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Thread: e30 rear camber/toe adjusters

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    e30 rear camber/toe adjusters

    Hi all

    I fitted up the slotted weld-in camber/toe adjusters that use the E39 eccentric bolts, and after installing the rear back into the car, I can't see for the life of me how I'm supposed to be able to tighten the RHS nut closest to the wheel. It takes an M18 spanner, and that b****** just aint going to fit up in there!

    I had this great idea about using ARP 12 point flange nuts, because they use an M14 spanner, but ARP don't make an M12 x 1.5 12-point nut! I can buy

    http://www.probolt-usa.com/titanium-...-1-50mm-4.html

    These have a 15mm reduced size hex, but I'd prefer 12 point.

    This is kicking my butt and I'm close to just fabbing up my own damned high tensile eccentrics!

    Ideas, anyone?
    1989 E30 - M50B28 Turbo - ZF 8 Speed

  2. #2
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    picture of the bolt location? how about marking the bolt, lowering the subframe, tightening the bolt, and putting it back up?


    86 325es, 2.8L m50, S476sxe, ProEFI 128 ecu, e85, solid rear axle, TH400 trans, 28x10.5w slicks, zip ties, popsicle sticks, tape
    best time 9.06 @ 151.8 mph, best 60 foot 1.30

  3. #3
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    buy a harbor freight wrench, torch the hell out of it and bend the head to however many degrees you need for it to fit.

  4. #4
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    Curious as well on the solution. Mine keep loosening after a few races / few thousand miles. One solution in the past is cutting a hole in the seat floor for access.
    Capital Driving Club Car # 102
    How to turbo your car:
    Step one. Install ecu and learn to tune and or have it tuned.
    Step two. Install injectors and retune.
    Step three. Install turbo parts and bits. get it running with out leaks. DO NOT DRIVE IT. Idling should be ok
    Step four. Retune car
    Step five enjoy

  5. #5
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    crush the nuts on a vice lightly so they dont back out.

  6. #6
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    Ive migged mine and Red locktite and they come loose.
    Capital Driving Club Car # 102
    How to turbo your car:
    Step one. Install ecu and learn to tune and or have it tuned.
    Step two. Install injectors and retune.
    Step three. Install turbo parts and bits. get it running with out leaks. DO NOT DRIVE IT. Idling should be ok
    Step four. Retune car
    Step five enjoy

  7. #7
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    If it were mine I would set it where I wanted it and weld both eccentrics to the subframe.


    86 325es, 2.8L m50, S476sxe, ProEFI 128 ecu, e85, solid rear axle, TH400 trans, 28x10.5w slicks, zip ties, popsicle sticks, tape
    best time 9.06 @ 151.8 mph, best 60 foot 1.30

  8. #8
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    I'm beginning to think that I have chosen poorly and maybe the 'ratchet' style adjuster would have been a better choice. Point well taken about welding the eccentric to the tabs, I have read lots of reports that they simply come loose all the time.

    After hours and hours of searching, I have stumbled across this:

    http://www.clarendonsf.com/products/...renchable-nuts

    M12x1.5 12 point

    I can't believe it has taken so long to find the SOB!

    Quote Originally Posted by euro2fast4u View Post
    Ive migged mine and Red locktite and they come loose.
    Are the nuts coming loose? Or is the entire bolt/eccentric assembly turning? I guess in the end the effect is the same, but the cause matters.

    Quote Originally Posted by someguy2800 View Post
    picture of the bolt location? how about marking the bolt, lowering the subframe, tightening the bolt, and putting it back up?
    I don't have pic handy, but the nut is right up in between the fuel tank and the RHS chassis/sill. I had thought that I'd get it aligned, then drop the frame, tighten, and weld! It shouldn't ever need adjusting again unless I have bent something!

    Thanks for the replies, all.
    1989 E30 - M50B28 Turbo - ZF 8 Speed

  9. #9
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    The eccentrics are a piece of cake compared to the serrated plate style__which require modification for use on the Z3/M platform. I'm sure I've done several dozen installs of these (and I still hate doing them) but I've picked up a few tricks along the way...

