How long should I wait to get an alignment after installing new suspension?

So, I recently installed a Bilstein B12 suspension on my 128i, which is basically just a set of Bilstein B8 shocks/struts and Eibach springs. When I installed it, I also installed all new hardware- new rubber spring perches, new mounts, etc. 

Typically, I know that it takes a bit of time for a suspension to "settle" to it's new, final ride height. What's The Hive's experience on how long that takes? Is it more time based, or mileage based? I've also heard that springs from companies like Eibach are "pre-compressed" before you buy them, with folks saying they don't settle and that only the other components (rubber perches, etc) "settle"- is there any truth to that? 

It's been about ~12 days since I installed everything and I've managed to drive the car about ~170 miles since then. I'm wondering if I should give it a bit more time before I get an alignment, or if it's probably pretty much settled at this point?  Recommendations? 

Based on no science at all, I'd say get it aligned. I've never allowed much more driving time than what it took to make sure I put all the bolts back, and to my knowledge that's never caused an issue. 

In reply to Spearfishin :

Same. I’d rather not chew up a tire. After installing/changing suspension, the alignment shop is often the next stop. 

I've never waited, just it gets aligned. 

This opinion spans 7-8 cars and 13-14 suspension setups.

+1 on do it now.

Also, if any of those joints you unbolted involved rotational movement, make sure they get loosened and retorqued with weight on wheels.

Andy Hollis said:

+1 on do it now.

Also, if any of those joints you unbolted involved rotational movement, make sure they get loosened and retorqued with weight on wheels.

It would appear the general consensus is to just get it done. Copy that, thank you, gentlemen! 
 

Anytime I torque suspension components I always jack up each control arm until everything is fully compressed and the frame comes off of the jack stand ever so slightly, then torque down the bolts. Would you still recommend re-torquing with weight on the wheels if the bolts were already torqued with the suspension compressed/loaded? 

roninsoldier83 said:

Andy Hollis said:

Anytime I torque suspension components I always jack up each control arm until everything is fully compressed and the frame comes off of the jack stand ever so slightly, then torque down the bolts. Would you still recommend re-torquing with weight on the wheels if the bolts were already torqued with the suspension compressed/loaded? 

Nope, you've got it sussed.  That's exactly how I do it.  Unless something changes in a big way on the alignment (not likely) you'll be fine.

How long does it take to bounce the newly installed suspension a couple times for things to settle to normal ride height and then drive onto the alignment rack? About that long.

When I pull things apart and or install new parts I simply string the car and use my very basic alignment tools to get it 90%

After that I get it aligned when it's convenient. I typically find I'm within 98%

We have someone local who works on BMWs prototype team that does race alignments and so I use them to "check" my work.

Y'all go ahead. I've seen fresh springs settle more than an inch in the first several hundred miles. I'm not doing the final alignment right away.

I always install my fresh parts and then set the camber out to visually as close to vertical as I can get it, set the toe, and drive it a while to let them settle. Then do it with the alignment rack. I can get one pretty decent close with my resources at hand, at least close enough to not injure the tires during the initial run in of the new parts.

In reply to Cousin_Eddie (Forum Supporter) :

There's a big fat it depends, cars like body on frame GMs would settle righteously as the springs found their homes in the vaguely stamped spring pockets.  Strut suspended cars are much less temperamental.

Slightly off topic, just curious, anyone else having trouble with alignment shops?  The shops in my area won't do anything but factory alignments, claiming warranty and liability reasons.  One just put in a fancy new computer machine that will only do factory settings, only for cars in its database that only goes back to 1995.  If your car is older than that, tough luck.  They say they can't override the computer and manually input settings, so forget any kind of "unusual" (ie competition) settings.  Finally found a shop that will align my 89 AW11 MR2, but they will only do factory settings, good thing I'm not autocrossing or tracking the car anymore.  I'm 78 and really don't want to fool around doing a string alignment in my small garage.

Anyone else encountering this phenomenon?

I have marked spots on the garage floor so the cars are in the same spot.

You can measure the difference between the top of the rim and bottom with a level stood on end. 

The trick is to.measure before and after; you can simple put it back where it was.

For toe measurements I string the car.

For castor if I can't measure known points I've used one of those magnetic angle finders.......I just make both sides equal.

In reply to Jim Pettengill :

That sounds about right for chain or standard commercial alignment shops. What options do you have for race prep or performance shops in your area?  I worked in a local shop owned by a spec Miata racer years ago. Although it was not an "alignment shop", we did plenty of very accurate string alignments on a drive-on lift, often after corner-weighting and setting ride height. Guys would bring cars in after doing a driveway install of coilovers. It was astonishing how far out everything could be when we started and how much better it could be with a few simple tools and a whole lot of care. The owner did eventually buy an alignment machine, but it gave inconsistent readings and wasn't much faster than just setting up the strings. 

When I refreshed the suspension on my E90 (Koni reds with new top hats, bushings etc) it took a week or two before the ride height finally settled. My tires are done so wasn't too worried about wearing them down and I've finally made an appointment for alignment + tires for next week.

And as for alignments I am lucky enough to have a specialty shop that I've been using for 15+ years that aligns to my exact specs and as an added bonus we always end up having wonderful chats while they work on the car. 

The last time I aligned the 128i, I actually did the toe myself in the garage: 




Although IMO, it's a pain in the neck to get the car on blocks, setup/measure the string and make incremental changes while repeatedly crawling underneath the car. I'll be happy to get a lift one of these days. 

Unfortunately, I don't have any equipment to set camber. I've seen the videos, it doesn't look terribly tough and it's only the rear of this car that's adjustable anyway. The rear eccentric bolts are very easy to adjust- here recently, I just maxed both sides out and when measured, they came out within -0.2 degrees of each other. The only reason I string aligned my 128i last time was because it has aftermarket adjustable toe arms that an alignment shop either wouldn't touch, or didn't understand- they claimed they couldn't get the rear toe in spec- I managed to get the rear toe in spec with a piece of string in the garage and noticed they didn't even bother loosening the aftermarket toe arm adjuster nut(s). 

Either way, my only concern was aligning the car before the suspension settled, and the settled ride height changing my alignment specs, causing me to have to align it twice. 

roninsoldier83 said:

Although IMO, it's a pain in the neck to get the car on blocks, setup/measure the string and make incremental changes while repeatedly crawling underneath the car. I'll be happy to get a lift one of these days. 

Unfortunately, I don't have any equipment to set camber...

It is a total PITA. To be clear, I wasn't so much suggesting that everyone do their own as making the point that there are alternatives to the high-volume commercial alignment shops and the attendant equipment.

If a guy was likely to do it again, a camber gauge can be improvised with a digital level, some angle stock to form a frame, and some nuts and bolts to act as standoffs that contact the lip of the wheel.  Our setup used a tee-shaped frame with three standoffs to contact the wheel in three places.

Although we weren't able to measure caster with that setup, it was usually easy enough to feel that out through a combination of eyeballing the adjustment points (assuming it was even adjustable) to determine whether it had been messed with, comparing the wheelbase on each side of the car, and testing for pull to either side. With all that information we could usually extrapolate a rough idea of whether any adjustment was necessary.