211/219 camber bolts

[Stegel]

Hi,

I have fitted all new suspension (lower arms, dampers, drop links, top mounts and top and bottom ball joints) to the front of my CLS. It has always munched through the inner edge of the front tyres long before the rest of the tyre is worn out, so I fitted the grooved camber adjustment bolts to reduce the amount of negative camber - the original arms had plain bolts in the "centre setting".

The grooved bolts have to be held firmly when being tightened to avoid shearing off the alloy lugs in the bushes. The lugs do seem pretty puny, and a question occurs to me - given the loads and forces the suspension inevitably must handle, do the lugs just position the bolts during tightening, with the compressive forces then holding the bushes in the right position, or are the lugs actually strong enough to take the forces?

(BTW after 114k miles, the car feels like new again, and I'm now hoping for better tyre wear).

 

[streethawk]

Hi,

I have fitted all new suspension (lower arms, dampers, drop links, top mounts and top and bottom ball joints) to the front of my CLS. It has always munched through the inner edge of the front tyres long before the rest of the tyre is worn out, so I fitted the grooved camber adjustment bolts to reduce the amount of negative camber - the original arms had plain bolts in the "centre setting".

The grooved bolts have to be held firmly when being tightened to avoid shearing off the alloy lugs in the bushes. The lugs do seem pretty puny, and a question occurs to me - given the loads and forces the suspension inevitably must handle, do the lugs just position the bolts during tightening, with the compressive forces then holding the bushes in the right position, or are the lugs actually strong enough to take the forces?

(BTW after 114k miles, the car feels like new again, and I'm now hoping for better tyre wear).

Think your right with the compressive force. These cars always wear outer and inner edges on front tyre it's got something to do with the ankerman angle which I think I've pronounced right. With out it these the car can't drive properly . Even my old w202 did this. Look at the vertical angle of your wheels at full lock and you'll see why. In the wet on full lock when I drive slowly over a metal manhole cover you can feel the tyre slide slightly.

 

[Stegel]

It would be nice if there was some definite and sturdy positioning rather than compressive forces, but it works from the factory in the "central" position so hopefully it will stay as it is now!

In the CLS's case, and my wife's 211, it's just the inner edges which I think is down to excessive negative camber. Certainly I agree on the sliding of the tyres on lock at low speed, when parking for instance - it seems to have disappeared now.

 

[streethawk]

It would be nice if there was some definite and sturdy positioning rather than compressive forces, but it works from the factory in the "central" position so hopefully it will stay as it is now!

In the CLS's case, and my wife's 211, it's just the inner edges which I think is down to excessive negative camber. Certainly I agree on the sliding of the tyres on lock at low speed, when parking for instance - it seems to have disappeared now.

Mine seems to be outer edges that suffer most. When I had alinement done the front cambers were just out of limit iirc but he said nit enough to warrant camber bolts. Think mine must of been slightly positive camber but I'll have to check printout.