Can't keep a wheel alignment!

[Ozstung]

Over two years after having both Eibach sway bars and Springs installed my Stinger can't keep a wheel alignment. Its been back to Kia twice where they've done the wheel alignment and then failing that done a "steering wheel reset", they recommended taking it to a suspension specialist who couldn't find any issue with the sway bars or springs but noted the alignment was way out out on the passenger back left being the toe. Front drivers side was out to. They also did an alignments*

What they've recommended is to take it back to Kia and have them look at the rear shocks and dampers, they say they,ve seen this once before in another Stinger. They recommend the wiring be looked at, they say the rear shocks are to soft and even softer in sports mode. This is what has been put on the invoice for me to show Kia. "Note rear shocks appear very soft even in sports mode possible electrical issue or communication issue".

Lets hope Kia investigate a bit more thoroughly, anyone else heard or witnessed this.? * (The alignment lasted one day before pulling to the passengers side.)

 

[General_Vodka]

seems rough. hit any big bumps or dips? as for the suspension, there is a fuse that can set the shots to full stiff. would that be a good way to test it?

 

[Ozstung]

No bumps or dips really puzzling.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Electronics. Heh!? If no error codes are thrown, techies have nothing to diagnose from. Cars today are too complex to just slap on an alignment; the electronics manipulate the hardware, and if something is haywire in the electronics then the problem is hidden.

 

[Ozstung]

Electronics. Heh!? If no error codes are thrown, techies have nothing to diagnose from. Cars today are too complex to just slap on an alignment; the electronics manipulate the hardware, and if something is haywire in the electronics then the problem is hidden.

True. Damn annoying having a constant pull to one side especially the reoccurance after a day or two after an alignment.

 

[Cmack1]

This seems to occasionally happen to me when I’m in Sport mode. The steering becomes stiffer and I feel like it’s gets caught in a groove one way or another and the car starts to pull. Usually I pop it out of comfort setting for a minute or two then pop back into sport and solves the problem

 

[RogueIV]

A bad shock wouldn't affect static alignment in the rear it'll only be apparent in motion. If the alignment specs are changing then there's got to be something loose on one of the suspension arms/linkages.

 

[Ozstung]

A bad shock wouldn't affect static alignment in the rear it'll only be apparent in motion. If the alignment specs are changing then there's got to be something loose on one of the suspension arms/linkages.

That's what i thought, as it was in a specialist shop i asked them to check this all out. I've got a feeling Kia's going to fob it off again. I wonder if its getting aligned to the orginal Kia specs or to what it is required to be in its lowered state i believe they are different?

 

[MerlintheMad]

lowered

Ah, crap, forgot about that bit. I think you're in for a bumpy ride (pun intended ).

 

[Roadpig58]

Over two years after having both Eibach sway bars and Springs installed my Stinger can't keep a wheel alignment. Its been back to Kia twice where they've done the wheel alignment and then failing that done a "steering wheel reset", they recommended taking it to a suspension specialist who couldn't find any issue with the sway bars or springs but noted the alignment was way out out on the passenger back left being the toe. Front drivers side was out to. They also did an alignments*

What they've recommended is to take it back to Kia and have them look at the rear shocks and dampers, they say they,ve seen this once before in another Stinger. They recommend the wiring be looked at, they say the rear shocks are to soft and even softer in sports mode. This is what has been put on the invoice for me to show Kia. "Note rear shocks appear very soft even in sports mode possible electrical issue or communication issue".

Lets hope Kia investigate a bit more thoroughly, anyone else heard or witnessed this.? * (The alignment lasted one day before pulling to the passengers side.)

This may be elemental but have you tried swapping the front tires side to side to see if the pull follows?

 

[RogueIV]

That's what i thought, as it was in a specialist shop i asked them to check this all out. I've got a feeling Kia's going to fob it off again. I wonder if its getting aligned to the orginal Kia specs or to what it is required to be in its lowered state i believe they are different?

They aren't really different but the range you have to work with to get it in spec gets a bit smaller when you lower the car. Toe should be able to get in spec without issue.

Factory spec is 0-0.2 degrees total toe in on the front and 0.2-0.4 degrees total toe in on the rear. Half those specs if you're measuring them individually. These are the specs that will cause your car to pull is a direction.

There also another spec an alignment rack will give you called "thrust angle". That should be 0, if it is not your car will not be driving straight.