    So far, I've found the Ireland urethane bushes are the only ones that lend themselves to being modified for clearance.



    The jam-nut on the serrated ones is 19mm!





    The big washer needs to be trimmed too.



    A finished M Coupe with an E-36 Rogue cover.


  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Randy Forbes View Post

    So far, I've found the Ireland urethane bushes are the only ones that lend themselves to being modified for clearance.


    Hmm, interesting 'mod'. It sure seems to get you the clearance you need though.

    Is the big washer even needed? Looking at it for a while, it isn't obvious why that washer is there.
    1989 E30 - M50B28 Turbo - ZF 8 Speed

  11. #11
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    I think at least for my instance, is i got the rear powder coated after the installation of the rear end adjustments (welded on the plates). So now the eccentric slides on the powder coating and loosens. i dont know if its the nut that loosens or the eccentric rotates and then becomes loose. I was going to add nor-locking washers but realized there wasn't enough bolt length.

    So i drove it 100 miles yesterday and noticed its loose again. :/
    Capital Driving Club Car # 102
    How to turbo your car:
    Step one. Install ecu and learn to tune and or have it tuned.
    Step two. Install injectors and retune.
    Step three. Install turbo parts and bits. get it running with out leaks. DO NOT DRIVE IT. Idling should be ok
    Step four. Retune car
    Step five enjoy

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by euro2fast4u View Post
    I think at least for my instance, is i got the rear powder coated after the installation of the rear end adjustments (welded on the plates). So now the eccentric slides on the powder coating and loosens. i dont know if its the nut that loosens or the eccentric rotates and then becomes loose. I was going to add nor-locking washers but realized there wasn't enough bolt length.

    So i drove it 100 miles yesterday and noticed its loose again. :/
    I'm welding that b**** up once alignment is done.....

    In other news, ARP do make an M12x1.5! It is in stainless steel though, and that probs isn't ideal. The other option is GR5 titanium from Alibaba - quality could be hit or miss.

    Now to get those nuts! So, ECS have them for $55USD for a pack of 10 (ARP 401-8403), but they want........$78USD to ship 10 nuts to Australia!!!!! What in the living hell??

    20180522_203425.jpg
    1989 E30 - M50B28 Turbo - ZF 8 Speed

  13. #13
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    Hard to tell for sure from that picture (at least, I hope I'm wrong in what I think I'm seeing) but for the outboard trailing arm mounts, the slots are horizontal; inboard mounts are vertical.


  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Randy Forbes View Post
    Hard to tell for sure from that picture (at least, I hope I'm wrong in what I think I'm seeing) but for the outboard trailing arm mounts, the slots are horizontal; inboard mounts are vertical.
    Yep, slots are horizontal on the outboard toe adjusters. All good.
    1989 E30 - M50B28 Turbo - ZF 8 Speed

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by Nutzy View Post
    Yep, slots are horizontal on the outboard toe adjusters. All good.
    Whew!

    I know someone__that really should've known better__that all four (4) sets oriented vertically. Plenty of camber adjustment potential, but limited toe...

    You really hate pointing out things like that to people Very glad I was wrong about yours!

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by Randy Forbes View Post
    Whew!

    I know someone__that really should've known better__that all four (4) sets oriented vertically. Plenty of camber adjustment potential, but limited toe...

    You really hate pointing out things like that to people Very glad I was wrong about yours!
    LOL! I checked and double checked that I had THAT one right! Then I set the frame up until it was zero-bubble, then set the brackets up the same. I sweated over that, trust me!
    1989 E30 - M50B28 Turbo - ZF 8 Speed

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by Nutzy View Post
    LOL! I checked and double checked that I had THAT one right! Then I set the frame up until it was zero-bubble, then set the brackets up the same. I sweated over that, trust me!
    Nutzy, How have things been since tech went down? Have you talked to Pete recently?
    Capital Driving Club Car # 102
    How to turbo your car:
    Step one. Install ecu and learn to tune and or have it tuned.
    Step two. Install injectors and retune.
    Step three. Install turbo parts and bits. get it running with out leaks. DO NOT DRIVE IT. Idling should be ok
    Step four. Retune car
    Step five enjoy

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by euro2fast4u View Post
    Nutzy, How have things been since tech went down? Have you talked to Pete recently?
    A shame about tech....what can ya do. Stuff is OK, but my e30 has been off the road since 2nd Jan!

