[Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the May/June 1997 issue of Grassroots Motorsports.]
Story by John Hagerman
The three major alignment parameters on a car are toe, camber, and caster. Most enthusiasts have a good understanding of what these settings are and what they in-volv…
Excellent article. It maybe old but it's a goodie. The topic of camber gain due to caster when turning is not known or understood by many. Kudos that this article actually mentions and explains the geometric mechanism for it. Thanks for posting it.
Nobody ever seems to talk about steering axis inclination (SAI) other than to mention that it helps the wheels self center straight ahead like caster does because as the spindle rotates around the steering axes, the tires tip out at the top and gravity wants to pull it back down which straightens out the tires.
I want to design a front suspension with zero SAI inclination so that the wheels don't add positive camber when the tires turn and rotate around the steering axes. To accomplish this I want to build spindles and control arms with vertical ball joint alignment and use highly positive wheels to keep the spindle pivot directly over the center of the tire contact patch.
Any comments?
In reply to VolvoHeretic :
I've always thought this would be the way to go assuming you had full control over every part and all their packaging constraints.
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