Camber can sometimes be tough to get back to factory specs but it's also a less critical setting. It shouldn't cause any issues in how the car tracks unless it's excessively out of spec side to side. It's not adjustable in the front at all (from the factory), but shouldn't change drastically since it's just McPherson style struts with almost no camber gain in it's design. The rear has multi link suspension that has camber gain as part of it's design. The lower you have the rear the more negative camber will be there. Inversely, the higher the rear the less negative camber there will be.

Factory sepc is very broad for this and can be 0 to -1 degrees in the front and -0.7 to -1.7 degrees in the rear. Also, as an aside, If you're running a smaller wheel size or a taller sidewall on the tire you'll want a little more camber than spec'd fsm actually shows a different spec for the rear with 17or 18" wheels with -1 to -2 degrees of rear camber.

 

[AusStinger]

Have you checked the sub-frame bolts for correct torque ? Could be the sub-frame is moving around.
"If" this is the case, just install the ATQ subframe collars and it shouldn't happen again.

 

[General_Vodka]

Have you checked the sub-frame bolts for correct torque ? Could be the sub-frame is moving around.
"If" this is the case, just install the ATQ subframe collars and it shouldn't happen again.

If it is subframe then something crazy happened. Those bolts could not be loose from factory.

 

[AusStinger]

If it is subframe then something crazy happened. Those bolts could not be loose from factory.

Normally I would agree with you but after installing the ATQ Subframe Collars on my Stinger recently I was shocked by two things.

1. There is a rather large difference between the bolts O.D. and I.D. of the holes they go through and therefore could allow lateral movement over time. If lateral movement happens, the bolts can become more and more lose. I also noted that there was no thread locking compound on the bolts from the factory.

2. My car has ONLY ~6,000KM on it and although I did the installation for peace of mind, I could instantly, and still can feel the difference which means something has changed ( no it's not in my mind ) It's subtle, but it's there, and it's better.

Mass produced cars are built quite differently now than they were in the past and as such, new / different issues immerge.
Like: Since 2010 car manufacturers are being pushed to more and more to use recyclable materials in their cars, and as such, the plastics that are being used now days are far less resilient ( but much more recyclable ). Great for the planet but not so good for the longevity of your new car.

Anyway, 'if' your Stinger has a moving subframe, there is a solution. If not, it's one thing ticked off your list

 

[AusStinger]

Double post.

 

[Ozstung]

They aren't really different but the range you have to work with to get it in spec gets a bit smaller when you lower the car. Toe should be able to get in spec without issue.

Factory spec is 0-0.2 degrees total toe in on the front and 0.2-0.4 degrees total toe in on the rear. Half those specs if you're measuring them individually. These are the specs that will cause your car to pull is a direction.

There also another spec an alignment rack will give you called "thrust angle". That should be 0, if it is not your car will not be driving straight.

Camber can sometimes be tough to get back to factory specs but it's also a less critical setting. It shouldn't cause any issues in how the car tracks unless it's excessively out of spec side to side. It's not adjustable in the front at all (from the factory), but shouldn't change drastically since it's just McPherson style struts with almost no camber gain in it's design. The rear has multi link suspension that has camber gain as part of it's design. The lower you have the rear the more negative camber will be there. Inversely, the higher the rear the less negative camber there will be.

Factory sepc is very broad for this and can be 0 to -1 degrees in the front and -0.7 to -1.7 degrees in the rear. Also, as an aside, If you're running a smaller wheel size or a taller sidewall on the tire you'll want a little more camber than spec'd fsm actually shows a different spec for the rear with 17or 18" wheels with -1 to -2 degrees of rear camber.

Good info thanks muchly. Below before and after alignment,hard to believe the difference considering i had an alignment only shortly before. The rear measurement is really different.

 

[Ozstung]

Top view current, bottom view before. Had to compress the bastards so much just to fit.

 

[AusStinger]

Are you getting a reputable suspension place to do the alignment and not some chain? My father recently did an alignment on his car and I had to take it to my place to get it done properly

 

[Ozstung]

Are you getting a reputable suspension place to do the alignment and not some chain? My father recently did an alignment on his car and I had to take it to my place to get it done properly

Im going to put the heat on Kia to find something. The suspension experts did have an observation lets see what Kia have to say. This is the third alignment.

 

[RogueIV]

Good info thanks muchly. Below before and after alignment,hard to believe the difference considering i had an alignment only shortly before. The rear measurement is really different.View attachment 59795View attachment 59796

I can't even read those they're so compressed lol. There's a lot of red though.