I had Eibach springs installed several months ago, and yesterday, I had Stillen adjustable (A-/camber/toe) arms and Koni [gold] shocks installed to complete the project. My mechanic, who has done work for me many times before, took his time and was very thorough. He checked his work at every stage to ensure proper fitment. The installation, which I observed from start to finish, seemed straightforward/uneventful, until we set the car down.

As the tires came into contact with the shop floor, the suspension was, of course, compressed. As the car settled, the suspension reaching its normal/at rest compression, we found a problem up front: The tops of both the front A-arms were making contact with the top of the fender liner inside the front wheel wells. I'm not describing a condition of tight clearance. I'm saying the tops of the A-arms make contact with the wheel wells, or inner fender liners. The car is undriveable, and yet, the ride-height seems normal. The relationship between the tops of the tires and the fender opening seems unchanged, compared to before this installation was begun. It's a puzzler...

Both the folks at the shop and I were aghast. We could not figure out why we have a problem. The A-arms are clearly marked "R" and "L", and they were installed as indicated. I don't think you can install them on the wrong side, even if you try... or can you? I don't think you can install them upside-down... or can you? Is it possible they were marked incorrectly? I'm starting to think the problem lies elsewhere, perhaps with the Konis. I just don't know.

I'm going to call Stillen tomorrow. I hope they can shed some light. I hope it's something stupid we can correct easily on this end. Anyone have any ideas what we could have done wrong? Please advise. Thanks as always.

 

you don't really need the front A-Arms, so why not just take it out.
The stillens can only do so little to correct the negative camber anyway from
what ive read. like it can only go +.25 or somthing? you're probably at
-2 with your eibachs so best you're gonna get is about -1.75 which is about
where all the S-tech guys are at.

 

That certainly is an option I will consider. If there is not an easy fix, I'll put the old ones back in anyway. I'll wait to hear from Stillen on Monday...

Thanks.

 

yea i would like to know the answer to those questions as well. I am about to purchase the stillens myself

 

is there such thing as a wide-body kit on those A-Arms?

I looked at my factory a-arms vs fender liner and it is a pretty tight fit.

 

Good news! I called Stillen today, and Kenny and Marshall were very helpful. They actually put a car up on a lift to help diagnose our glitch. I passed all the information to my mechanic, who was able to make a minor adjustment, and... no more problem. I have clearance now. It's tight, but I have clearance. I drove about 60 miles this evening, and there are no issues with the A-arms hitting the fender liner. Now, all I have to do is dial-in those Konis!
I'm happy now...

 

So wat was this "minor adjustment" ?

let us know what camber measurement you have on the front
(eibach + stillen a-arms) after your alignment.

 

From what my mechanic told me, the A-arm has a ball and socket connection with the adjacent suspension piece. Sorry, but I don't know the name of the adjacent piece. Apparently the ball of each A-arm was not fully seated in its socket. The mechanic put the car back on the lift, loosened the bolt that holds these mating surfaces together, re-seated the ball into the socket, re-tightened the bolt to spec, and that was it. No more clearance problem. It's a tight clearance, but the A-arm no longer makes contact with the fender liner.

The front camber measurement is about -0.50 of a degree.
The rear camber measurement is about -1.50 degrees.