996.1 Alignment and Tire Pressures - 911 Cabriolet

I looked in the manual and couldn't find anything regarding alignment for my car, and quite frankly, this stuff is over my head when I read other posts...so that's why I'm posting here. I just had a shop procure, install, and balance tires for my 1999 996.1 Cab. I asked them to check the alignment, too, just because I don't want the tires to wear improperly and I wanted this checked. They came back and said that the rear toe was out. I didn't have this done, at $119.95, because I didn't have time, and also because I wanted to check to see what alignment specs I might want to consider based on feedback on this forum. Do I just go with 0 (zero) toe in the rear like the shop recommended? Is the 993 the same as the 996 like the shop said? Are there any other alignment setting that folks recommend for street use? I think someone mentioned that there was a way to significantly decrease rear time wear with some adjustments away from factor default. Any other recommendations for alignment settings pros and cons? The tires I went with are 18" Michelin Pilot Sport AS/3+, ultra high performance all seasons, so while I may track the car once or twice next year, this is an all-out daily driver car for me, and tire life is important. Finally, the shop did 41PSI on the front tires, which is what the truck shows, even though my manual says the fronts should be 36PSI. Rears are 44PSI for both. Which one is correct? And again, is there any pressures that you guys recommend different from default? Thanks.

Forgot to post the alignment results, attached

Very happy with 36 front 42 rear, recommended pressures. You need an alignment.

make sure the pressure is high when you align it, like 36 to 44 because that makes the tire straight on the wheel not sagging or mushy. I would align it at 40 to 44

You might be interested in these https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...s-and-use.html https://www.renntech.org/forums/topi...ignment-specs/

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Thanks for the links. The 2nd link is one I found online prior to posting here. I don't understand how the ' translates to the the � settings? The 1st link post has folks that are doing some tracking, but have also noticed increased tire wear. I know I cannot have my cake and eat it too, so perhaps the factory settings are just fine. That said, my car's steering doesn't feel that tight. Is there a good alignment shop for Porsches in Chicago that doesn't charge an arm and a leg? I'm thinking it might be best to talk to someone who does this regularly on these cars.

Are you a PCA member? You can check with your local PCA chapter to see if there are any recommendations. For a full 4 wheel alignment figure roughly 2 hours and somewhere between $2-300 from what I've heard.

You have almost no negative camber on the front, and just a tad over 1 degree in the rear. That would be a 'street' alignment--and still within specs. That left toe is out, and that will cause tire wear, but not as excessive as too much negative camber. I would just go back to the shop and have them zero out the toe in the front and rear to within Porsche specs.

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Thank you for the advice. I did go back and had the perform the alignment. They said pretty much what you said, but I had it done anyway

One thing, though, the steering on this car doesn't feel tight compared to my friend's E46 M3. We all joke that "something must be wrong with my Camry steering." At times it feels loose going over bumps at speeds of 75 mph, and even at 30mph on the street, just tugging back and forth on the wheel doesn't result in much change in direction. There's no play - it just feels like there are rubber bands in between the wheel linkage. I've read that these 996s handle like this, but I don't remember it being quite this loose on my 2000 Boxster S. All mechanics that have looked at the steering rack and suspension don't see any leaks, play, or otherwise anything else wrong with the car.

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Yeah...there's something wrong there^. The steering on my car feels as though it's connected directly to my hands on the wheel - turn the wheel the slightest amount and the car responds...

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Have to totally agree with this! This is one of the most desirable aspects of the 996 platform. The direct connect between the road, car and driver. If I move my steering wheel the response is direct and immediate. No rubber band effects at all.

Any ideas what to check for other than taking it to a dealer or mechanic? I should also mention that the power steering fluid is low, and my M3 buddy thinks that could cause it. I am having trouble figuring how that could cause it, but then again, if there anything that's not right, it should be corrected regardless. EDIT: I should also mention that it was this way before I had the tires replaced, balanced, and aligned, so I don't think it was the tires I just installed.

How many miles on the car? It's possible with A/S tires, you loose a lot of the front end 'feel'. What tires were on the car before?

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48,000 miles. The tires on the car before were 12-yr-old Pirelli P-zero summers. I couldn't believe it when I saw the date codes of '04 and '05. The car handles the same way before and after the tires, so I don't think it's the tires. The only other issue might be the tire pressure in the front. The tire shop did 41psi up there, which is not stock, and should be 36 I believe.

You should have no more than 36 psi in the front. I run about 34 front and 40 rear for a little more compliance, but that is with the M030 suspension. There should definitely not be any rubber band feeling in the steering with any 996.

Update: After driving this car for another month or so, I think the issue with the car might be suspension, or shocks, or bushings. I've never had to replace any of these items on any of my cars in the past, but the car floats over large dips and actually seems to twist - indicating that one of the shocks might be shot or responding differently than the other on the other side... Other than having someone watch the wheels from another car while driving over large bumps, and other than jumping off the car's bumper (I read that somewhere, lol) to check the shocks, are there any other tricks to determining what's wrong? Two different shops didn't see any issues

At almost 20 years old, anything rubber or plastic will begin to fail if not already...

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There should be a good shop around that has quality tools to measure the shocks, there ain't much to see on shocks, other then if they leak. I am also picky on alignment shops, I only trust one around here. The others have all the tools, but don't really know what they are doing... Knowing the quality of roads around Chicago, 50kmiles might have been enough....

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So I made an appointment at Midwest Performance Cars in Chicago. Here's what they said: "We've confirmed the floaty and almost unresponsive handling at higher/highway speeds. The tires are in good shape and a good brand (Michelin), no suspension components are faulty, have play or are in need of replacement. Our recommendation would be to upgrade the struts, shocks and springs with either Porsche sport, ROW M030, or KW suspension kits. An alignment would be needed after." Everything else looks really solid on the car!