Club Cobra - CSX 6000 alignment specs

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CSX 6000 alignment specs

I'm switching from Billboards to Avons on CSX6022 and may want to adjust the alignment to be slightly more aggressive for autocrossing. The billboards were twitchy enough on the street that I didn't want to get any more aggressive.%/

I didn't do the original alignment, but below are the specs I got long ago from Shelby.

Street

Toe: Front: 1/8" toe out, Rear: zero-1/32" toe in
Camber: Front: -.75, Rear: -.25 [Note: +/- .25]
Caster: Front: +2.5, Rear: -.5 to -1.0 [Note: Rear casters should be as equal as possible]
Ride Height Front: 5.75” [Note: measured from bottom of tube frame to ground as far forward as possible]
Ride Height Rear: 6.25” [Note: measured from rear cross bar of frame to ground]

Track

Toe: Front: 1/8" toe out, Rear: zero-1/32" toe in
Camber: Front: -1.5, Rear: -.75 [Note: +/- .25]
Caster: Front: +2.5, Rear: -.5 to -1.0 [Note: Rear casters should be as equal as possible]
Ride Height Front: 5.0” [Note: measured from bottom of tube frame to ground as far forward as possible]
Ride Height Rear: 5.5” [Note: measured from rear cross bar of frame to ground]

Other notes from Shelby: “All measurements were taken from chassis centerline.”

How bad will the car’s manners be on the street if I go to a track set up? Should I split the difference on camber between track & street? Thoughts?

The differences are:
front camber increased -0.75 degrees
rear camber increased -0.50 degrees
front and rear ride height dropped 0.75"

These differences are relatively minor, and there are many street cars running more camber than the track specs. Only you know where (and how) you drive and whether the reduced ground clearance is going to be an issue, but I'd go with it.

Having said that, how many vulnerable bits (e.g. oil pan, bellhousing, etc.) does your car have that may be at increased risk if you drop it 3/4"?

That toe out may make for responsive turn in, but on the street it's just going to wear the inside of you thread down quickly. With the lifespan of Billboards maybe that isn't an issue but with Avons?

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanEC (Post 1462176)

Yes, I agree.

Why run front toe out on any rear wheel drive car?

Toe in accounts for any slop in the front suspension, so with a tight front end, technically zero toe.

Yes, toe out may give more response into corners, but are some setting for toe out to compensate for incorrect geometry in the front end.

As per the Ackermann steering principle.

Gary

I race shifter Karts. we always set the front slightly toe out. it also helps keep the kart stable at speed.

For what it's worth on my CSX.

Front:

Toe 1/16-1/8" Actual 1/8"
Camber 3/4-1 degree Actual 1/2 degree
Caster 2 1/2- 3 1/2 degree + Actual 3 degrees +

Rear:

Toe 1/8" Actual 1/4"
Camber 1/4-1/2 degrees - Actual 1/2 degree -
Caster 4-7 degrees positive Actual 6 degrees +

Ride height:

Front, 4-4 1/4" at cross member Actual 4"

Rear, 5 1/4- 5 1/2" at cross member. Actual 5 1/4"

Toe-out on a kart (and a track car) is good because you want quick steering response, but on a street drive car, toe-in is desirable because you want straight line stability, not nervousness.

You don't need any caster on the rear wheels as they don't do any active steering.

Cheers,
Glen

I tried a little toe-out in my car once as an experiment and didn't like it and went back to 3/16 toe-in.