Your Raptor and It's Alignment

[806ROUSH]

Back at this again.... My truck now has approx. 37k miles on it and I have had it aligned at least 7 times and added the camber/caster keys. I had to put new tires on it at 30k miles due to the poor wear. Again, I'm only on mid perch. It has never pulled left or right, the camber just gets knocked out due to the notch in the LCA. I really do not want to buy UCA's just to give more room for alignment. I see SDHQ had a set differnt bolts and plates. Has anyone installed these and did it help hold things in place? I'm about 97% on road.

 

[FordraptorHero]

will i need an alignment after upgrading my rear shocks to 3.0s?

 

[Deleted member 12951]

will i need an alignment after upgrading my rear shocks to 3.0s?

Rear? No

 

[Trick.Raptor]

I was able to get a Ford spec alignment with my OEM shocks at mid-perch.

Went to Fox 3.0's with DSC and RPG Billet UCA's and can't get the passenger camber correct.

Before

Camber --- L -0.9 R -2.0
Caster --- L 5.3 R 5.7
Toe --- L -0.12 R -0.03
Total Toe --- -.15

After


Camber --- L -0.7 R -1.5
Caster --- L 5.5 R 5.7
Toe --- L -0.10 R -0.11
Total Toe --- -.21

So I was able to get all within Ford specs before the upgrade. Could it be the shop or could I a bent knuckle that is more noticeable with the new suspension?

 

[Deleted member 12951]

I was able to get a Ford spec alignment with my OEM shocks at mid-perch.

Went to Fox 3.0's with DSC and RPG Billet UCA's and can't get the passenger camber correct.

Before

Camber --- L -0.9 R -2.0
Caster --- L 5.3 R 5.7
Toe --- L -0.12 R -0.03
Total Toe --- -.15

After


Camber --- L -0.7 R -1.5
Caster --- L 5.5 R 5.7
Toe --- L -0.10 R -0.11
Total Toe --- -.21

So I was able to get all within Ford specs before the upgrade. Could it be the shop or could I a bent knuckle that is more noticeable with the new suspension?

Well -2.0 before is definitely not spec. Was this what is was AFTER you installed the 3.0's and UCA? And the after is what they got it to with these on? Or is that what you had with OEM shocks and mid-perch?

The UCA are adjustable. You have too much negative camber so why not adjust the UCA further out to provide a degree of camber to get you within -0.5?

 

[Trick.Raptor]

Well -2.0 before is definitely not spec. Was this what is was AFTER you installed the 3.0's and UCA? And the after is what they got it to with these on? Or is that what you had with OEM shocks and mid-perch?

The UCA are adjustable. You have too much negative camber so why not adjust the UCA further out to provide a degree of camber to get you within -0.5?

Alignment was within Ford specs before the UCA upgrade. This all took place after...

Finding out that you pretty much have to take the UCA off to adjust it I guess that explains why the alignment tech didn't do so. I'll have to have that adjusted elsewhere.

As for caster, I've seen you want higher numbers and with an aftermarket UCA the caster is higher than Ford specs. At 5.3/5.7 I have to say the Raptor feels much better on the road. Only thing I don't know is if excessive caster causes tire wear. Does it?

 

[Deleted member 12951]

As for caster, I've seen you want higher numbers and with an aftermarket UCA the caster is higher than Ford specs. At 5.3/5.7 I have to say the Raptor feels much better on the road. Only thing I don't know is if excessive caster causes tire wear. Does it?

No. Toe is the worst for wear. Most caster makes the steering wheel return to center better, you want that. My caster is closer to 6-7 with Rogue UCA, yours is not that much over stock, surprised you noticed anything

 

[Trick.Raptor]

No. Toe is the worst for wear. Most caster makes the steering wheel return to center better, you want that. My caster is closer to 6-7 with Rogue UCA, yours is not that much over stock, surprised you noticed anything

Before the UCA's factory settings had caster below four and I was in 3.4 range. Which also explains why my drivers side wheel would catch the fender liner and pull it out on jumps, with the tire being so close to the fender.

As for handling stock with the lower caster settings steering felt OK (with nothing to compare to of course) so the new handling is a much appreciated upgrade

 

[Trick.Raptor]

@RDFTS finally got a local old-school alignment shop near my home (less than a mile, never knew of him!) to get everything dialed in. Caster is at 5.7 on both wheels and my camber is now in spec after adjusting the UCA.

Of course with 850+ off-road miles in store this weekend for Pony Express I expect the alignment to be off next week when I get back

 

[schmeal]

I just had mine aligned today. Had my cam bolts adjusted for maximum tire clearance so I could stuff 37's. The alignment shop had to pull the tire back in order to get the caster back and now I'm rubbing.

Sounds like most of you guys are letting caster go up for better tire clearance.