What's with tires angled out at the botton

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I have seen several (sporty) cars in my area lately that looks like they're sitting on broken axles. the tires are on an angle and further out at the bottom than the top. Is there a reason for this other than someone thinking it looks cool? It seems to me that it would just wear out some expensive tires sooner.
 
"because race car". Nothing good comes of it. Drivers with zero lateral G instrumentation will swear it's better, or give vague "more responsive" answers.
 
That's right.
The kids that destroy their cars to angle the wheels at 45 degrees camber; that's what they call "stance".
OTOH some factory cars come with subtle degrees of negative camber, that's legitimately for improved handling.
 
Is this just now starting out in the mid-west? Seems like it's every other car here for 8-10 years.
 
I had to get 2 alignments to minimize the factory -2deg in rear down to -1.65 deg. on my Mazda RX8

These cars at least won't spin out very easy which is reason for rear neg camber from factory.

Those cocked 45 degs might actually spin easy since only a little inside tread is on road.

I never do style, only function when I tune suspension.

On my BMW X1 s28i I had a horrendous sway at over 100 mph found while on German hwy.

Instead of the conventional wisdom to put spacers on both wheels to be flush with body, I put only on front and got rid of the sway.
 
Theoretically, negative camber provides more cornering stability, but that's really only applicable on the track. Having that on a street car will cause premature wear.
 
I think it's hella stupid. But anyway, I wonder how many miles they get out of the tire that way before the belt shows up.
 
Stance Nation my friend.


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Sometimes it's imitation (or real use) for drifting.

Other times it is imitation of the VIP scene in Japan:

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I passed 3 of 'em today here in PA all doing 50 mph on the interstate in a mini-parade: a roughly '96 Accord wagon, an S2000, and a little Civic hatchy.

The wagon just had seriously offset wheels, only about 2" of tire was in the fender. The rest was sticking out, but the entire tread contact patch was on the road.

The other two were at 45 degree angles, not sure how this is benificial to handling, tire life, safety, etc etc.

Another thing I've seen is wide rims with not wide enough tires, the sidewalls spread out in an attempt to make contact with the rim.

I guess every generation has their "thing". Twenty years ago when I was in my 20's I had neon lights all underneath my car...
 
My 300ZX has a slight negative camber straight from the factory. These cars eat front tires like crazy. Alot of Z owners buy a kit that gets rid of the negative camber.
 
If its just the tyres then they're coming off. If its the wheels then its a lifestyle statement, and if you have to ask you aren't "cool"
 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
Is this just now starting out in the mid-west? Seems like it's every other car here for 8-10 years.
No it's been around for a while
 
A timely topic for me. Too much negative camber on the rear wheels is an issue from factory with the older Mazda 3/Mazda 5 rear suspension. The factory spec is, I believe -1.2 degrees +/- 1 degree. That means that up to 2.2 degrees of negative camber is acceptable.

I've just changed the rear trailing arm bushing on the driver's side, and (per my driveway measurements) the camber is now at -1.1 degree. The passenger side, which I'm working on now, was at -2.2 degrees.

It appears to me that as the bushings get sloppy, the negative camber increases. I believe the factory tolerance is excessive.

There are aftermarket camber-adjustment arms (SPC) available, and I may install them and dial in about -0.5 degrees. A bit of negative camber makes for good handling; too much eats tires. This might help the bushing life as well.

It's funny how once you encounter a problem on your own car, you notice it on others. I saw an older ('06 or '07) Mazda 5 the other evening all hunkered down in the rear - it looked like it had at least 3 degrees of negative camber on each side.

The same SPC camber-correction arm is used on various Fords & Volvos that share the same or similar rear suspension.
 
OP says sports cars with a factory negative camber setup not cars that belong in the junkyard.

Or rear solid axle flex. RIP 90 4runner
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