Geometry

S

steveo35

New member
Noob question time
Would it make any difference to the outcome if when having the geometry checked/adjusted if the car was in dynamic mode ir normal mode?

Just had my geometry done and everything on the print out is now in the green (three wheels were in the red previous) However the steering is now very sensitive i.e I hardly have to touch the wheel and its steering the car to the point ive got to be bery carefull. Also when going round even a slight bend at speed there is a lot of resitance in the steering (i e the steering feels very heavy) Driven quite a few Ftypes and none of them have felt quite like mine does at the moment. Suspension now feels really solid also and the wheel when its straight is engaging the steering (when stright the car ends up on the other side of the road)

The car was in dynamic mode when they did the alterations. Would this make any difference?

Does it just sound like they have not adjusted it correct.

They seem insistant its correct as the print out shows everything in the green

Many thanks
Steve :?:
 
I think the adaptive dynamics just makes changes to damper rates and no difference to steering geometry. Steering weight is artificially stiffened also. So it shouldn’t matter which mode it was in and it definitely sounds like something is not correct, certainly castoring seems much stronger in your post.

If they say everything is ok I would get it checked somewhere else and then claim the costs back when it’s properly set up!
 
@steveo35.
I think it depends on wich model you have. Some cars have adabtable dynamic settings from the dashboard. So I think that in those models they do not change any settings at all, other then revs at which to change gear and throttle response. Nothing changes there with stering and dampers, I assume [ not sure] .

See youtube tutorial :

https://youtu.be/omBODFNEj_Y
Click to expand...
 
Hi yes i have the full config dynamic systen and i normall have everything set to dynamic mode. I was just curious if it made a difference when they check the geomety if these setting are enabled or dissabled.
 
@steveo35.
Yes, I think so ! You can check if you start the car again. So put it in dynamic mode and adjust settings of whatever. Then switch the engine off and double lock with remote. Let it go to 'sleep mode' [ ca. 30 min ], then go back to the car, don't start it, but go into the dynamic settings and verify if it went back to standard settings, or stayed in the dynamic mode. If its still in dynamic, check if the adaptation you made is still there, or if it returned to factory settings.

I think, for basic alignment, the 'dynamic' must be OFF when they check and align..
 
steveo35 said:
Hi yes i have the full config dynamic systen and i normall have everything set to dynamic mode. I was just curious if it made a difference when they check the geomety if these setting are enabled or dissabled.
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As was previously posted, the dynamic mode has no effect on the actual suspension geometry.
It merely stiffens the shocks.
There have been several instances over on the XE forums of people having the geometry done at different places from dealers to independents and there appear to be a few different settings depending who you talk to.

It sounds like yours isn't right as it shouldn't be behaving as you describe.
 
Dan_Veluwe said:
Let it go to 'sleep mode' [ ca. 30 min ], then go back to the car, don't start it, but go into the dynamic settings and verify if it went back to standard settings, or stayed in the dynamic mode. If its still in dynamic, check if the adaptation you made is still there, or if it returned to factory settings.
Click to expand...

According to my manual, dynamic mode stays set for up to 6 hours when the car is shutdown.
 
I had my alignment done on a Hunter 4 wheel at a local bodyshop, when replacing the tyres with new Michelins. Mainly because the inside edge of the front Pirelli's had worn excessively. My car had a couple of degrees of front toe out, which might have contributed to the uneven wear. Now with slight toe in, the steering is now a bit less sensitive on bumpy roads, but that might be the Michelin's, as 'the man' reckoned the adjustments were so slight I'd probably not notice anything.

Alignment settings from another website

Alignment Settings.jpg
 
Attached is the before and after on mine if anyone can make any sense of it?? It is a hunter machine they have which is why i chose them.
 

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@steveo35.
Is your car an AWD ? Then it makes sense : when tracting they pull forward and toe-out turns to toe-in what you like to have up
front for directional stability. How much this should be, I don't know. Front is more less toe-out by one degree, seems logical to me.

