motor force camber plate review

[jmott]

I've seen people asking about these camber plates, and now that I've had them for a while I figured I would post my review.

I went from a set of ground control camber plates that came on the car when I bought it. One of the rattled quite a bit over bumps. Other than that they seem to function fine, though I worried that the rattling was also implying some unwanted suspension movement might be occuring.

I installed the motor-force plates myself. From looking at the spring perch, the motor-force ones are one piece and appear much better designed than the GC unit. However, the stack height is a little higher.

I have done 4 autocrosses on the plates, two track days, and a fair amount of street driving on awful roads and through torrential rain and scorchingl heat. So far no noise at *all* from the front suspension anymore. Almost feels like a luxury car again =) Car is performing great as well.

setup - 1994 325i, gc coilovers, 600lbs front, 750lbs rear springs. 255/40/17 Victoracer Tires for racing, 215/16 azenis for street.

[BJO]

I'll agree with jmott on the motor-force plates. They work and are designed well. Mine have been on for @3k miles and 6 auto-x's.

[Spencer]

How is the adjustability compared to the GC units? Can you get as much max camber/caster?

[BlueMaxx9]

I've got just over 10K miles on mine, and probably 5 or 6 AX's. No problems to report yet; these plates have been treating me quite well.

-Bret

[jmott]

Originally Posted by Spencer

How is the adjustability compared to the GC units? Can you get as much max camber/caster?

the caster has three settings instead of being intinitely adjustable like the GC, but either way I max mine out. The max camber looks to be the same.

[BlueMaxx9]

It's more than 3 adjustments. There are 3 sets of holes on the top piece and 4 sets on the bottom piece. That works out to 12 possible positions, not 3.

-Bret

[Max M3]

Originally Posted by BlueMaxx9

It's more than 3 adjustments. There are 3 sets of holes on the top piece and 4 sets on the bottom piece. That works out to 12 possible positions, not 3.

-Bret

No, there are only 3 settings for caster. The middle setting appears to be close to stock setting (6.0* & 6.2*)

But now that I've finally gotten mine installed, and now back from the alignment shop, I have a few other questions for those that also have them.

The range of camber is -2.7* to -4.6* with the max setting being limited by the strut tower hole cutout. The minimum setting is limited by the plate slot and at -2.7*, that's a far cry from stock in case I ever want to go back to that setting. Anyone else have that issue??

The other issue is sorta what is referred to as "stack height". The claim is that the MF plates have a shorter stack height (vs GC), but in reality, while the plates themselves may be shorter, the spring cap is taller (because of the monster thrust bearing). What that does is force a preload on the springs which of course reduces the allowable travel. I'm not liking either of those two aspects, but maybe I'm being too picky???

My current setup is TCKline Tru-Match with 300lb front springs. They are 7.4 inches in length, which may contribute to the undesireable preload. It also made installation a BIATCH! A friend and I could not install even one of them in 3.5 hours, and the shop I finally took it to still took 3 hours to install both. I watched and even they had some diffuculty.

What length front springs are others using and any other observations??

EDIT: OH, other than the issues listed above, they do appear to be quiet enough and well built. And they are a world of difference better than those damn KMACs I had in before!!
But Brian doesn't answer his phone nor does he have an answering machine, so he gets a demerit there...

[jmott]

The website indicates a shorter upper spring perch that is in production, and also mentions something about an adapter to use GC spring perches which might bring stack height down.

I'm running 6 inch long springs on my car. I installed both in about 20 minutes myself at an autocross. If your springs are longer I would think you just need a spring compressor and youd be fine.

I know brian has been getting his car set up for nationals the last couple week. 2.8 engine swap. So I imagine he has been busy.

Originally Posted by Max M3

No, there are only 3 settings for caster. The middle setting appears to be close to stock setting (6.0* & 6.2*)

But now that I've finally gotten mine installed, and now back from the alignment shop, I have a few other questions for those that also have them.

The range of camber is -2.7* to -4.6* with the max setting being limited by the strut tower hole cutout. The minimum setting is limited by the plate slot and at -2.7*, that's a far cry from stock in case I ever want to go back to that setting. Anyone else have that issue??

The other issue is sorta what is referred to as "stack height". The claim is that the MF plates have a shorter stack height (vs GC), but in reality, while the plates themselves may be shorter, the spring cap is taller (because of the monster thrust bearing). What that does is force a preload on the springs which of course reduces the allowable travel. I'm not liking either of those two aspects, but maybe I'm being too picky???

