Camber Bolts
Considered what ? You have no idea what I need done.
Did it occur to you that I just might need the top of tire pushed away from the strut - camber bolts can do that too - that's right, negative camber is my problem.
They may not be the answer to your situation, but they can do what I need done - you've either used them or not - and if you haven't, then you can't answer the question.
No problem - I'll pull a bolt and measure it - it just means that I have to jack the car up & remove a wheel.
Having thought a bit more...
The positive camber that results from a lift might be more easily addressed by a combination of camber bolts and either wheel spacers (to push the rim away from the strut) or a replacement rim with an appropriate offset.
Camber plates are probably going to involve some cutting and reshaping of the strut towers, and then you might want to consider a strut brace, which is easier said than done for those of us with the GDI engines - mind you - I haven't measured the clearance between the engine cover and the hood, but it would also involve relocating the injector driver, which currently sits on top of the right strut tower - short cables plus already limited room in that corner will make it a somewhat challenging task.
!!!!!!
Did it occur to you that I just might need the top of tire pushed away from the strut - camber bolts can do that too - that's right, negative camber is my problem.
They may not be the answer to your situation, but they can do what I need done - you've either used them or not - and if you haven't, then you can't answer the question.
No problem - I'll pull a bolt and measure it - it just means that I have to jack the car up & remove a wheel.
Knock yourself out sweetheart.
For anyone who needs to know
Here are the measurements.
Bolt diameter - 12mm
Bolt head - 17mm across flats
Bolt length - 55mm from underside of head to tip.
Knuckle thickness - 22mm
My "guess" is that an Ingalls fastcam 35410 will work, I am waiting for Ingalls to confirm this before purchasing.
The Ingalls 35410 DO fit the stock iO struts.
I got my Ingalls fastcam bolts yesterday, and, as today was a holiday, I took the front suspension on the iO apart - the good news is they do fit, the bad news is I need two sets to correct the negative camber on this vehicle. I wish I could figure out what the cause was.
A lot of time was spent disassembling and then reassembling the front left strut assembly - I wanted to take a look at the strut itself, because the standard "bounce test" seems to indicate the struts as good, but the vehicle has a tendency to nose dive when braking that suggests they may not be - they're definitely on the way out - they still have a fair bit of damping, but have lost their gas charge, and I also need new boots, bump stops & strut upper mounts - and to add to my woes, the battery died.
The front springs seem unusually long & soft - I put the coil spring compressors on them and ended up having to remove & reposition them a couple of times - I think I may have to try to borrow a second pair when I change the struts - it would be a shame to spend money on a tool that you really won't use again.
nose dive
Hello fordem,
If you have the front going low under braking, you probably have a faulty spring (or too soft, for the car...), the shock absorber is here to only stop the spring to bounce up and down, the "bounce" test only check the shock absorber, not the spring. Once you remove the strut it is not unusual to have the spring moving around (no load), and does not always mean that it is worn ( not sure for the io, but yes for some car). I hope that it helps...
Thank you for the ref of the camber bolt, any picture!
All the best.
Claude/Claud io.
Nose dive
Hello Fordem,
If you have your car diving under brake it is probably because of the spring (worn or too soft for the car). The shock absorber only control the bouncing, up and down, of the spring just after it has been compress and released. The "bounce test" only check the shock absorber. Once the spring is compress, then go back to his place, the shock absorber will prevent further up, down, travel. The stiffer the shock, the lesser the up down oscillation, in some case none!
I hope this help. Thank you for the ref of the camber bolt, any pics?
All the best,
Claude Claud io.
Not exactly
The shock absorber only control the bouncing, up and down, of the spring just after it has been compress and released.
Not entirely correct Claude - the shock absorber also resists the initial movement of the spring - whether compression or rebound - and as far as I know these are the stock springs for this vehicle, so the probability of them being too soft is slim to nil - I grant they could be worn, as I am seeing some sag on the driver's side - I'll worry about that later - for now I can tell you with 100% certainty, the shocks are on their way out, I've had them off the vehicle and checked them personally.
Unless I'm very much mistaken ...
The shock (or in this case, strut) will also damp the inital compression of the spring - I will let you know when I do get around to changing them - it won't happen for a while though, I have been able to locate rear shocks here (Monroe Adventure series 4x4), but so far, no front struts.
Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the cambolts - here's an image from the Ingalls website.
shocks...
Hello,
Thanks for the pics, I have seen them on some commodore...You are 100% right regarding the initial compression of the spring, but if the shocks are worn they should not have pass the "bounce test"....but again unless you do that test often it is not that obvious to detect a faulty shock unless it is completely gone on a heavier car.
And the shocks are the more common culprit!
I am going to fit some 225/75/16 bf goodrich km2, we are going to try on the standard rim, and get some new wheels if they don't fit. Can't wait, I am like a kid in a toys store!
All the best,
Claude/Claud io
Let me put it this way Claude
The bounce test is a very rudimentary test - it may tell you when a shock is DEAD, but not necessarily that it is dying. I have been watching a leaking right rear shock on my Grand Vitara for almost a year, and upto a month or so ago, it passed the bounce test, although, I believe I could feel the wheel hopping on the way down from the airport last night. Also having removed a front strut on the iO from the vehicle and taken the spring off - I can state with 100% certainty that regardless of the bounce test results - that strut is on the way out.
On a small vehicle it's easy to build up enough rythmic motion to do a good bounce test, but on a vehicle with a soft, long travel suspension, like the GV or the iO, it's a lot more difficult - to get the back to bounce, you have to open the door and stand in the vehicle and bounce it.
I had my doubts - I removed the strut, I no longer have any doubt - it's time to go searching. The GV will get new shocks & struts first because that is a work in progress, started even before I bought the iO, the iO will get new shocks & struts when I have identified a product that meets my needs - OME has nothing, Monroe has rears only.
Camber bolt on ebay
If someone is interested, I found these on ebay and they might fit. If someone can confirm....?
While in order to get more negative camber, these bolt will bring the tyre closer to the strut, it might not be suitable for everyone as some bigger tyres are very close to the strut already. This said, they are not that expensive, easy to fit, and should help....
Happy io
Syndicate
Considered and ruled that
Considered and ruled that out.
Will pull the top of the tire in towards the strut. Guess-temated 8 mm to 10 mm. I only have 10 mm as it is.
The top strut mount itself needs to be pulled inboard. You would do this with an adjustable camber plate.
"It should be assumed everything I say and do is incorrect ".