    I have chatted to the Greek online from time to time, but haven't seen him since Easter 2016. As far as I know his Mtech is still sitting unregistered in the driveway.
    1989 E30 - M50B28 Turbo - ZF 8 Speed

  19. #19
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    I see, Glad you are making some progress
    Capital Driving Club Car # 102
    How to turbo your car:
    Step one. Install ecu and learn to tune and or have it tuned.
    Step two. Install injectors and retune.
    Step three. Install turbo parts and bits. get it running with out leaks. DO NOT DRIVE IT. Idling should be ok
    Step four. Retune car
    Step five enjoy

  20. #20
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    Apologies for reviving an old thread, but man am I having a very frustrating time right now trying to tighten up the adjusters on my rear-end.

    My original subframe's diff carrier ended up sheering due to added stress of turbo M52, so I swapped in a new subframe, 80A diff/raised subframe bushings, delrin RTABs, and welded in rear camber/toe adjusters.

    Camber is easy to adjust, but man is the toe nut impossible to get very right again due to clearance w/ raised subframe bushings. I cut off the edge of the subframe bushings to gain a bit more clearance and ground down my 18mm wrench, but the issue is that the nuts are in the perfect position right now to just barely not let me wrench get a hold of them. It hits the car's frame first. I have significantly ground down the wrench to the point where any more grinding will cause it to deform when tightening the nut.

    I was wondering if either of these options sound reasonable:
    1) Keeping everything intact, loosen the subframe nuts to the end of the threads so it still keeps the subframe on the car but enables me more access to toe nuts.
    2) Attempt to make an indent in the car's frame enabling me more space - I am hesitant of doing this because I don't want to mess anything up.

    Thanks,
    John

  21. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by jjc034 View Post
    Apologies for reviving an old thread, but man am I having a very frustrating time right now trying to tighten up the adjusters on my rear-end.

    My original subframe's diff carrier ended up sheering due to added stress of turbo M52, so I swapped in a new subframe, 80A diff/raised subframe bushings, delrin RTABs, and welded in rear camber/toe adjusters.

    Camber is easy to adjust, but man is the toe nut impossible to get very right again due to clearance w/ raised subframe bushings. I cut off the edge of the subframe bushings to gain a bit more clearance and ground down my 18mm wrench, but the issue is that the nuts are in the perfect position right now to just barely not let me wrench get a hold of them. It hits the car's frame first. I have significantly ground down the wrench to the point where any more grinding will cause it to deform when tightening the nut.

    I was wondering if either of these options sound reasonable:
    1) Keeping everything intact, loosen the subframe nuts to the end of the threads so it still keeps the subframe on the car but enables me more access to toe nuts.
    2) Attempt to make an indent in the car's frame enabling me more space - I am hesitant of doing this because I don't want to mess anything up.

    Thanks,
    John
    Going to grind down washer and bushing closest to nut and see if I can slip a 12pt in there. That's my last resort before swapping in standard bushings.

    Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

  22. #22
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    yup, i cut a notch in the washer and bushing to get wrenchs on it. Think even the bushing companies note that on installation.
    Capital Driving Club Car # 102
    How to turbo your car:
    Step one. Install ecu and learn to tune and or have it tuned.
    Step two. Install injectors and retune.
    Step three. Install turbo parts and bits. get it running with out leaks. DO NOT DRIVE IT. Idling should be ok
    Step four. Retune car
    Step five enjoy

  23. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by euro2fast4u View Post
    yup, i cut a notch in the washer and bushing to get wrenchs on it. Think even the bushing companies note that on installation.
    Yep I ended up lowering to end of bolt and doing that. Ground down 12pt and I can tighten to ~50lb-ft I believe

    Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

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