Lifted Truck Alignment Pros Chime in!

So I got my spindle lift on, new tires installed and truck drove great to my surprise before it being aligned! It didnt wandering drove very planted to the ground I loved the ride. But since I have owned the truck for only about a month or so I knew it needed a alignment given all suspension work I knew its a good fresh start for the tires to wear evenly. After the alignment I noticed I am feeling the road alot in my steering wheel and actually the wheel bounces left and right over some really bumpy roads. It also feels like it slightly wanders at high speeds as well where before the alignment it felt like it could keep itself within a lane. So I called the shop who did the alignment back and he stated that its 100% the caster and to bring it back in and they will adjust it. I never knew caster can heavily affect the ride of these trucks but he stated even though it is within factory specs given i am a lifted application sometimes things like the caster take a little bit more adjusting to get it right. Been worried about it cause I am just that kind of person so I figure maybe some of you alignment pros can give me confidence that they will get it right with some mild adjustments

 

Somebody.... anybody

 

Wished I could help I post some aliment issues on the general part. Sorry don’t know how to read them.

 

Actually had the truck realigned and they fixed the problem the pushed the caster out and now the truck doesn’t follow the road as much. Deep deep pot holes obviously shake the wheel slightly but now I can drive over uneven roads without feedback

 

Glad you got it fix

 

Had a hunch to take the the truck back to americas tires to check the balance and all 4 tires were out of balance so whoever mounted and balanced the tires a couple weeks ago when i bought them was

 

This is what I've always heard was what was needed for our trucks. I'm not sure if it's any different though since you are running a spindle lift.

 

So with my truck the Caster was brought in below 3.0 as a call from factory for specs but it cause the steering to be hyper sensitive and every single bump I hit the wheel would react. the pushed the Caster back out and it solved that issue. Today I was drive and it felt like the truck wasnt driving smooth but I figured i needed to get use to it. Then was getting onto the freeway and a shake in the wheel which felt alot like a balancing issue showed around 50-65 I immediately thought I bet my tires arent balanced. Took it back to americas tire and they stated all 4 tires had to have all the weights stripped and re applied because they were all out. With spindles all the angles remain the same as stock because the lift comes from the spindle not the coilover. So the truck can reach factory alignment specs. But its almost a false sense of security matching factory specs because it is a lifted application so the alignment still calls for a some fine tuning to get it right and in this case pushing the caster just outside of the factory call out.

 

Castor is the least critical as it won't wear tires. If it's driving fine, fuggitabout it. My wife has hit so many curbs on her RX that the front passenger side is pushed in a few degrees out of spec. Front end shop said it's not worth it to try to pull in back in.

 

Exactly I did a ton of research to make sure that I will not harm the tires. Came to the conclusion that caster is responsible for the sensitivity of the wheel (ease of turning also) and for preventing the truck from wanting to wander as well.

 

I had to high jack the thread but I was told by RC that I need 3.3-3.4 for the caster. The aliment shop said I was maxed out. I also have that problem with bump steer. I been out of town and went to the shop to order new UCAS and tie rod ends. Shop said they spoke with RC. Look at mine spec and see if I can get 3.3-3.4 out of it. Don’t know how to read it. Thanks for any help

 

Yeah, I'm getting used to mine. Seems like AT tires sure like to track the grooves in these asphalt composite roads in my area. Plus my tires suk anyway being lower end and on 20" rims. I'm learning so that's why I'm here.

 

Based on what Ive experienced with my truck your Caster is very positive which if your truck is like mine your steering wheel probably feels very sensitive and reacts to every bump and groove in the road. Tell the alignment shop that you'd like to see your caster up in the 3.0-4.5 range you should notice the trucks steering firm up and not react so much to whatever the wheels are experiencing.

 

They told me that they shimmed the passenger side out and maxed out. They also said it will drive like crap. So I guess I need to go to a different aliment shop then? Does my caster need to be negative or positive? Very sorry for the dumb questions.

 

Is my caster the 1.88?

 

Dont apologize I know this alignment stuff is confusing as all hell. Ya it looks like they have you at 1.87 on the left and 2.21 on the right thats very positive so your steering is going to be very reactive to whenever you turn the wheel or whenever you hit different qualities of roads. I would imagine you should almost feel like the truck wants to wander but doesnt almost like a floating sensation?? What kind of lift is on your truck?

 

Yes, Your driver side tire is sitting back .35 degrees more than the passenger on the last chart

 

Yes floats!!! 6 in RC lift.

 

Take it to a different alignment shop you have all the components that your angles should not cause for any of your alignments to be maxed out. They should be able to push that caster out given you have replacement spindles if worse case you could do UCAS to help but i really think someone should be able to do better with what you have. Even getting them both above 3.0 you should see a huge improvement.

 

So I should be able to achieve the 3.4 or on driver side then? Man I am so glad I posted this. They told me I needed new UCAS! It is very confusing as hell. And when they tell me something or explain it it’s like hakdbejshwjdb kejduebdhdn joint jehdbdjdn

 

Basically the OP is telling you that you need to push every thing forward. So forget about the factory settings as you're now out of that range. It will require mods. You are trying to get the tires out further towards the front from the center line of the suspension.

 

Thank you

 

Thank you

 

I am going to call around tomorrow and see what I can find out and try. I do know RC told them it should be easy to get the specs. Thanks again guys!!!

 

Hey guys took the truck to different aliment shops. One said it’s maxed already and the other tried but got the same numbers. So what’s next? RC has been in contact with the aliment shop and working this. So you having 3.0 caster is that a 4 inch? Would it be different for a 6 inch? Thanks

 

Well every truck is different no matter the lift an alignments is always subjective to every vehicle. To your question yes its going to be different then my 4" lift the reason i chose just a spindle lift wad i did not want to put changes to my stock suspension geometry (so to speak). The angles on my UCA LCA and tie rods are all the same as they were before the lifting is coming from the spindle lowering the hub location on the knuckle. Where with your 6" lift you are a drop bracket lift your geometry is going to be completely different then mine then stock give you are removing and changing major components. I would be curious to hear if any other RC owners have ran into this issue because I do know their kits are pretty popular. I wonder if UCA would help you with your issue at all. Im not sure if your angles have changed much since your lift but typically I hear alignment techs complain most when the angles caused by the lift limit their ability to dial the alignment in they always end up in the same spot..... Your maxed out.......

 

Thanks. The aliment shop just called and said they are going to redo the aliment again. But dumb question is 3plus caster good over bad?

 

From what I gather if you can get over 3 you should feel like it gets rid of alot of your sensitivity in your steering wheel. I noticed a pretty big difference once they got me over 3 on both sides. Still feel reaction in the wheel from substantial pot holes and bumps in the road but thats pretty normal plus this is a truck not my wifes Mercedes GLE350

 

Thanks man!!! I will talk with a different shop and see what they can do. It’s seems that they all are scared of that much. Wonder why?

 

Ok. Drop truck off at another lineament shop. They looked at my out specs and told me for my to get to the 3.3 caster my tires are going to look like / \. They are going to work with it and see what they can do.