This is the first time I tried posting a PDF. Hope it works and it will open:

 

Something to keep in mind for the future. Thanks for the write-up Steve.

 

Thank you Steve! Saved it with my other files.. the day is coming for this..

 

So, in the PDF there is a pic of the box your new bolt came in..a Bilstein 202 330 01 18 with a Febi number of 62296? Are these the bolts that correspond to the Crossfire Part no. 5140876AA ? Great write-up of the change-out procedure.

 

I can not say that they are the same bolt. The Chrysler number 5140876AA should be similar to those I show in the PDF; More than likely they are the Mercedes adjustable bolt so they should work just fine.
Those I show in the PDF are available form Needswings.

 

Some guidance, please?
My front tires are both SEVERELY worn on the INNER side, where the metal cord is starting to show.
I assume this means I have TOO MUCH toe in, is this correct?
So, WHICH WAY DO I WANT TO INSTALL THE BOLTS SO THAT I CORRECT THIS?
I have no way of coherently adjusting alignment, and I need to have the car at least drivable to get it to the alignment shop.

Also, do I need to tell the alignment shop to adjust these?
I understand the original installation was NOT adjustable, so then the techs at the alignment place look at their charts, they will skip over these bolts as being "Non Adjustable" and therefore fixed. I assume their alignment charts will say this, and they will just skip over these, and not align or adjust them in any way.
Are there figures in the manual that give the correct alignment specifications so the tires will run neutral and not wear on one side or the other excessively? How do I convey to the alignment techs that there is now a camber and caster adjustment added to my car?

It's great I'm going to put in the bolts, but THEN WHAT?
I really appreciate your post! It got me started on correcting this problem in the first place.

 

The bolts adjust camber. The bolts are not for toe adjustment.
Excessive toe can cause the tires to wear on the inside. Toe is adjusted by turning the tie rod to shorten or lengthen as needed.
If you bought only two adjustable bolts vice four it would be best to place them in the forward bushing on the A frame. One bolt per left and one bolt on the right side of the car.
Excesses tire wear on the inside can be caused by too much negative camber (the bottom of the tire is pushed out too far). To correct for this you use the bolts to pull the A frame inward.
DO NOT TURN THE HEAD OF THE FACTORY BOLT!!!! ONLY TURN THE NUT!!!! Ditto with the Adjusting bolts. It is obvious once you have it apart.
Read those instructions all the way through. It is not a job to be taken lightly. It may be best to have the alignment mechanics do the job and then they can do what they can to bring your camber and toe into specification. ADVISE THEM IT IS A MERCEDES TYPE SUSPENSION AND THEY CAN NOT TURN THE HEAD OF THOSE BOLTS, ONLY TURN THE NUTS!
I install the bolts with the head forward and the nuts to the rear of the car.
Once the bolts are installed they will not need to be adjusted. They are set to either move the A frame in or out, and in your case you want to move the A frame and thus the bottom of the tire inward.

I think that answers your questions. You can't just pull the original bolts out and slide the new bolts in with the front of the car jacked. They are under tension from the suspension. You need to able to control the inward and out ward force to get the new bolts placed properly. Read those instructions all the way through before starting the job.

 

Thank you! That clarifies a LOT!
I want a solution to my tire eating problem, but I don't have any suspension experience, so I'm just dipping my toes in the water and trying to learn about what it takes to correct the Crossfire suspension. I ordered a new control arm kit from FCP Euro, which is due next Tuesday, and now I wanted to see if I can correct the problem with the heavy wear on the inside of the tires.
Could the worn ball joints be a problem contributing to this? Since I am changing the arms and the ball joints, should this rectify this problem? Or would it be advisable to install the eccentric bolts as well?

 

From the factory the car has negative camber; about 1.3 give or take a little. Depends on how you intend to drive the car. Safe and sane driving about town and more concerned with tire longevity I would use the eccentric bolts right away and bring the bottom of the tire inward:Buy a touring or all-season type tire with high mileage ratings and enjoy the ride.

Bad ball joints certainly will effect tire wear, but you can feel it in the steering and when you have the car jacked up you can feel the wheel move when you twist it and push/pull by hand. You can also check for wheel bearing play and it is easy to tighten them up if need be. Be sure to replace the steering stabilizer. It is the shock absorber looking thing in the steering linkage. If you do all this suspension work, you will need some specialized tools; They may be borrowed from your local auto parts store. I doubt you will get all that you mention completed with just a set of sockets.

If on the other hand you want to pull high g corners and flirt with danger you need to keep the OEM bolts in there and see what you get after the suspension work you are doing and an alignment. You will get a read out (ask for it before they begin) of the suspension parameters and compare it to specs ( the specs are in the service manual). Keeping camber up around 1.9 to 2.3 negative gives advantage in cornering, but wears tires much quicker. Toe can be at 0, tires pointed straight ahead when wheel is centered. That makes you work a bit more when cruising down the road as the car won't steer itself, but helps a bit with responsiveness and run on Max summer or the 200 tread wear tires. This past summer I got 4,200 miles on my front tires and they were slick when I got home after attending two Crossfire meets. I absolutely had to slow down coming home from Eureka Springs in the rain as the car would hydroplane easily.

As with most things in life you have to make decisions with some give here and take there; There isn't a one tire, one suspension set up that will do everything well. It is all compromise.

 

OK. The tires are worn severely on the inboard edges. Now is this NEGATIVE camber, or POSITIVE Camber? I have the 4 bolt replacement kit How do I want to place the washers to correct for this inboard severe wear. I could find NO alignment shop in Tucson that would replace the bolts. They can ADJUST them, but not INSTALL them. So, I have to put them in myself, and now I need to know which way to install them, so I get the car off to the best possible start.
Also, since when the shop guys look at their books, it will tell them there is no adjustment for the camber, how do I get them to look at and adjust the camber so my tires wear evenly? In other words, I put the new bolts in, but how do I get the shop I go to to pay attention to the fact that they are NOW ADJUSTABLE, and they NEED TO RESET THEM? The tutorial really isn't clear about how you want to set them initially, either. Especially if you have severe tire wear on the INBOARD EDGES of the tire.

 

Try typing camber or camber adjustment in the search box at the top RH corner of the page for info.

 

Thank you very much!
I am installing my camber bolts this weekend, one set at a time of 2 bolts, so I can get an alignment done this next week. I inquired at several shops about having THEM install the bolts while they were doing the alignment, and was told at multiple places in Tucson, that their insurance would not cover them if they installed the bolts, but would cover them if they adjusted them. I had previously completely rebuilt the front end, with new A-arms, ball joints, shocks, etc, etc, so all the work is complete, but at the time I did it, I did not yet have the camber bolts, so skipped them to just get the rebuild done. I SHOULD HAVE WAITED ANOTHER WEEK TO GET TO NEW STYLE BOLTS, AND THEN I WOULD NOT BE REDOING THE WORK I ALREADY DID TO PUT IT ALL BACK TOGETHER. But live and learn.