Tow Measurement? Alignment question

What should the tow be on a 2000 XJ? I need to just guesstimate with a Tape measure to get it driving good enough. I had a guy tell me about 5/8" but that seems like alot. Any thoughts on this?

2000 FSM...

Toe in should be zero toe it to a maximum of 1/8" with 1/16" the preferred setting.

Dave

As above, zero assuming no wear. If it's got a lot of mileage on it and you use it mostly in 2wd, you can put in a tiny bit of toe. If it's full time 4wd, don't toe it in at all. Undriven front wheels will tend to toe out when pushed, which is why most rear-drive cars have a little toe-in. Driven front wheels will tend to toe in when they pull.

Our alignment machine at work specifies +0.20 degrees of total toe with a tolerance of 0.07 degrees either way. So anywhere from +0.13 to +0.27 is "acceptable" However, with my toe set at +0.20, the outside edges of my old tires were noticeably more worn than the inside edges, even with regular rotation. When I put on the Dueler Revos back in August, I set the toe to exactly 0. Last month at the 5k rotation, the fronts were wearing perfectly even all the way across.

In my opinion, just set it at 0 and be happy.

Don't berate the tape measure. With a tape you can probably do it better than most shops. Measure the back side of tires between a straight pin that is stuck into the read side of the tread on each front tire. Measure as high up as you can with the tape straight. Roll the car forward until the straight pins are the same height above the floor except they are now on the front of the tread. Measure between them again and shoot for a front to rear difference of 0 to 1/16 inch. In other words, the front distance should be smaller than the rear distance by 1/16.

toe*

If you want to do your own toe-in at home, I suggest that you try to duplicate the old-fashioned alignment-shop technique. Measuring from the edges of the tires can go wrong if there is any variation in the tires. Instead of tape measuring from the edges of the tires, you find a long stick that can be marked precisely. Get a big piece of chalk (or in a pinch you could even use paint) and jack up each wheel, spin it, and chalk or paint the surface of the tread. With the wheel still up, rotate it and, using a nail stuck into a block of wood, resting on the floor (the old shops had a special little tool with a spring-loaded spike), inscribe a line on the surface of the tread. Now you have a very precise line from which to measure. It doesn't matter where on the tread this line is as long as it doesn't wander. The stick you use should ideally have some kind of feet on it, so that you will be sure you are measuring at the same height front and back. If you are doing zero toe, the precise height doesn't matter as long as it's consistent. Now you can mark the distance on the stick front and back, and make a very precise adjustment of toe.