SaberD

My specs are -1.5 camber and 0 toe.

running ss/tc springs, shocks, and struts with spherical control arm bearings.

tires are conti extremecontact dw 235/40/18 on 7" wide ss/sc wheels

I tried 45psi at my most recent autocross, and the front tires are still folding over resulting in a lot of outer edge wear. this car is also my daily, so I want to keep the camber pretty reasonable for tire wear for street driving.

do these tires have a weak sidewall or something? would -2deg be too much for the street? should i get new springs to lower the car? any and all advice would be appreciated.

Wangspeed

iTrader: (2)

I run -2.3 on the same tires, but on 8" wheels. Your 7" wheels aren't helping the situation, but -1.5 is reasonable for a street car. If you lower the car, most springs will just result in worse wear, because they're too soft, and start the suspension in a worse part of the McPherson strut geometry. If you don't care about classing, you can run John's YYZ springs. You basically just need stiffer walled tires and more camber.

Take a pic and show us where it is rolling over to. Some people get concerned too much with the tire rolling over. Some is normal.

Powell Race Parts

iTrader: (3)

control arm bushings. stock ones move an inch either way. end thread

Wangspeed

iTrader: (2)

He mentioned he already has them. Didn't stop my outer tread wear either when I got them. Had to add more camber.

SaberD

The spherical bearings helped a lot to reduce the backlash in the drivetrain, increase steering response, and narrow the dead zone of the steering, but it really doesn't seem to be helping my cause with the roll over. I'm sure it helps a lot with the camber loss, but I'm beginning to think the problem is the tires.

What do you guys think about running -2.0 on a street car?

Powell Race Parts

iTrader: (3)

my bad. need better front springs. I bet Wangspeed finds it better. I will see gonna go out and check Friday on track... and yes more static negative camber, can be a pita on the street. and also like W says, wider wheel. I got 9.5 so often forget what it is like with narrow wheels

madcitySS

iTrader: (4)

hmm I have -1.8 camber and run 39psi on my TC wheels with dunlop star specs for autocross. They roll over the tire arrow just a tad bit but I have found that 39psi is the sweet spot for my car.

I know you can reduce the roll all kinds of different ways but its front wheel drive its going to happen

Wangspeed

iTrader: (2)

Yep.

Also, like I mentioned, some people get worried about it too early. I run -2.3 all the time, but I don't really care if I chew through my Conti DW. Tires are expendable in the name of fun.

SaberD

thanks for the tips guys. i've read a lot about how the contis have soft sidewalls. perhaps ill go a different route my next set and play with the camber a little. might bump it up to -2.0 my next alignment. i plan on getting some tc wheels next summer too so that should help a little. i'm not going to get my hopes up to completely eliminate it though.

madcitySS

iTrader: (4)

It's all a balancing act. Like wangspeed said tires are expendable

I know I need to get new Autox tires every summer. Just the way it is.

Mark Aubele

IMO -2 is pretty tame on the street. I ran -2.5ish (iirc) on my SS/TC and had no tire wear problems. Toe will affect wear to a much greater degree than camber.

SaberD

do you guys think a rear sway bar would help with this? putting more stress on the rear tires and keeping the car flatter would make sense. i currently have no rear bar.

Powell Race Parts

iTrader: (3)

for sure. I would not autox or track a cobalt without a rear bar. and the grippier the tire the more rear bar you need.

Spank

If you want stiff sidwall for autox go Kumho, if you want fast go Hoosier. Your tires can roll from too little pressure I experimented with up to 50 in front, also rim and tire size. However for autoxing I personally know people who run 285's on the stock front rim and love it. Just make sure you run enough pressure. They are also running -2.5 negative camber.

You can also be causing the tire to roll depending on how you drive. Maybe you know all this maybe you don't. Hope it helps.
Slowbalt