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What's the real value to an alignment with McPherson struts?

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StageLeft

No Lifer
I just did the struts and just signed off on $79 for an alignment. From what I can tell, castor and camber would only be changeable based on how the spring sits in the spring plate at the top of the strut, and certainly no alignment shop will change that. My struts go into the knuckle with standard bolts; there is no slotting or way to change camber based on how the top of the two bolts connects the strut to the knuckle.

That leaves us with toe-in, which is changed via a screw on the control arms. I suppose it could possibly change if the strut mount is not aligned precisely as it was initially. Is that all that can really be addressed by an alignment for such a situation?
 
Generally yes, toe is all that is adjusted with a McPherson Strut suspension, though there are adjustable upper mounts that permit caster and camber adjustment for some cars. I doubt that your Maxima is one of them however.

ZV
 
Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth
I've seen alignment instructions that include ovaling the holes to adjust camber.
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So a shop could potentially drill out part of the knuckle and put new bolts in?
Generally yes, toe is all that is adjusted with a McPherson Strut suspension, though there are adjustable upper mounts that permit caster and camber adjustment for some cars. I doubt that your Maxima is one of them however.
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So, is it really that likely at all that changing struts would have adjusted the toe-in? I mean, I can tell from the pre and post strut that I didn't align the plates the same as they were (in fact, I aligned them a bit better 🙂), but could the swivelling at the top affect the toe-in?

 
Some cars have replacement "crash bolts" that allow you to get a bit of slop in the mounts to get some camber adjustment. These however, are generally not ideal, since they may not hold the adjustment forever.

Some aftermarket setups have camber plates or slotted mounts to allow you to adjust the camber.
 
Got back, toe was off to some decent degree. I've never had it pull noticeably, but the guy seemed legit.

Does this mean then that changing struts does not require an alignment job if the car is of the type that typically has no caster or camber modifications?
 
Struts have 2 bolts that hold it to the steering knuckle. They make eccentric bolts for those holes, which are usually a bit oval, to allow the strut to be moved Inward or Outward just a tiny amount. This can affect Caster / Camber. And on some model cars, changing the position of the Top Mount will change the angles slightly. So yes, an alignment is definitely a worthwhile cost. Car will handle better and premature tire wear will not occur.
 
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Got back, toe was off to some decent degree. I've never had it pull noticeably, but the guy seemed legit.
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You may never feel a problem, you'll just notice things like strange tire wear.
 
Just had full four wheel alignment including camber on my M3. There is quite a bit of adjustment at the top of the front towers in the E46. Car feels great.
 
Changing the struts should change the toe, because they'll be slightly different from the old ones. I wouldn't have expected that, but it turns out even if you do something like replace the lower control arms on a solid axle Jeep, with both sides theoretically the same length, you have to realign.
 
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