Tutorial: Setting Camber/Caster on Xmods

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this is comprehensive for both gen 1 and evo, and i have diagrams for both. however, it is more than likely a one-time mod, meaning the settings are permanent. before and after pictures will be added soon.

tools/materials required:

exacto knife
superglue
toothpick


for evo:

the front and rear rely on the same suspension concept, so the following instructions work for both ends of the car.

1. here's the top view of our evo around the front left knuckle area.



2. to increase negative camber, we move the hole some distance towards the centerline of the car. to increase caster, move the hole back. each 0.25mm corresponds almost exactly to 1 degree of negative camber or caster (depending on which direction you move the hole). this diagram, and the following depict a camber change only.



3. take an exacto knife, and scrape away at the inside edge of the hole until you reach 0.25 or 0.5mm or however much you want the knuckle to move in (remember, 0.25mm = -1 degree camber/caster). now the hole should be elongated into an oval.



4. the red circle denotes our final hole; to achieve it, we have to fill in part of the original hole with superglue. the space between the black semicircle and the red circle is where the superglue should be applied. use a toothpick and small dabs, allowing the surface tension of the superglue to do its work.



5. when the superglue dries, it should leave a circular opening that is some distance offset from where our original hole was. the superglue should not need sanding in most cases, as most formulas dry smooth. if you applied too much, a strip of sandpaper looped through the hole can help you sand away the excess. sand until your knuckle fits snugly (but easily) through. the red hole is the final result of our modding.



as stated before, the process is identical for the rear, except that the rear suspension can only take increased camber (caster, or anti-squat, in the rear will bind up the suspension).



for gen 1:

for the front, the process is the same, except that the hole should be moved outwards and forwards to increase camber and caster respectively. thus:



note that offsetting the hole more than 0.5mm (~2 degrees) will weaken the chassis.

when finished, the final hole is offset outwards instead of inwards.



for the rear, the suspension arms should be shimmed so that the suspension arm sits at the correct angle when the car is at rest. arrow points to the required shim. when making this shim you should start off thick, glue it to the chassis, and sand off until you reach the desired amount of camber. note that this will affect your ride height slightly depending on how much negative camber you end up with.






pictures:

note the slight positive camber in the evo (highly undesirable; i believe it's the wheel's fault) vs. the negative camber in the gen 1:



the gen 1 rear camber fix; the shim is very thin, on the order of 0.25-0.5mm: