B7 A4 - Geometry Adjustment ?

[DownUnderSLine]

I'm new to Audi ownership; only recently purchased a B7 A4 2.0T Q Sline. [az]

bit of a noob's questions but I'm yet to locate the information;

What wheel alignment properties can be adjusted on these cars ?

I spent some time under the car of the weekend to get familiar with the vehicle, Rear camber and toe adjustment are obvious, but the front end has me puzzled.

Obviously, front toe adjustment is there, what about front camber and castor ? Is the strut top adjustable ? If so how ?

[DownUnderSLine]

Anyone ??

[pms]

Although I cannot speak from experience on anything but the B6 S4, I can tell you that it does not have a strut suspension, but rather the knuckle is located by upper and lower control arms. As a result, moving the location of the top of the damper and spring seat will have not affect on the alignment like it does on a macpherson strut suspension.

I assume the fwd flavor is the same.

[ratty]

I'm fairly sure the B7 & B6 are the same setup:

Front toe is attached to the rearward upper control arm inboard end from memory. The upper control arms are NOT adjustable from the factory, so camber can only be adjusted by relocating the subframe (or ride height). If you are desperate, look up CPP control arms for adjustable versions (~USD700 IIRC).

[DownUnderSLine]

Thanks for the replies. Those CPP items look neat !

Yes, that all makes sense. I'm a little surprised that these cars have no factory camber / castor adjustment at the pointy end. So the next question for anyone who might have some wheel alignment data handy -

What it the factory front camber & castor figures for say the SLine Sport setup ?

[ratty]

Now you're definitely asking too much [;)]

From the B5:
Rear Camber target -0.30 to +0.30
Rear Toe target -1.1mm to +1.1mm
Front Camber target -0.25 to +0.25
Front Toe target -1.1mm to +1.1mm
Castor & KPI targets not given!

I don't have Audi specs for B6/B7 but I use the STaSIS recommendations (on their web site in the FAQ: mine's set to 0 toe, -1.8 camber front (set by ride height as I don't have the CPP arms yet), -1.2 camber rear). Most of the Castor measurements I have seen are 3.5-4 deg, but have heard 5 deg works very well if you have the adjustable arms.

[DownUnderSLine]

Well I saw that this was a Technical Forum ! [:)]

You can never have too much positive castor [:)]

Thanks for the info.


Now you're definitely asking too much [;)]

From the B5:
Rear Camber target -0.30 to +0.30
Rear Toe target -1.1mm to +1.1mm
Front Camber target -0.25 to +0.25
Front Toe target -1.1mm to +1.1mm
Castor & KPI targets not given!

I don't have Audi specs for B6/B7 but I use the STaSIS recommendations (on their web site in the FAQ: mine's set to 0 toe, -1.8 camber front (set by ride height as I don't have the CPP arms yet), -1.2 camber rear). Most of the Castor measurements I have seen are 3.5-4 deg, but have heard 5 deg works very well if you have the adjustable arms.

[pms]

<snip>...You can never have too much positive castor [:)]...<snip>

Just a word of warning about that...you actually can reach a point where additional caster causes unintended consequences on the car's handling. What happens is that as the kingpin leans backwards, the outside wheel tends to unload and the inside loads up as the wheel is turned. This can wreak havoc on corner weights and make the car behave unexpectedly.

A little caster is a good thing, but a lot of caster can be a problem.

IMHO, FWIW...

[DownUnderSLine]

Yep - I understand... I was speaking loosely ! I'm sure say +90deg of castor would not be too functional :)

I was interested to know what the std settings are and what can be adjusted...

I found with previous cars (WRX) that bringing the +castor up from like 1-2deg to 6-7deg had an amazing improvement to turn in and allowed for -camber to be reduced for better traction. A much more practical setup for a street car.

cheers