LCA questions

[Mr. Beams]

Okay, so I recently picked up a 86 Corolla GTS hatchback. Everything is good on it besides the camber issue. The drivers side camber is completely off compared to the passenger side. It does have full Greddy suspension on it. I am wondering if there are a few different sizes of LCA's that cross over from different vehicles that work on the 86. Will Adj LCA's fix the issue or could it be deeper as in structural damage or frame damage from a previous wreck. I am posting a few pictures of the lower side on the car for you guys to compare and tell me what you think. Any help is appreciated.



drivers side


passenger side


drivers side inner fender


passenger side lca


drivers side lca with the camber issue


here is a couple outside shots

[AE25]

it's pretty obvious there's chassis ripples in the 'drivers side inner fender' pic. the wrinkley panels at rear of wheel arch about where the firewall is. this is usually a strong area of the car so it must've had a hard hit from underneath is my guess? are there any bent chassis rails underneath or did you once have a strut or wheel come off at some stage?
A well known mod is to use ke30 or tt132 corona lca's which are 10mm longer than E7. and i think slightly longer again than ae86. its gives you an extra degree of negative camber and adds a little bit of caster once you wind the caster all the way forward.

[Mr. Beams]

The guy that I got it from didnt drive it much. I dont see any chassis ripple under the car. I can see what your talking about as far as the ripple in the inner fender close to the firewall. Hmmm...the caster seems fine how it sits. Its just really aggressive camber on the drivers side...I want to reduce the camber for better fitment of my new ssr mk3's since there not so aggressive of an offset.. 15x9 0 offset

[gotzoom?]

What problem are you trying to solve? Having the camber setting on the plates not identical when the camber is symmetrical is not unusual or necessarily an indication of any kind of problem. If you can get the camber you want on both sides with the lcas you have, spend your money elsewhere.

[Mr. Beams]

But if there way off from eachother, wouldnt that be a concern for different LCA's or structural damage? If that was the issue then wouldnt it cause a problem with camber alignment for both sides? Im just trying to figure out why one side would be maxed out positive camber on the top hat and still sit negative camber when the other side sits even 0 and have slight negative camber?

[Deuce Cam]

Yes there are other models with longer control arms that work in an ae86. Have you tried measuring the length of each control arm to see if they're different? If the driver side is longer then you have your answer. Otherwise something is not right based on those pictures and what you said.

[gotzoom?]

What are you measuring? If you take it to an alignment shop and both sides have the same camber, what difference does it make where the camber plates are adjusted? In my experience, when the camber plates are adjusted the same on both sides, 100% of the time, the camber is not the same when measured at the wheel.

[Deuce Cam]

The control arms (x member mount to center of ball joint). It sounds like he thinks the car may have different control arms on each side. Different length control arms may explain the non proportionate difference between how the camber plates are adjusted and visual camber difference between both wheels. It's probably a long shot but worth checking.

Ideally camber plates should be adjusted evenly on both sides imo. Usually the camber setting won't end up being identical, although it's usually not far off with a good chassis that's well maintained. The difference side-to-side can be something simple like play in the x member/cradle mounting points, worn out suspension parts, etc., or something serious like a bent or twisted frame/suspension, etc.

[Jeonsah]

I like what Deuce Cam said. You could measure the lower control arms to make sure they're the same length. If they're, I would take it to a shop who can measure the dimensions and see if there is something bent. You could always download the FSM as well and try it yourself. I believe the FSM has the dimensions of the chassis in it.

[Mr. Beams]

Awesome facts guys! I came from a super straight gx71 87 cressida very well maintained to the 86 that has had a slighty abusive life. Im trying to restore the chassis into its original state which I know will take some work and time but persistance and determination is key imo! I will check out the FSM and look at the dimensions. I also work as a express tech aka oil change guy for Honda so ill pull it up on the alignment rack and see whats going on... Thanka a ton guys for all your input!

[AE25]

access to a wheel alignment machine.. lucky for some!
could also be a bent strut. compare the distance from the rim to the strut and see how similar they are.