Camber/Castor and Toe-in settings

I am currently at the point of setting up the front end of my car. Following much digging around the net in vain, I have been unable to find any reliable data on the set up in degrees for these settings. My car is a ball joint front end with dropped spindles. I would be greatfull for any information.
Nigel

Nigel: What are you using for a chassis? If it is a VW pan, even if it is shortened and has lowered spindles, you should be able to go to a local place specializing in four wheel alignments and tell them to align it as the VW that it originally was. Most likely you will need caster shims behind the lower torsion bar tubes on the front - start with one one each side and see how it aligns - you may have to shift them around or add one more to one side but he should be able to "tune it in".

Alignment info from Chilton's for a 1970 type 1 with ball joint front end and IRS rear (NOT a super beetle) is as follows:

Front Axle
Caster:
range (deg): +-1
Pref setting (deg): +3 deg. 20'

Camber:
Range (deg): +- 20'
Pref setting (deg): +30'

Toe-in (in. or degrees): +0.071-+0.213

Rear Axle
Camber
Range (deg): +-40'
Pref Setting (deg): -1

Toe-in (deg) 0' +-15'

hope this helps.......gordon

Thank you David!!!
What about rear caster? I haven't been able to find out any way of setting it, let alone finding a spec for it. Is there a way to calibrate it. and what would be the best setting?

Thankyou for this information it is of great assistance.
Best regards Nigel

I'm not sure where I copied this - It's either from George Brown, or Henry at IM:

The front camber should be 0 to - 1/2 deg. on both sides with the most
important thing being that it be the same. Remember to roll the car by
hand back and forth then (with two people) compress the front suspension
by pushing down on the fenders (to preload, then release) above the wheel
before taking any measurements. Caster should run 4 to 5 deg. again making
sure that the two wheels are as close as possible.

The front and rear toe in should be 1/8" measured at the rim. Rear camber
is more a matter of taste, we set the Roadsters up with -2 to

If you want to get anywhere close to 0 degrees camber,you probably need to replace your camber adjusters with the aftermarket adjusters.
Go to aircooled.net and look for camber adjusters for balljoint front ends. They allow for more adjustment than the stockers.
You'll want to add Caster shims also. I think they only come in one thickness, and that's what is usually used in conjunction with the lowered front end.

Greg B

Nigel: You didn

My car is an IRS rear end, so the settings posted will be ok.
Regards Nigel

I believe the rear does not have a caster setting. It should be zero. Unless rear wheel steering is available.
Caster is like rake on a motorcycle. It allows the wheel to return to center after a corner.

Caster is adjustable on an IRS rear end, but it seldom needs to be adjusted. You can only get a few minutes of adjustment, if it needs it at all. Usually the rear end only needs toe-in adjustments (done first with shims) to get it to run straight.

In fact, the guy who did my alignment complained about the rear end bolts being rusted and hard to loosen. Even after I had played with the rear end for hours to get it set to the right height and then balanced left to right!! Maybe I had my impact wrench set too high!!

He DID tell me, though, that I still had excessive caster on the right (even though I had installed shims on both sides on the bottom tube) and we agreed that, if I removed the caster shim from the right and added it to the left, it would pull straight and, sure enough, it did!

BTW: ALL of this was done as if it were a 1969 Beetle sedan (the donor car) and it all came out just fine!

gn

How do you evaluate caster on a rear wheel if it can't be turned.

Eric: You're right. After re-reading my post even I was confused (shows what long days and Alzheimer's can do to you).

Caster on the rear (or the rake of the vertical center line toward the rear) is all but impossible on a VW pan unless you've been hit (then it's pretty obvious!) I guess that's why rear caster is never listed in the specs!

My reference to caster adjustment in the above post, and the moving of a shim, is for the front end.

Hope I didn't confuse too many more than you and me! (sorry!)

gn (guess I'll stick to yard work this week......)

Gordon, I think you may have been more confused than you thought. Perhaps you are thinking of camber rather than caster adjustments on the rear end. Caster adjustment would have no meaning on the rear wheels on any car, not just on the beetle. The only exception might be in the case of rear wheel or four wheel steering.

Caster is the angle from vertical of the axis about which the wheels pivot when turning from left to right.

I wish to thank all of you for your help. it does help.

I have been taking notes for a small door pouch manual, I started last year taylored to my cars spec's.

If anything ,it would help any future owners,

Engine spec's tranny spec,s capcities oil types , interior controls layout ,so on and so forth , tires, rims, suspencion set up all the wiring diagrams and a lot of stuff straight from the Bently service manuals. to cover as many bases as I can. including ,a parts inerchange list with three or more suppliers,for when or if I get in trouble out on the road.