Hello everyone, need a little help and input here. I just recently purchased a 2008 Highlander Base AWD. The only thing wrong with it was that it needed a wheel alignment. Well, when I brought it in to get aligned at Firestone, I was told it need a Camber kit on the front tires.
1. Has anyone experienced this, as I have never had a car that needed anything to do
with the Camber.....any input is welcome!
2. I see many kits online.....how easy/hard would it be to install myself?
3. If this is a DIY job, can anyone give me instructions, maybe even with pictures?
How far out is your camber? We have our highlander aligned every 5k miles and never had any issues being anywhere near out of spec. Is something bent? I would be hesitant to install a camber kit as it seems like it will just cover up a larger issue.
If you do go that route, I have experience with them on other vehicles due to suspension changes (lowering or lift kits) and they are generally pretty easy to install. Many are simply an eccentric bolt that take 5 minutes to install. Some kits replace upper/lower suspension arms, others replace mounts with a sliding mechanism. Those might take a few hours to install. Based on a quick glance at the front suspension, I'm guessing its a set of bolts which should be a 30 minute job tops for anyone with a set of wrenches.
I'd press to get the actual camber measurements to see what's up. If camber is truly out of range for one or both wheels, then usually something got bent or damaged. If nothing is hurt, then no harm in using an aftermarket camber pinch bolt. DIY's sometimes just enlarge--make oblong-- the upper strut pinch bolt hole using their Dremel or drill and grinding wheel. I read the other day in a GM tech bull, exactly that recommendation to dealers for their large CUV's (Traverse, Acadia..).
Note that there is enough strut pinch bolt slop for about .5 degrees total "adjustment". Usually you look for both wheels to be within OEM spec range and for cross camber to be less than .75 degrees.
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'08 Highlander Base with goodies
'02 Highlander V6
'01 Honda Civic
'93 Camry LE V6 (departed)
I had my car aligned last service, and my rear camber (front was perfect) was WAY off, I asked my dealership about it and he said the only way to fix it was with a kit that is $$$, but he said there was nothing to worry about. I believe mine was around 1 degree (or 1.1, it was significant enough to be in the red on the print out sheet) off, but I don't have the paper-work with me from the dealership that indicates how far as they are 6 hours away from me Is this something I should be worried about or looking at to be fixed?
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2008 Black Highlander Limited FWD
Nav (with override), Rear DVD | 900+ Watt Sound System | Headlight & Fog HID Projector Retrofit | LED Interior/Puddle Lights | Rattletrap Sound Deadener | Dueler HL Alenzas 255/55R19's |Updated Modification List
How far out is your camber? We have our highlander aligned every 5k miles and never had any issues being anywhere near out of spec. Is something bent? I would be hesitant to install a camber kit as it seems like it will just cover up a larger issue.
If you do go that route, I have experience with them on other vehicles due to suspension changes (lowering or lift kits) and they are generally pretty easy to install. Many are simply an eccentric bolt that take 5 minutes to install. Some kits replace upper/lower suspension arms, others replace mounts with a sliding mechanism. Those might take a few hours to install. Based on a quick glance at the front suspension, I'm guessing its a set of bolts which should be a 30 minute job tops for anyone with a set of wrenches.
Thanks for the input everyone! I have taken it to a private tire shop and to Firestone. Both of them told me the exact same thing........the Camber is off and you need to buy a kit to fix it. Neither mentioned that anything was bent or damaged.
The Camber on the FL tire is -1.6 and on the FR tire is -1.8, and the rear tires are perfectly alligned. Both shops told me that it is not a big issue right now, but will probably need to be addressed around 40K miles from now.
Looking at the kits, it does seem to be a "bolt." I'm sure it would be well within my ability to install the bolts, just need a little guidance as I have no expierence with this. Does anyone have any instructions, pics, vids, etc that can help?
That's quite a bit of negative camber, but nothing crazy. It will wear the inside of your tires much more quickly, but other than that it has no real downsides. In fact, that will probably give you better steering response. It's a highlander though, and not a track car so you are probably right to fix it.
The instructions with the kit will tell you whether to replace the top or bottom bolt and how much to torque them to. I'd set them to roughly where they are now and then take it back to firestone and have them dial everything in.
Jamar, nominal front camber is -.63. Although you'll notice faster inner shoulder tire wear, you probably don't notice any pulling left/right or handling issues. The cross camber is only .2
Sweeney, nominal rear camber is -1.0 degrees, so are you on the money or forgot to type a "-" sign and are really two degrees off?
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'08 Highlander Base with goodies
'02 Highlander V6
'01 Honda Civic
'93 Camry LE V6 (departed)
That's quite a bit of negative camber, but nothing crazy. It will wear the inside of your tires much more quickly, but other than that it has no real downsides. In fact, that will probably give you better steering response. It's a highlander though, and not a track car so you are probably right to fix it.
The instructions with the kit will tell you whether to replace the top or bottom bolt and how much to torque them to. I'd set them to roughly where they are now and then take it back to firestone and have them dial everything in.
Thanks man, really appreciate your input. Will keep you posted on how things turn out.
Sweeney, nominal rear camber is -1.0 degrees, so are you on the money or forgot to type a "-" sign and are really two degrees off?
Your right, I didn't even notice that when I was typing. I did forget the the - sign. So the -1 (or -1.1) degrees is nominal or is it actually off as what you said above sounds like 2 different statements, or its too late at night haha.
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2008 Black Highlander Limited FWD
Nav (with override), Rear DVD | 900+ Watt Sound System | Headlight & Fog HID Projector Retrofit | LED Interior/Puddle Lights | Rattletrap Sound Deadener | Dueler HL Alenzas 255/55R19's |Updated Modification List
Jamar, nominal front camber is -.63. Although you'll notice faster inner shoulder tire wear, you probably don't notice any pulling left/right or handling issues. The cross camber is only .2
Sweeney, nominal rear camber is -1.0 degrees, so are you on the money or forgot to type a "-" sign and are really two degrees off?
You are right. I don't notice any pulling, nor can I tell any difference while driving. My only concern is that it will cause uneven wear on tires.
Ebay, Rockauto, and your local autopart stores should have or be able to order the camber bolts. Typical size for Toyota is 17mm front and 15mm bolts for rear. Verify with your local autopart store.
A good alignment tech would've loosened the strut bolts, pulled the camber out, and retightened. There is a reasonable amount of adjustment without the camber bolts. Another option would be to slightly open the struts bolt holes with a round file or dremel... The laziness and incompetence of current techs is pathetic and very common.
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Is this something I should be worried about or looking at to be fixed?
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