Adjusting Toe-in

Issues with shocks/springs, tires, steering box, stopping, etc.
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Bruce Berger
Posts: 135
Joined: Wed Jan 24, 2007 9:39 pm
Location: Tehachapi, CA

Adjusting Toe-in

Post by Bruce Berger »

I just replaced both tie rods on my 710 so now it's due for a wheel alignment. Does anyone have any tips or tricks beyond what's in the manual for adjusting the toe-in?
Bruce Berger
'72 Pinzgauer 710M 2.6i
mit Beck-LaGuardia Elektronischer Einspritzung
Jim LaGuardia
United States of America
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Joined: Wed Apr 14, 2004 3:42 pm
Location: San Bernardino Ca
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Post by Jim LaGuardia »

find center, lock pitman arm, set toe in at 1/8" to 3/16", If you want to stop by, I have a lock tool here that works well.
Of note, all adjustments are made with suspension loaded(not off the ground). follow instructions in manual.
Cheers, Jim LaGuardia
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"Arch Magus of Machines."
pinzinator
Posts: 917
Joined: Thu Jul 29, 2004 3:12 pm
Location: Indio, California

Post by pinzinator »

Chain stores like Sears, Goodyear, Firestone, etc, will not do an alignment on a Pinzgauer since the vehicle does not show up in their computers, the lawyers said NO. An independent shop may be able to do the toe-in for you.
I did mine myself using a piece of 1/2" PVC and a 1/2" dowel rod. The rod slips inside the PVC and is used to measure the difference between the front of the wheel and the rear of the wheel at the 3 and 9 o'clock positions. The spec is 2-4MM toe-in. Make sure the steering wheel is in the center position before making any measurements.
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Mark F and R 180 degrees apart on the PVC so you can keep track of the measurements (front and rear). The rear should be 2-4MM more than the front. Remember, you only measure the difference!
Mark the dowel rod when fully extended at the front and rear positions, and measure the difference. My Pinzgauer had 9MM of toe-in, for example, which was the distance between the marks.
Make a drawing of what you have before starting, include all measurements so it isn't too confusing.
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Measure the length of the control rods, you will want to adjust only the one the brings the measurements as equal as possible. Example- the right control arm is 4MM longer than the left. By shortening the right arm you will lessen the toe-in setting. My Pinzgauer was like this, so I shortened the right rod 4MM, which made it the same length as the left, and the resulting toe-in was 3MM. You shorten the rod 1/2 of the total distance when you need to bring the toe-in correctly. Measure often!
The jam nuts on the control rods are left and right hand thread, look at the thread to determine which way to turn. Rotating the rod changes the length, take your time and measure often. Make a drawing first, or I guarantee you will make mistakes, as adjusting toe-in can be confusing. Make sure you have the locking tabs bent over correctly, but don't do this until you measure one last time!
undysworld
Norway
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Joined: Fri Apr 16, 2004 8:08 am
Location: Blue Mounds, WI

Post by undysworld »

I had to adjust mine this past summer, so I'll toss in what I know.

As mentioned, the truck must sit on it's tires, not be off the ground, to make the adjustments.

You want to lock the central pivot in a centered position. The manual shows this, and there's a special tool for it. I made one using plywood and a couple Jorgenson clamps. I had trouble eliminating a pull to one side, until I centered this. Then, in addition to setting the toe-in, I adjusted both sides until the front tracked straight. I used a long straight edge laid against the front wheel, and "aimed" it straight back along the truck.

Roll it forward, so the truck is as "neutral" as possible. (A toe-in or toe-out condition seemed to load the springs strangely, if you backup.)

The idea is to measure the distance between the inner edges of the front rims, halfway up the rims (essentially at the 3:00 and 9:00 positions on the rims).

Toe-in means that the front of the tires are closer together than the rear of the tires (when measured from side to side). You're trying to adjust it to 2-4mm closer together at the fronts. (BTW, I recently read that Dennis adjusts them closer to parallel. ??)

Whether you use the PVC part as Pinzinator suggested, or a wooden measuring device as I did, you want to measure at the front of the rim and at the rear of the rim, and compare the difference.

Take your measurements, and then roll the truck forward enough so the tire turns 180 degrees and repeat the measurements. If they are the same, OK. If they vary, you may have bent rims. (this is discussed in the manual too)

Adjust the tie rods until you get the proper toe-in, then recheck. I did a lot of rechecking before I got it right.

One last item, I found it was impossible to get a straight measurement between the rims at the 3- & 9 oclock positions without running into interference with the center of the chassis. My wooden measuring device has a dip that allows for this clearance. I also attached two legs to it, so that finding the "halfway height" on the rim was as simple as resting the device on the ground.

I'm no good at putting up pics, sorry, I'm an old fart. But if you want a crude drawing of my device, pm me and I'll send it along...

Paul
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