Tires and Alignment

[SockGuy]

I assume you mean caster not camber. You want some camber for turn in unless you want a very benign handling car

yes, I realize the need for camber, just hoping to reduce the amount like others who face the same problem have done to prolong tire life. 26,000 km is not enough in my opinion.

 

[Vern1]

Did he give you the readout of your existing alignment? He should have been able to at least give you this

Without this you are just guessing it is camber causing the excessive wear but could be toe or caster or all 3

I drove the piss out of my tires for 40k km till front inside were corded and I had a far from ideal alignment

 

[DAL]

Michelin Pilot AS4’s installed and I would say on my 100km drive home, they were definitely quieter and I would say smoother. Unfortunately, dealer was not able to perform the alignment I was hoping for, and he thought he could do he had new equipment but not the extra attachments required to set up a camber closer to zero. Interesting to mention that the alignment on the original tires was within GM spec when it was on the alignment rack, but tire wear was severe on all four tires on the inside edge at 26,000 kms. I am not an aggressive driver, never on a track…Be Aware!
I will leave the alignment until spring as car goes to storage this week. If anyone knows of an alignment shop in south western Ontario, that has the proper equipment to do this, I would appreciate if you could let me know.

All new tires will sound quieter and smoother than old worn tires they replace…until they wear.

 

[SockGuy]

Did he give you the readout of your existing alignment? He should have been able to at least give you this

Without this you are just guessing it is camber causing the excessive wear but could be toe or caster or all 3

I drove the piss out of my tires for 40k km till front inside were corded and I had a far from ideal alignment

Did he give you the readout of your existing alignment? He should have been able to at least give you this

Without this you are just guessing it is camber causing the excessive wear but could be toe or caster or all 3

I drove the piss out of my tires for 40k km till front inside were corded and I had a far from ideal alignment

Yes he did, this is a reputable shop.

 

[Rruuff Day]

I assume you mean caster not camber. You want some camber for turn in unless you want a very benign handling car

Depending on who you are referring to, most of the above are correct with the front camber near 0 and the rear near -1.2. I'm driving my second Vette with cambers near this and there's nothing benign in the way my Vettes have handled.

 

[Keith Tedford]

yes, I realize the need for camber, just hoping to reduce the amount like others who face the same problem have done to prolong tire life. 26,000 km is not enough in my opinion.

Our 2005 was wearing both front tires on the inside edge. The local alignment shop simply zeroed the camber on both front wheels. Lots of miles on these tires and wear seems to be even now.

 

[Jamie]

C7 - Z51 AS4ZP Stickers
Yes … these exist

View attachment 102075

View attachment 102076

Where did you find those? And how much?

 

[YFCvii]

Where did you find those? And how much?

1010tire opened a store in YYC.
Was fortunate they had them in their inventory.
Also fortunate $1855 all in
with tax and a Michelin rebate.
Costco had better net pricing
with a $130 costco money card but
they could not source the tires until
next Spring.

 

[Vanguard2001]

I could not source Michelin AS4s for my GS when replacements were required in May 22. Purchased a set of Continental Extreme Contact. Satisfied so far, they are certainly quieter but ride quality is about the same as the Pilot SS. Unfortunately I also had to purchase 4 new wheels as the road construction here in Ottawa took its toll.

 

[SockGuy]

Got 40k kms out of the MPSS OEM run flats (2019 Z51 7spd). It was corded on the front insides and blew the front passenger side out on a back road. Had it to the track a couple of times and drive pretty aggressively. I lowered the car all the way on the stock bolts (maybe an inch or so)

I dont care about squeezing as many kms as I can out of a set of tires. I want the car to handle well and be sharp on turn in and in the corners. Quite happy that i got 40k kms out of the set particularly after seeing the specs

I replaced the tires with the AS4 ZP's. I went with the FE6/7 alignment specs for the GS and Z as they are a little more aggressive on the camber. Heres the pre and post sheet. Camber will increase wear but its usually toe that is the killer. They used the rear caster tool and angle gauge.

Liking the AS4's so far.


View attachment 101931

was wondering if you had this work done at City Buick. I’m going only on the partial address in the top right corner. Curious because you indicate they used the rear caster tool and angle gauge, I have been looking for a dealer with the proper equipment.

