There are places that will do a "lifetime" alignment for more money. If you are going to be tweeking the alignment that might be the way to go.
Wherever you go get a print out of the alignment before and after so you know were you are at.

Kevin

 

im a csa at sears auto center so im just gonna put alignment under warranty in the ticket, and im putting install strut in the ticket which is like 25 bucks and just gonna give my tech 80 bucks cash. because we dont do lowering springs at sears. what do u mean preload before tightning?

 

I have a shop and tech here that keeps the "ticket" open until I'm satisfied with the settings. Paying for a full alignment with every change would make tuning overly expensive. Good tip.

ALWAYS get the printout of the alignment, both before and after the adjustment.

 

Someone correct me if I am wrong but the UK specs are within factory specs. They are in some cases at one extreme of the specified range for each given measurement but they are still all within specs.

 

You need to load the suspension before you tighten things back up (after installing springs or shocks). Assuming that you have the car on a lift, you can just put a jack under the tire and lift it up to ride height before tightening things down. If you don't do this, the bushings will bind and the ride height will be higher than it should be.

 

Hmm i just got UK spec on my AP2... Seems to be working good.

Can anyone clarify if UK Specs are good for AP2? I can't imagine them being much different. Then again, I have a koni/gc suspension set up, so its gonna be different anyways I guess.

I was able to get 8deg caster with -1 Camber in the front feels great.

 

Nice I'm at Sears too. I'm the LP manager. Don't get busted doing the springs haha. Get fired for it.

 

Can someone explain what UK specs are? What is the diff b/w US and UK specs? Does Japan have their own specs as well? Appologies for the NOOB question. Thanks in advance.

 

 

When it comes to tweaking the handling with alignment, we're dealing with subtlty, so if you like the way the car handles with a given alignment, then it's a good alignment for you and your car. For example, the AP2 has less roll steer than the AP1, so it should be able to make the AP2 a little more responsive by running a little less toe in at the back, which would be a plus if the driver wants quicker responses, and a minus if he didn't. I have to try different alignment settings to figure out what I'm going to like best, and the final numbers I settle on actually only apply to me, and my car with its current mods. If it were me, and I were working with an AP2, I'd start with the standard factory alignment specs and work from there, but I don't actually think you'd lose (or gain) much by starting out with either standard AP1 or UK AP1 specs. None of the recommendations are so radical as to cause major problems. The goal should be to get the car's handling tuned to your driving style and driving conditions, and if the UK specs are doing that for you, then you should probably stick with them.