philipb82 said:

So if the chassis and axle are ok does that mean the axle can be adjusted to make it symmetrical?

Phil

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If the chassis and axle are ok there is no need to adjust the axle as its already symmetrical(in alignment with the chassis). The problem is the bodywork(I think)

It seems to me that the car has been involved in an accident that damaged the body work knocking it out of alignment with the chassis(and rear axle). Perhaps badly fitted replacement panels are to blame, a good mechanic/body shop should be able to tell you for sure.

Anyway earlier i did a check with my text check and there is no record of a total loss claim by insurers. Does that rule out an accident or not?

Phil

This is the side where the poor respray job has been done on the rear passenger door and part of the quarter panel.



If its a badly fitted panel would it need replacing so the gap is the same between arch and tyre at each side?

I took this pic well before i had the axle bushes replaced.

Just to add: looking at the pic and the car itself on the drive, is the rear wheel not in line with the front?

Phil

The other side, do you think the 2 wheels are in line here?

Can't tell from those photo's. A good body shop will be able to tell straight away if its been in an accident, best you take it to them and get it checked, not all accidents are reported to insurers ..

Shadeyman said:

Can't tell from those photo's. A good body shop will be able to tell straight away if its been in an accident, best you take it to them and get it checked, not all accidents are reported to insurers ..

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I'll get it checked it out, thanks for your help

Phil

I've had it checked out by my local bodyshop who i've used before, they are good and honest. The bloke had a good look round at the rear wings, opened the boot and inspected that and the passenger door. He also had a look at the A pillars in the boot area, all fine. All panels are original and there is no evidence of accident damage. Good news then He asked if the wheels scrub which they don't and it drives fine then not to worry about it

Phil

Can i just slide the axle nearer to the drivers side to level it out a bit better?

Phil

philipb82 said:

Can i just slide the axle nearer to the drivers side to level it out a bit better?

Phil

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See post #9 above.

Shadeyman said:

Sorry, I thought you meant closer vertically, not horizontally along the axle.



I've replaced lots of Stilo rear axle bushes and the axle never goes back in "exactly" the same place.

There's quite a lot of play in the axle before the bolts are tightened, I'd guess as much as 10mm side to side, 20mm in total. When bolting the axle back onto the car the axle must be pushed up flat against the chassis. While in this position the axle can be moved side to side. Lowering the axle a little helps to center it before tightening up the bolts. If the axle wasn't lowered before the bolts were tightened its possible for it to be slightly off center.

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Ah yeah, nice one

Phil

I've never really measured this but to be honest unless it's pulling me off the road I couldn't care less if it is 5 mm off.

I say it's alright. Enjoy your fine Stilo. Very nice color. Can't see respray differences in the picture.

vladof said:

I've never really measured this but to be honest unless it's pulling me off the road I couldn't care less if it is 5 mm off.

I say it's alright. Enjoy your fine Stilo. Very nice color. Can't see respray differences in the picture.

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Thanks for your nice comments I do love my Stilo, enough to get a new engine

Phil

Sorry for bringing this back up again but its bugging me. I've been looking into it on the internet and I've found a few posts on other car forums with a similar issue. The wheel offset has been mentioned and that got me thinking. Could my 2 rear wheels have a different offset?

I want to try and avoid the expense of a 4 wheel alignment, especially if they don't notice anything or nothing is wrong with the axle. I just want it looking a bit more symmetrical.

I actually remember changing one of my rear wheels with the SPARE wheel because it was leaking air. Could the spare wheel be a different offset?

Thanks

Phil

The wheels are stamped with the offset so you can easily check.

I've checked the offset and both wheels are the same, 43.


I popped down to a local MOT place and showed them this. They put it on the ramps and checked bushes, springs, axle etc and all seems fine. When the car was on their ramps it did look symmetrical to be honest. The bloke showed me one of the treads in the tyre and it lined up with the bottom corner of the bumper on both sides. Theres no visible accident damage underneath, the body panels are original so that's that now I'll leave it.


However my drive isn't level, so I am wondering if the passenger side is sitting higher thus closing the gap between tyre and arch. If the drivers side is lower its showing more space.....


Anyway I'll move onto the next job!!!


Phil

Yeah i know i said i'm going to leave this one now and i will after this question Can having a new wishbone replaced only on one side cause this or 2 wishbones of different makes?

Phil

Wishbones are only on the front of the car and wouldn't have any effect on position of the rear wheels.
.

I've had a 4 wheel laser alignment done and all 4 wheels are perfectly in line with each other.

However the toe settings for the 2 front tyres were toe out i think by 4mm, the bloke said it should be a max of 1mm.

They even clamped the steering wheel in a centre position before they did it.

I'm glad i got it done and i feel better now knowing everything is fine.

Phil