Tires & Alignment February 2012

Now the suspension and the steering rods all were replaced, it was time for some new tires and off course the much needed alignment. There was a mix of 3 different brands of tires around the car. Although they were not all worn, I decided to replace them all with Pirelli P7 tires. I also replaced the spare, as the tire code indicated that it was from before 1980 so although never used, very much dried out.

The wheels that are fitted to the car are Zender Turbo 8Jx16H2. I'm not sure if they were a factory option or an after market, but they suit the car very well I think. The standard rim is a 14" so with these 16" the tire size differs from the book. I had the Pirelli P7 tires in 225/50R16 fitted. North Terrace Tires recommended these after my requirements if Soft, Gripping and Quiet while mileage is not so important as I'll do only 5000km a year or so.

I really like the look and feel of the tire so it was a good choice I believe.

Alignment; I tried to do an caster, camber and toe-in alignment with the eye, when fitting the suspension components, but as the car was on the hoist hanging in the air, it is impossible to get this right.
When North Terrace Tires did the alignment, I asked for a printout before and after. It turned into a horror story ;)
Camber left from +0°13' to +0°14'
Camber right from -0°37' to +0°01'

Toe left from +3°07' to +0°11'
Toe right from +0°05' to +0°11'

Setback/Caster from -0°56' to -0°29'

Geometry driving axis from -0°04' to -0°01'

All in all a massive improvement in just under 30 minutes. When I have redone the rear-suspension I'll probably get another full alignment done.

Driving out of the workshop, it's completely a different car. It was very nervous and the tracking was horrible. Now I can drive without hands ;)

Of course this had to be celebrated with a wonderful drive though the Adelaide Hills...