But this is just the impression I get : I'm not a pro in these set-ups !
 
Hi no its a RWD. Not sure what difference that makes. It says on the sheet the setting were for thr 2013-2015 ftype which is RWD so im assuming they are using the corrects settings.
 
Looks like some bed time reading. I really need to gen up on this so I can underatand what they are on about and also when its not correct I have more of a chance to explain whats wrong. It dosnt look like they have altered much but its made a bit difference. Some ways it feels better and other ways it just feela very odd
 
I dug out the Hunter report for mine. The settings are very similar to your page, with the only exception being that my cambers are set more evenly at -0.51 and -0.54 for the front and -1.41 and -1.36 at the rear. I went from negative front toe (Total -0.09) to positive toe (+0.17) which has made the steering a bit less twitchy and hopefully cured the uneven tyre wear.
 
I’ve had Hunter done on many cars and the key is to have the car correctly weighted and fuelled.

I cannot recall the requirement for the FType, but my Z4 for instance required a full tank of fuel, 50kg in each seat and some more in the boot.

Without weight the readings are correct, but settings are way off for real conditions

I’d do 3 things:
Book in and ask if they can check the settings which they will do for free, ask if your model needed any fuel/load requirements and tell them your concerns which they can dial out
 
Hi. Thanks for the input. Its back tommorow for a check so I will put full tank fuel in the car 1st. Also im having all the Pirelli tyres replaces with mich ps4s so it needs to be correct as I dont want them to be shot after a few miles.

My main concern is the wheel not being striaght which is just wierd. Holding the wheel of centre when going stright is not something im used to. Also when cornering it just feels too sensitive.
 
steveo35 said:
My main concern is the wheel not being striaght which is just wierd. Holding the wheel of centre when going stright is not something im used to.
Click to expand...

If you read the setting. the car should go straight with the wheel centered. It may well be your thread is worn unevenly, resulting the car to pull to one side. Also a bulged road [ centre line higher level then sides] gives this effect. Try to find a perfectly flat parking space or something and go there after hours. Drive straight at 30mph on a perfectly flat serface. The car should go straight if the steering wheel is centered. Remember if you have to steer to left or right to correct. Then do the same [ preferably same stretch ] and when you correct to go strait, hold the wheel with one hand between thumb and middle finger , feel if it judders. If it does, its the tire thats shot.

If this all gives no result, ask them to check for excessive play in balljoints or steering joints . If you hit a curb, a steering element could be twisted pulling the car to one side even if everything is set straight and there is no free play anywhere ! This is very difficult to source...
straigft.jpg
 
steveo35 said:
My main concern is the wheel not being straight which is just weird. Holding the wheel off centre when going straight is not something I'm used to.
Click to expand...

On my previous 2010 XKR it developed a wiring fault that required the back axle to be dropped for the necessary access. I managed to persuade them to do it under warranty! However, when I got the car back I too had the (very) off-centre steering wheel when going straight. I took it to a local man who found the back was way out of adjustment which made the car "crab". Once fixed everything was fine, but I do worry about main dealers. The guy who drove it back to me must have noticed it was wrong, but said nothing. Hopeless.

Hope you get yours sorted out!
 
steveo35 said:
Hi. Thanks for the input. Its back tommorow for a check so I will put full tank fuel in the car 1st. Also im having all the Pirelli tyres replaces with mich ps4s so it needs to be correct as I dont want them to be shot after a few miles.

My main concern is the wheel not being striaght which is just wierd. Holding the wheel of centre when going stright is not something im used to. Also when cornering it just feels too sensitive.
Click to expand...

Clearly something is wrong. The good news is generally the Hunter guys are really great. My buddy owns one and does all my cars and they know their job.
Just explain the concerns, keep the old tyres on as they prefer to see the wear and see what they come up with
 
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