E30 Negative camber issue in the rear after new suspension parts

[Zackemcor]

Good morning,

The rear of the E30 looks funny. And not a big fan of the negative camber.
Anyone knows what causes? I recently have the shop install the following suspension parts. The shop claimed they did the alignment.


Rear:
Rear trailing arm bushings
Rear stabilizer links
Rear shock mounts - upgraded units from the E46 M3
ECS rear shock mount reinforcement plates for improved mount life and protection from shock mount deformation
Rear shock mount hardware and gasket
Rear subframe mounts
Differential bushing

Zach

[mbonder]

Stock rear suspension geometry is no adjustable in the e30, only the front is. If you got a set of eccentric rear trailing arm bushings you'd be able to adjust things slightly, but unless you've welded in the camber/caster adjusters to the rear subframe it's fairly limited in what adjustments you can make.

[Zackemcor]

Stock rear suspension geometry is no adjustable in the e30, only the front is. If you got a set of eccentric rear trailing arm bushings you'd be able to adjust things slightly, but unless you've welded in the camber/caster adjusters to the rear subframe it's fairly limited in what adjustments you can make.

I am actually trying to eliminate the negative camber in rear. It looks like slammed from the rear. Attached are some pics.


Any idea if another alignment will fit that issue?


IMG_9423.jpgIMG_9422.jpg

[thejaredhuang]

Nice looking car, however what mbonder said is true, unless you weld in camber/toe plates there is nothing adjustable in the rear, you can get 100 more alignments and it won't fix anything in the rear without the plates.

[95BMWIC]

Typically the control arms are bent.

Here is a possible fix:

https://www.garagistic.com/pages/e30...ion-kit-how-to

Ive ordered from them in the past - legit company.

[Zackemcor]

Typically the control arms are bent.

Here is a possible fix:

https://www.garagistic.com/pages/e30...ion-kit-how-to

Ive ordered from them in the past - legit company.

Thank you for the advice. Is this something expensive to install? I wish I saw this kit while doing the suspension refresh.

[mbonder]

That's the weld-in kit that I was referencing in my earlier post. I've never seen a trailing arm bent on an e30 without it being in a catastrophic accident, there's a lot of material back there and the m20 doesn't put out enough power to bend anything.

Take that kit to a welder, they should be able to install it for a few hundred, not a big deal. Then I'd either paint or powder coat everything so it doesn't corrode.

[ascot]

If you still have the stock springs on the car then they are likely sacked out and that is what is causing your excess negative camber. As the other replies have stated, there is no camber or toe adjustment on an E30. You would have to get a camber kit which is done by one of two methods which have also been pointed out: eccentric trailing arm bushings or slotted plates welded onto the subframe inner pickup point for the trailing arm with eccentric adjusters.

[95BMWIC]

Bent trailing arms are not uncommon - and they can happen with everyday driving - something with some sort of side impact - like hitting a curb. Think ICE / SNOW in the North east..

Here an article about it..

https://eeuroparts.com/blog/bmw-e30-trailing-arm-diy

"sliding into a curb"

" bent arms result in a rear wheel that is obviously cambered-in (negative). The extra camber combined with E30 rear geometry that tilts a lot during travel will result in tires wearing on the inside very quickly when driven hard. RCR did the following to reinforce our arms"

Other references:

from: https://www.garagistic.com/products/...-core-exchange - "The stock design leaves much to be desired in terms of cantilever strength"

From Turner: https://www.turnermotorsport.com/c-7...ar-control-arm - "On several BMWs, rear control arms are a weak point - The stock E30 rear trailing arms live a hard life. Even in stock form, its not uncommon to see the rear sway bar mounting points torn and in rare cases, the shock mounting point broken off. "

If you search the forums - you will see several postings on it.

[mbonder]

I guess I shouldn't have used the word "catastrophic", but in those instances the driver/owner would clearly know that they have hit something and the resulting camber issues would be isolated to one side. It seems as though the OP has the same negative camber on both sides (at least he hasn't indicated otherwise), which would lead me to believe that he hasn't had an accident that would bend the trailing arm. The suggestion above about worn springs is probably more applicable.

Also, the Turner description talks about sway bar mounting points and shock mounting points, none of that has to do with bending the arm itself. The article you linked to speaks specifically about either a side or vertical impact. Side impact, as you mentioned is certainly a real world possibility (hitting a curb), but vertical impact, unless you're taking your car off jumps, you'll never see something like that in regular driving. My point still remains, that unless you impact the rear in a way it wasn't designed to be impacted, the rear trailing arms shouldn't bend from regular driving.

[Zackemcor]

I am going to look into the welding kit.
Meanwhile, I thought I would list the suspension mods that are recently installed. And also attached pics of each side of the wheel from the back. Sorry for the rotation of the picture. Could not figure out how to turn it. haha
The negative camber look occurred after the suspension work.

Front shocks: KONI 8641 1021SPORT
Rear shocks KONI 80 2522SPORT
Lowering springs: H&R Sport 50404-55
ECS Complete Front & Rear Suspension Rebuild Kit:

Front:
Lemforder Front lower control arms
Solid rubber E36 M3 front control arm bushings for improved handling and steering feel
Lemforder Front sway bar end links
Sachs Front strut mounts
Lemforder Inner and outer tie rod assemblies


Rear:
Rear trailing arm bushings
Rear stabilizer links
Rear shock mounts - upgraded units from the E46 M3
ECS rear shock mount reinforcement plates for improved mount life and protection from shock mount deformation
Rear shock mount hardware and gasket
Rear subframe mounts
Differential bushing
Rear axle


IMG_9424.jpgIMG_9425.jpg

Zach

[mbonder]

You lowered the car, that's why there is more negative camber. As the wheel moves up toward the fender well (lowering the car), it will also tip in toward the center of the car at the top. This is the nature of the suspension geometry of the e30. The weld-in kit allows you to move the inner mounting point for the trailing arm upward, reducing the negative camber. This is the only way to dial out the negative camber on a lowered car, the eccentric bushings won't have enough adjustability to do it completely. There is also a limit to how far the weld-in kit can adjust things, but with the springs you've listed you should be able to get it to within a half degree negative, which is pretty much stock setup.

[dj Roo]

With those pics straight on, that looks like typical neg camber on a lowered car at that ride height, which in my opinion isn't excessive. Yes, you could get more tire wear with that camber but it isn't massive like the Stance crowd. If you're going to ride lower, you will have to deal with some neg camber unless you make major modifications like aftermarket trailing arms, weld-in plates from Garagistic, or other fabrication heavy mods.

[Zackemcor]

With those pics straight on, that looks like typical neg camber on a lowered car at that ride height, which in my opinion isn't excessive. Yes, you could get more tire wear with that camber but it isn't massive like the Stance crowd. If you're going to ride lower, you will have to deal with some neg camber unless you make major modifications like aftermarket trailing arms, weld-in plates from Garagistic, or other fabrication heavy mods.

Thank you all for all the advices.
I think I can live with the way it is for now. It isn’t too excessive.