." I assume these are correct specs? Although, admittedly, and to your point, I have no comparison group from which to assess the difference - all I have is whether the adjusted values are within those specified for this car (allegedly). I should have noted that aside from the RF Camber (-1.1) all of the measurements are "green" and within tolerance according to the firestone machine. I will swap the tires, but if that isn't the fix - what should I be looking at next? Thanks.

[SlackTube]

So am I to understand you installed coilovers and lowered the vehicle and are trying to achieve factory recommended specs? Once you lower the car and install coilovers those specs are out the window...you need to contact the coilovers manufacturer and see if they have any recommendations as to the proper specs. If that doesn't work contact a race shop and tell them what modifications youve done and what the issue is.
Your RF camber is out a half a degree according to factory specs but actually LOOK at how the wheels sit, normally you can tell if something is jacked up or the wheels are not sitting right.
Have you tried the " paint test"? Cover an area on your tires and drive a few feet and see what part of the tire contact patch transfers paint to the road. You can normally spot obvious problems this way.
-not to mention "green" on the alignment rack means jack squat. I can get green readings without even performing any adjustments, it's about knowing the individual rack and what the machine is looking for.
Firestone blows ( no offense ). I would get new specs from the coilovers manufacturer and take the car to a race shop or dealer and hand them the printout of what you want.

[Christine2016]

Agree that firestone is not the best bet for BMWs and alignment - I got lifetime alignment as it was the place the suspension ship used (hmmmm). Once I installed the camber plates (which seems like an inevitability from this discussion) my intention was to take it to the local sport shop for a proper alignment. The limitation necessitating consideration of the plates is that the front camber is not adjustable. Thus the front camber measurements are the "default" result from lowering. So, if I'm tracking your comments correctly it could be several variables (not just the front camber) causing the pull because the car is lowered and factory alignment specs are no longer applicable? FWIW - I've done the eye test and nothing looks significantly off - that said, I'm in the process of learning so I could be missing an obvious issue. I'll swap the front wheels and roll some paint and see what come of it.