My current setup is TCKline Tru-Match with 300lb front springs. They are 7.4 inches in length, which may contribute to the undesireable preload. It also made installation a BIATCH! A friend and I could not install even one of them in 3.5 hours, and the shop I finally took it to still took 3 hours to install both. I watched and even they had some diffuculty.

What length front springs are others using and any other observations??

EDIT: OH, other than the issues listed above, they do appear to be quiet enough and well built. And they are a world of difference better than those damn KMACs I had in before!!
But Brian doesn't answer his phone nor does he have an answering machine, so he gets a demerit there...

[BlueMaxx9]

Originally Posted by Max M3

No, there are only 3 settings for caster.

You are correct sir. I took a look at my plates this weekend and noticed that my math wasn't agreeing with reality! I never actually tried any setting other than max-caster though, so I guess I should have checked before opening my big mouth!

-Bret

[Max M3]

Originally Posted by BlueMaxx9

You are correct sir. I took a look at my plates this weekend and noticed that my math wasn't agreeing with reality! I never actually tried any setting other than max-caster though, so I guess I should have checked before opening my big mouth!

-Bret

Heh heh... no problem.... Even Einstein's math and reality didn't always jibe!

[FreezingTexan]

Originally Posted by Max M3

No, there are only 3 settings for caster. The middle setting appears to be close to stock setting (6.0* & 6.2*)

But now that I've finally gotten mine installed, and now back from the alignment shop, I have a few other questions for those that also have them.

The range of camber is -2.7* to -4.6* with the max setting being limited by the strut tower hole cutout. The minimum setting is limited by the plate slot and at -2.7*, that's a far cry from stock in case I ever want to go back to that setting. Anyone else have that issue??

The other issue is sorta what is referred to as "stack height". The claim is that the MF plates have a shorter stack height (vs GC), but in reality, while the plates themselves may be shorter, the spring cap is taller (because of the monster thrust bearing). What that does is force a preload on the springs which of course reduces the allowable travel. I'm not liking either of those two aspects, but maybe I'm being too picky???

My current setup is TCKline Tru-Match with 300lb front springs. They are 7.4 inches in length, which may contribute to the undesireable preload. It also made installation a BIATCH! A friend and I could not install even one of them in 3.5 hours, and the shop I finally took it to still took 3 hours to install both. I watched and even they had some diffuculty.

What length front springs are others using and any other observations??

EDIT: OH, other than the issues listed above, they do appear to be quiet enough and well built. And they are a world of difference better than those damn KMACs I had in before!!
But Brian doesn't answer his phone nor does he have an answering machine, so he gets a demerit there...

Hey Max,

Sorry about the phone, I finally gave up on my fancy computer operated voice answering machine (which never worked for more than 6 hours at a time) and went with voice mail from the phone company. Email me your phone number and I'll call ya.

Using a tall, soft spring like that would definatly require a spring compressor. Similar to a putting factory springs on a regular strut, you have to compress it several inches just to get the strut mount on enough to bolt up.


What ride height are you running at? 2.7* of negative camber with the plates at the minimum camber setting (which is centered in the strut tower) tells me you've got that sucker LOW!!

On a side note, the 300 lb springs are *really* soft for any sort of performance application IMO. That, combined with what I suspect might be a really low ride height might cause you to spend way too much time on the bump stops.

[Max M3]

Originally Posted by FreezingTexan

Hey Max...

Ahh THERE you are!

My ride height is low but really not THAT low... Front measures 12.75 (wheel center to fender) and rear is 12.0.

I run my car year-round and I really don't want that much camber for the Winter... What can I do about that (if anything)?

I agree that my springs are a little soft for serious competition, and I'll likely be upping to 450/500 next season, which will result in easier installation because of shorter springs. The shop did this one without a compressor, but one guy had to suspend himself from the plate while the other attached the center bolt!

You may call my cell anytime 617-413-8112 to discuss...

[BlueMaxx9]

Interesting. The ride height on my 325 is slightly LOWER than your car, but I've only got 3 degrees of camber up front, and I'm at the limit. Are you sure that camber measurement is correct? I suppose the M3 and my 4-door 325 could have some inherent differences in the placement of the strut tower, but I always thought those parts were the same.

-Bret