New M3 Alignment Issue?

Revitt · 03-05-2019, 11:05 AM

Took delivery of a new F80 M3 Comp Pack in Mexico Blue in January, and overall really pleased with it.

However, the alignment was miles out from day 1. The dealer has attempted to correct this on site and although better (not pulling to one side as much) it just didn't feel right to me.

Had a local trusted garage check the alignment and results are attached.

Basically, almost everything is a bit out, but what's concerning me is the front camber. It's got far less than it should have, and I've read many times that there's no way to adjust front camber on these cars?

The dealer has agreed to take it to wherever they use for alignment under warranty, which took some convincing, but how are they going to rectify that front camber?

Remonster · 03-06-2019, 07:04 PM

You're right that the front camber seems to be a lot less negative than I expect to see on the F80, a lot less than my F80 ZCP had from factory, and less than I've seen on any other stock F80 I can remember having on our alignment machine at work.

You are also right that there is no front camber adjustment on this car without changing parts.

When you say the car didn't feel right to you, what were you noticing? Right away I'm noticing a small amount of toe out on rear left and rear right, that should definitely be corrected to 0.08 degrees toe in. Front toe isn't too far off, it looks like maybe the dealership had the steering wheel 'centered' in a slightly different position than your independent shop did or maybe the front right toe has moved a little since the previous alignment, that should be set back to 0.05.

Be sure whoever does the next alignment performs the EPS start-up, skipping that step can cause the steering to feel strange - as if it's fighting you to turn one way all the time.

03-05-2019, 11:05 AM	#1
Revitt Registered 0 Rep 1 Posts Drives: M3 F80 ZCP Join Date: Mar 2019 Location: UK iTrader: (0)	New M3 Alignment Issue? Took delivery of a new F80 M3 Comp Pack in Mexico Blue in January, and overall really pleased with it. However, the alignment was miles out from day 1. The dealer has attempted to correct this on site and although better (not pulling to one side as much) it just didn't feel right to me. Had a local trusted garage check the alignment and results are attached. Basically, almost everything is a bit out, but what's concerning me is the front camber. It's got far less than it should have, and I've read many times that there's no way to adjust front camber on these cars? The dealer has agreed to take it to wherever they use for alignment under warranty, which took some convincing, but how are they going to rectify that front camber? Attached Images
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03-06-2019, 07:04 PM	#2
Remonster Lieutenant Colonel 826 Rep 1,584 Posts Drives: E90 M3 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: San Diego iTrader: (0)	You're right that the front camber seems to be a lot less negative than I expect to see on the F80, a lot less than my F80 ZCP had from factory, and less than I've seen on any other stock F80 I can remember having on our alignment machine at work. You are also right that there is no front camber adjustment on this car without changing parts. When you say the car didn't feel right to you, what were you noticing? Right away I'm noticing a small amount of toe out on rear left and rear right, that should definitely be corrected to 0.08 degrees toe in. Front toe isn't too far off, it looks like maybe the dealership had the steering wheel 'centered' in a slightly different position than your independent shop did or maybe the front right toe has moved a little since the previous alignment, that should be set back to 0.05. Be sure whoever does the next alignment performs the EPS start-up, skipping that step can cause the steering to feel strange - as if it's fighting you to turn one way all the time.
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