1987 Toyota Camry Front Camber Adjustable?

Which manual did you look at? I don't think that the car comes from the factory with adjustable camber although there are aftermarket bolts that make camber somewhat adjustable.

The camber being out indicates that you have another problem - springs maybe? Did the mechnaic check the ride height? Anything bent? Howare the ball joints? Bushings? There are aftermarket parts available that allow the camber to be adjusted. See:

I have the original 1987 Toyota Camry Factory Service Manual and it has a section on how to adjust the front camber

I don't think that the car comes from the

I don't really remember when the camber adjustment went away. If the shop manual shows that the camber is adjustable, copy and show the alignment section to the shop that did the alignment so that they can do it properly.

Was the new control arm a factory or an aftermarket part? I'm wondering if the replacement parts have the adjustability that the original factory parts had. You can check this yourself by looking underneath for the eccentric washers with alignment markings.

as far am I'm aware the fount camber adjustment went by 1989. if the car has had the fount hub carrier changed they may have put in the non adjustable one. did someone have a look to see if the top strut to hub bolt has the adjuster cam. it could be that the didn't know where to look for that car to find the adjuster. I cant say about the back camber being adjustable but it being -ve and only slight i wouldn't worry.

If you want to fix the camber though and it doesn't have the adjusters this is what you need. the first is the front one and the second the back.

I have no idea if your front camber is adjustable, but a camber bolt is a quick and easy way to do it.

BTW most places only adjust the toe and just give you your car back. They don't have real technicians that actually understand alignment, just trained monkeys who know how to adjust toe as per the machine. They usually won't even center the steering wheel, even when you tell them to.

I disagree. I think the better way would be to find a shop that actually knows what they are doing without your help. Ask your friends, call AAA, and ASA, look at IATN and ASE, whatever it takes to find a true professional technician. A real professional will not be cheap, probably wont be fast, and will not offer discounts or coupons. If the shop doesnt know how to align a 20 year old car, then for gods sake, dont let them touch your car! Rant mode on: I hear a lot of grumbling on this board about dishonest/incompetent mechanics. If you get ripped off more than once it's your own damn fault. Dont go back. Dont go back to chain shops like precision tune or goodyear. (There are some decent honest technicians at chain stores, but by and large they are the exception rather than the rule) Dont go to a business that offers coupons or discounts or advertises heavily. There is a reason they need new customers! Every time you spend money at one of these rip'offs, you not only reward them for their dishonesty and incompetence, but you also endanger you and your families safety, and you take business away from the guys that charge an honest price for an honest job. Here in SoCal, good tech's at honest shops charge $90 to $110 an hour and are worth every single penny. Cars are more complicated than ever, and the days of the dufus grease monkey at the corner gas station are over, and the days of the average DIY'er are numbered. Auto repair is not a commodity like groceries, and the sooner people realize that quality costs money the better off we'll all be. A good honest independant technician faces the following: The need to spend appx $30,000 on his own tools The need for 2 years of education up front and several years of on-the- job training to get journeyman level skills (6-8 years on-the job training with no formal training) At least 40 hours per year update training just to stay current with new technology, often unpaid Intense competition from morons and rip'offs Wages that lag way behind inflation Oppressive environmental (and recently privacy) legislation and their reward for all this? a public image rating (because of the idiots and thieves) below new car salesman Rant mode off: Cheap ass car owners will always find a way to spend a fortune trying to save a buck, and then resent the guy who actually *fixes* his car at a higher but fair price.

Ben

Good points, I agree, except that I think the tool cost estimate is vastly understated if the cost of an alignment machine is factored in.

Yeah, except the alignment equipment isnt something a tech has to buy. That would be an expense for the business owner, and a system costs between $40k and $80k. Ben

Yup, I was thinking along the lines of a tech with his own shop.