Correcting negative caster on 97 Accord

first things first - you don't have negative caster, you have reduced caster.

to answer your direct question, no, caster is not adjustable - you need to have the frame straightened to fix it.

finally, the chances of this being the sole cause of your handling problems are slim. by the symptoms you describe, you have wear in some of your suspension componentry. front upper wishbone pivots are prime candidates. they're seldom diagnosed properly because if the car is up on the stand and the wheel off, the suspension is out of its normal range of motion and the pivot is tight. on the road however, it's in its normal position of maximum wear and that top joint is free to slop about and causes all kinds of mischief. once all that stuff is sorted out, you'll probably find the reduced caster to be be quite acceptable - it only really affects the "return to center" action. regarding wallowing, are your replacement shocks oem honda? if not, go back to oem. if you can't afford those, go kyb. monroe and suchlike are to be avoided.

The factory approved method is to replace parts until its in spec. In practice, there might be a kit you can buy that will move things enough to fix it. Failing that, take it to a frame/alignment shop (the people who straighten car frames after accidents). They will have the equipment to bend it back into spec.

I had an earlier Accord that had this same problem when I bought it. Besides the handling issues, it ate tires at a rapid rate. None of the chain tire and alignment shops could do anything with it (except take my money).

I had previously discovered the frame shop on a referral from the Ford dealer when I had a Ford Bronco with the twin I-beam front end that had to be aligned by bending the i-beam. They found the right front wheel was pushed back slightly, probably due to repeated parking incidents with curbs or parking lot stoppers. This is apparently a common problem with these cars as they age. They fixed it for under $100 and the car was fine from then on. If you are near Dallas, I can recommend a place.

I'd agree with jim beam's advice that this sounds like wear in one or more suspension components more than a caster issue. I'd also have the tie rods and sway bar bushings looked at. My 90 CRX was exhibiting many of the same symptoms you describe, particularly the instability and "wallowing" at higher speeds, and replacing the (very worn/cracked) tie rods/front sway bar bushings improved matters considerably.

Dave

Everything you describe are classic symptoms of over-inflated front tires. Aggravated if rear are under-inflated. Find the sticker in the car and try the tires at Honda's recommended inflation. What's printed on the side of the tire is NOT a recommendation regardless what those people who don't read the rest of the statement on the tire

--"consult placard in vehicle" -- may tell you.

Simle things first! If that doesn't help go on the search for loose parts. 1 degree of caster is not going to make or break handling.

Don

I Second Don...!

Tires or tire pressure FIRST..

You have said it yourself when commenting that the tires lock into road irregularities.. Good radials do not do this with groves parallel to your direction of travel.

Can you swap front to rear.. are they all the same?

Are they all radials (4) ?

Can you borrow a set from another car to try?

Check the toe in.... a tape measure used carefully can do this.

Is the steering gear box or linkage binding?

I'm going to say it once more, "Tires"

Bob

What is on the side of the tire is the MAX pressure at MAX load. Read it.

Recommended pressures these days seem to be 30-35 psi. Many cars have

-SP

dude, use the pressure in the manual - don't monkey about with guesswork or "what the tire guy says". honda engineers know a good deal more about the handling dynamics of their vehicles than the average rubber slinger.

That's one of my biggest pet peeves with Fast-Lube and tire places these days... The recommended pressures are right on the inside of the door. What makes it so damned hard to follow them?

Every time I have an oil change done, I have to re-check all of the tires to make sure they are not over-filled.

They have 24-28 in their manuals to avoid overinflation wear. Tire shops tend to inflate every single tire to 32-35 psi so that they don't have to bother with checking the manufacturer recomended pressure. If the tires wear out faster, so much the better.

Keep in mind that it is *volume* that matters in having the tire of the proper shape and to avoid over/underinflation wear. A car with more weight will require greater pressure to achieve the same volume and, of course, a car with less than the tire's maximum rated load will require less pressure. Tire shops ignore this.

I just got a set of Michelins. Toyota says 30psi, the tire dealer put in

1. He said that the manufacturer's recommendation was to provide a cushier ride, and that 32psi would give better wear. Hmmm...

What do you think of the chalk-line-on-the-tread method of determining ideal pressure?

BC pressured

Not a lot. The only thing it'll show is that when rolling a short distance straight, different parts of the thread have more or less contact with the road. No relation to what happens at speed, during braking or in corners.

Whenever I get a new set of tires on a car, I take half an hour to play: starting with the manufacturer recommendation, then going up a bit, and down a bit, front as well as rear. After every change a quick test ride to check - you'll quickly find how much change is noticeable and what it does.

Playing around a bit (while never going too far from manufacturer recommendation and thoroughly ignoring tire dealer input) helps find your best compromise of ride and roadholding.

cu .\\arc