 

[Vern1]

Indeed I did. Have been there a couple of times and no issues and good service each time

 

[SockGuy]

Indeed I did. Have been there a couple of times and no issues and good service each time

thanks, maybe I will give them a call to see if they can help me out . Ironically, that’s where I bought my car, but haven’t had it back for service, only because I don’t live near the city. But if they have the proper equipment, I may have to do the drive in. Thanks for your help.

 

[YFCvii]

My wait is over.
Will be officially retired in 2 days
… wait wait wait … not that “retired”

Can’t wait to get ‘em on … No more
“Spring Start” and “Early Fall” Drama.
Yay … AS4ZP’s

 

[H Rocke]

I can't comment on the AS4's as I've not used them, but I will offer some feedback regarding the alignment process. Have a look at this post.

Make sure that your servicing agent is using alignment specs for the C7 FE6/FE7 suspension options as a basis to start with. These are specific to the GS/Z06 and the GS/Z06 with the Z07 package. FE3 and FE4 specs are for the base Stingray and Stingray with Z51 option and should not be applied to wide body C7's. You'd be surprised how many dealers don't know the difference. Also, make absolutely sure that your servicing agent has the rear caster adapter and angle gauge needed for checking/setting the rear caster and that they know how to use it. This is the starting point for a proper alignment on a C7 and, unless the rear caster is set within factory spec, the rest of the alignment will be off.

The primary reason that the inside edges of all 4 tires are worn is because the factory alignment is too aggressive, typical for GS and Z06 C7's. It's usually a result of excessive negative camber and toe settings, both front and rear. Theoretically, the closer you can get to "zero", for camber and toe, the more "street friendly" your alignment will be. Although it's not possible to achieve "zero" settings on FE6/FE7 suspensions, you can get close. See the included alignment spec sheet for the settings applied to my GS which has 18,000 kl's on it with perfectly even, measured wear on all 4 tires. Also note that the rear caster spec is penned in at the bottom. That's because most, if not all, dealer/specialist alignment equipment does not measure rear caster, it must be done manually using the adaptor and angle gauge.

I can't stress enough the importance of the rear caster setting. Finding a qualified alignment specialist that has the adaptor and angle gauge is imperative to achieving a proper "street friendly" alignment, or any alignment, on a wide body C7. That, combined with the less aggressive camber and toe settings, will give you the increased tire life you're looking for. Without these things you'll probably be back in the same boat in 20-25 thousand kilometers or less.

Hope this helps.
Ross


View attachment 101890

This is very valuable data! Just had the local dealer (Wheeler Chevrolet in Yuba City, CA) misalign my C7 Grand Sport Z07 using incorrect base Stingray specs. Will be taking the car to Abel Chevrolet in Rio Vista CA to get it corrected. They know Corvettes inside and out - Wheeler just sells them and pushes them out the door. Thanks for posting this info.

 

[GGG]

I am about to change out the OEM Michelin Super Sport with Michelin Pilot AS4’s on my 2018 Grand Sport. Is anyone else running the AS4’s and if so, are you liking them?
Is there a noticeable difference in ride or noise level?
Will also be doing an alignment. Has anyone changed the GM alignment spec on their Grand Sport.
I had 26,000 on the original tires, all 4 are at their cords on the inside edge.

Hi SockGuy, I've got a 2018 GS also. I'm not a track guy, just love driving my Vette on long trips (have done 45,000 kms so far). I got fed up with the summer-only stock run-flats because they wore out quickly and got punctured with any little thing that was hard and sharp. It became a big expense to frequently replace them so I was happy to buy a set when Michelin finally came out with the all-seasons. I love having them on my Vette. The ride and handling to me are exactly the same as on the originals but they are a bit noisier. Not enough to make me regret buying them. The treads are still like brand new after almost 20,000 kms and I haven't had a flat since I bought them.
It gets cold here in Calgary so the second best thing I like about the tires is that I don't have to worry about putting my beauty away for the winter before the temperature starts hitting 5 degrees C. Now I get a couple of extra months driving into October or even November before I put it away. I have 100% confidence that they can handle a bit of snow or ice just as well as the summer-only's.
Cheers