I just bought a 2001 Jaguar XK8. The 4-wheel alignment was all in the green except for the right rear. Right rear tire showed excessive inside wear. How much shim is needed to adjust camber. Now is -1.6 and would like to adjust to -0.8 ? Jaguar OEM shims start at 3.5mm thru 7.5mm. I don't know how much I need. Ron Gerst

 

Ron,

Your post has been here a while so it looks like nobody knows the answer. I don't either, but it can be calculated from the geometry of the suspension components.

Do you have any graphics or photos showing the suspension components and where the shim would be placed?

 

Very rough it would be about 0.5mm per 0.2 degrees, so in your case about 2mm.

 

JTIS Shows a eccentric Camber adjustment on the Lower Pivot Pin. I assume that this is already set to the Max?

 

Paul that toe only if thats what jtis says its wrong(we're talking rear here) the camber shim goes between the alxe and diff axle flange, and that is not out by much and normal for most all jaguars out there.

 

True enough. If the front of the Pivot Pin (Only) has the Eccentric Washer, then the Toe would be the adjustment.

 

Thanks so much for the discussion. AVOS gave me the right answer, but OEM shims start at 3.5mm and I bought one from local Jaguar Dealer. At about 0.5mm per 0.2 degrees then that would adjust it -1.4 and change it to -0.2. That is slightly more than I wanted, but it my put me into the green. I think it would be better with it than without the adjustment.

Just to talk about rear wheel alignment. The bolt on the bottom of the wheel has a "off center" lobe that does adjust toe-in. To adjust camber Jag has shims that are placed between the upper half shaft and the rear end that moves the top of the wheel outward. I had almost new tread on the outside of the tire and cords showing on the inside. After two new tires and the 4-wheel alignment, the right rear was still off. I hope that the minimum Jag shim will put me into the green. Thanks again Ron

 

First you need to measure the shim that you have now. So if that is a 3.5mm one, you would need to get a 5.5mm one.

 

If you do this yourself, it would be the first time we could have 'documentation' on how to DIY in the garage on the forum. A pic loaded tutorial would be extremely helpful to other xk8/r owners, as we all deal with the camber in the rear issue as these car's suspension ages.

 

This is how I did it on my 2000 XK8. Both sides had low camber in the rear. I made some temporary shims out of thin aluminum, installed them until the specs were correct, removed them and measured the whole stack then bought the correct shim from the dealer. Granted you have to tie up the alignment rack but I've found it to be the fastest and most accurate way. There is nothing that says you have to use factory shims, you can easily make your own. Much cheaper!!!

 

The shims used in all of the IRS cars from the XKE in 1961 to the last XJ6's and XJS's with inboard brakes are .20" or .5mm and effect the rear camber 1/2 degree towards positive for each one added. They can be used in conjunction with the stock spacer if desired. Readily available from most of the major suppliers either used or new. The lower bolt on the rear is for Toe setting and if adjusted a lot can effect camber also. Note that the factory spec allows for a wide range of setting from toe in to toe out at the rear. I have found that getting as close to 0 degrees is best for long term tire wear without any strange driving characteristics. That said, I just changed out the rear Pirelli's with 35,000 miles on 20" wheels. On another note, the front is also adjustable for camber and castor. The camber is adjustable if you fit the excentric bolt to the lower rear arm bushing. This will allow about 1 degree of adjustment. Replacement of one or both sides might be required to get it into specs. Castor on the front is adjusted by transposing shims on the upper inner control arm shaft between the bushings. Not easily done but not easy to get out of adjustment.

 

Another tutorial tonight...great. Thanks

 

Dick, you sound like you know your suspension...I bet you could do a jag alignment in your sleep.

 

Does anyone know if it is as simple as undoing the flange on the inboard end of the halfshaft or does it involve more disassembly?

 

Dennis07,

The 4-wheel alignment on my 2001 XK8 was all in the green except for the right rear. The right rear tire showed excessive inside wear (the top of the tire was leaning too far inward and needed to be moved outward by adding shims between the half-shaft and the rear end). Jaguar OEM shims start at 3.5mm thru 7.5mm. I needed a TOTAL of 6mm of shim for the right rear. I found out the there was a factory installed 4mm shim on both sides. So, I needed to add a 2mm shim to the 4mm or get a 6mm shim. I got a 6mm shim from the Jaguar Dealer and it brought the right rear dead center of the green band on the 4 wheel alignment.

The 4 half shaft bolts that connect the half-shaft to the rear end where the shim goes are VERY hard to remove because you have to find the correct "angle" to raise the rear tire to access the bolt heads. So, I used a small jack while on the lift to raise and lower the tire so I could remove the self-locking bolts.....

Now the caster is controlled by a out of round bolt head at the very bottom of the wheel that moves the whole tire pointing inward or outward and was adjusted while viewing the 4-wheel alignment screens that causes the tire to track straight and not in or out of the driving path.

I hope that this helps. Ron

 

yes except thats a rear "toe" setting not caster, also so everyone knows most all jags are in the red even new. And for stand up"camber gain" in corners to stick the entire tread to the ground in corners and really is not an issue until the rear camber is -2degrees or more. Also youll find that when the camber does drop its from weak coil springs, and collapsed upper shock mounts, i redid my rear last yr and replaced shocks, upper mounts(the urethane and cushion) and added a 4mm packing to the top of the spring to restore ride height without buying new coil springs

 

Do you agree with the 1 mm=1 degree approximation in post #11?

Was your 4mm of packing a custom made part?

 

im talking about the plastic spacer above the coil spring in the spring cup. Jaguar reffers to this as a packing

 

Ok, thanks for clearing that up.

 

2001 vanden plau with 54K miles. Just came from dealership and had front end alignment. rear left camber still out -1.66 and right out- 1.45. Am I to understand correctly that this is normal? they want 800 to correct with new shimes. Paul