On April 12th, 2008 I went to Street Performance to have the Pro-Kits installed by Jimmy. At the time there was also another mechanic there (forgot his name) helping Jimmy out at the shop.
I went into their little office and paid for the installation, Jimmy was already helping out another customer. I asked the mechanic if I needed to do an alignment or if I should get a camber kit installed. He told me "You don't have to get an alignment or camber links installed, with the Pro-Kits the drop isn't low enough that you need them done".
At this time I wasn't sure what to think, hearing all the members and their experience with camber wear, so I asked him again but I also told him that a couple members have had some horror stories on the 3. He told me "Don't worry, I drive a 3 too and you don't need them. You can get an alignment and install the camber links but they won't do anything, your car is fine without it. Plus I didn't touch anything regarding your alignment during the installation so it should be fine." He seemed so sure it wasn't needed that I just accepted it, thanked him and left. What else was I supposed to do right, question him some more? They seemed pretty busy too.
Now its been about 1.5 weeks since the installation and I know that our cars come stock with a bit of camber but it seems the tread on the tires are only being used on the most inner side of the tire.
Is this normal? I would like to take a picture to fully illustrate what I am describing but the camera is elsewhere at the moment, I will try to post pics tomorrow.
I would like to save as much money as I can but would also like to keep the car in good condition. I'm just worried that I "skimp" on the alignment and camber kits and later on down the road, I screw up my tires. I drive A LOT and I know that this can be bad if I don't ensure everything is proper. BUT I also don't want to spend $80 (alignment) + $200 (camber kit) + $$?? to install them if they're not necessary.
There is a winding road with tight turns that leads to my street and near there is a Canadian Tire that is being developed. I always like to drive down that road because its fun to drive, plus with the springs it feels even more exhilarating (sp?). But today as I was going down that road I felt the car slip or skid? It wasn't like I was out of control but it was like the g-force made it skid or hop as I was turning. Nothing crazy, I thought it was maybe a bit of sand or dust from all the construction. I got home and took a look at the tires and the inner tread of the rear tires seemed to have been scraped off by the pavement. Its not horrible but I ran my finger on it and its rough like it has been scraping the pavement, which is what made me try to figure out what I should do about the camber before it gets worse (unless this is normal).
Is there another method of finding out whether or not I need camber links to save my tires later on down the road? Or is an alignment the only way to do this?
Should I just get the alignment anyway because it will be able to tell me for sure?
If the alignment tells me that I need camber links installed, after the installation do I need to get an alignment again?
Thanks for reading, I know its a long read, just wanted everyone to know the factors in my head.