Diesel RVs: [diesel_mercedes] 300TD Tire Wear

I wonder of those oversize tires have anything to do with it ? .

-Nate
Bogy wrote :

370K miles. no suspension overhaul to my knowledge. Everything is still original equipment. 205 70 R 14. To my way of thinking Big-O tires is both incompetent and irresponsible.

But what are these parts that you mention? 
The rubber around the  camber adjustment end of the lower control arm looks like it has moved - as if it has been squeezed out of it's original shape. It does not stick out symmetrically around the large bore hole it is fitted into in the control arm. Yet a 3 foot pry bar does not move it either in or out at all. And there is no more adjustment left to pull the bottom of the tires in any further. I don't believe the frame has spread out which leaves something has shifted. Rubber is a valid candidate.

I finally went to an independent shop run by a guy I trust. He now does alignments. He didn't last year. He mentioned  camber kits in a rather casual way as if they were no big thing. I had never heard of them. Hence my inquiry to this group. 

In the end I am looking for ways to keep this car on the road. It has been low maintenance, very reliable and relatively inexpensive to operate. I am no in a position to put a lot of money into it. I will buy parts and do the work myself. All except the alignment. Well all except the caster. the camber and toe in are easy.

I don't know if this is what you wanted to know. I will gladly supply any more information if it will help me find a solution. Thanks to all for your help. 

Bogy.

  On , Bogy Wan Kenobi <polespearbogy@...> wrote:
 
Yeah, too much toe out. They claim that when I accelerate, the front end lifts up enough to change the toe-in so that it toes out. Then they say that grinds down the "leading" edge of the tire, which is the inside edge. Problem is, they did the alignment. And they won't take responsibility for the problem. That said, the camber adjustment cannot be pulled inward any more and it is just barely out of spec now. So they compensated for it by toeing the tires in a bit. So a  camber adjusting kit or a recambering kit would save the car. I have never had tires wear this bad until I had it professionally aligned last year. 

And they claim it is because of toe out.

  On Wednesday, June 18, 2014 4:17 PM, "tom hanson halfviking@... [diesel_mercedes]" <diesel_mercedes@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
 
There are a lot of variables here. How many miles are on the car, and has it ever had a suspension overhaul? You could have several parts that are worn or have been replaced with aftermarket parts of lesser quality. What size tires did you get? These cars have never been known to have tires last a really long time. But they handle really well, so there's a bit of a trade-off. Big-O tires? Are they any good? 
 
Tom Hanson
Mercedes Benz Classic Center USA
MBUSA, LLC
thomas.hanson@...
949 598-4842 direct

From: "Bogy Wan Kenobi polespearbogy@... [diesel_mercedes]" <diesel_mercedes@yahoogroups.com>
To: "diesel_mercedes@yahoogroups.com" <diesel_mercedes@yahoogroups.com> 
Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2014 9:12 AM
Subject: [diesel_mercedes] 300TD ALIGNMENT

 Hey all:

Last year about this time I put 4 brand new Big-O tires on my TD and got it aligned and I began to notice something I had never seen before - inside tire wear on the front tires. Big-O, of course, denies culpability. But I took it in this morning and to be sure there is no more camber adjustment. Questions are, 1) why is there no more camber adjustment and 2) could it be the bushings on the lower arm? 3)Has the frame spread? 4) Are there offset bushings to compensate for this? I hate to loose this rig as it has been boringly reliable, and let's face it- I can't afford to drive anything else. 

Any ideas at all are welcome.
bogy.