EL_PIC

A week ago I hit a rock in Taos NM while mountain driving.
Thought it was a snow clog that falls from other cars for the 2 seconds I saw it.
But no it was a real just rock that apparently just fell and car in front missed.

It went right thru the rim and had to order both OEM tire and rim.
I had them do an alignment also .. thinking for sure it was messed up.
But SURPRISE .. the front passenger tire where I busted over the rock had great alignment and left rear which never hit anything from when I took delivery with 7 miles was slightly out of spec.

What kind of numbers have you seen on your alignments ??
I am thinking that my left rear was out of spec from the factory.

FWIW - Taos Tire Factory said a $119 plate would be required to align rear .. but it was so slightly out of spec that really it was not required.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

wow, impressive damage!


glad your alignment specs werent too far out of spec, if at all!

mrgold35

Too bad you didn't say anything while in NM, I have 3 OEM adv rims sitting in my garage collecting dust in Albuquerque. I used one for a full size spare when I upgrade my rims to aftermarket. I was just in Austin last July and ate at Noble Sandwich and and Round Rock BBQ and they were some good eats!

This was the from the last Alignment I had done at Firestone. I keep forgetting to ask them if the specs are different with the Advance model compared to the base/tech MDXs (ADS, larger RSB, extra vehicle weight). I talked to my Acura service manager and he said not much you can do other than rotate your tires because of the rear alignment issues. I haven't notice any unusually wear on my tires and I just cross-rotated a few weeks ago. I've found some rear camber kits online; but, they only seem to be for the base/tech models only.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

so, the most important thing on these alignments is to get Toe to zero or as close to it.

as you can see in mr.golds before and after measurements, they zereod out toe.

EL_PIC

Note the front right is what hit the rock .. not so screwed .. considering ..

mrgold35

Your specs look a touch better than mine. I had the alignment done over the summer at firestone; but, I had to take my car in twice to Acura after that for front endlink replacement and replacement of front ADS struts. I didn't get a spec sheet on the alignment since it was all warranty work. The MDX drove/felt the same before/after the ADS work (I guess everything was still in specs). The next time I'm in for a service at Acura, I will ask them if the alignment specs are different for a base/tech MDX compared to an Advance model. I don't want Firestone using the wrong specs, if they are different, with my lifetime alignment warranty.

EL_PIC

I think you will get differ numbers at differ shops.
Don't really think there is a true accuracy standard that everyone uses.
Perhaps the best method is tire wear.
Did you even try to get full size 19 inch in your under side wheel well ?
I really dont like those space savers.
Noble Pig ..

mrgold35

I have the OEM trailer hitch and the rim/tire fit perfectly under the X. The hitch helps hid the tire a little. The only issue is I have to keep 2 different types of lug nuts because of my aftermarket rims. I also purchased a torque wrench to do the 94lb-ft per lug. I figured if I get a flat, it will be +300 miles out of town. It took about week to get my 20" Conti DWS tires in and I figured I don't want to be on a space saver that long or that far out of town.

Noble Pig Sandwich... The pizza and beer joint next to Noble Pig was really good also.

WanaBeFaster

All of the MDX submodels have the same specs.


How many miles on this car? a weak rear strut is usually the cause for the camber being slightly out.

CivEX

SPC 09+ Honda Pilot 07+ Acura MDX Rear Camber Arm Kit - Import Auto Performance

They verified with SPC that it also worked for the advanced model with ADS. Said it had an extra part. Not sure what the part is though. I may get it and put on in the summer but not right now since it too cold out here.

mrgold35

I saw this several months ago and they must have updated the link because it was only for the base/tech MDX models before. It is nice to know it can work for the Adv models also. I've put about +18,000 miles on my Conti DWS tires and done 2 rotations since install (one being a cross rotation). I haven't notice any extra wear with the rear camber being out a little. Maybe a plus with the negative camber in the rear is it might help with handling a little with the big girl compared to being zero'd out?

I have the same issue with my RDX (Eibach springs) and TSX (A-spec suspension) with negative camber in the rear. I've noticed I get a touch more tire wear on the outer edge on the front driver compared to the rear driver tire. I know the extra weight and physic is causing more wear on the front/driver tire; but, I think the negative camber might be helping with less wear on the rear outer edge a little bit.

EL_PIC

Only 27000 at time of the rock