Got yourself a Tramlining Viper

[Blue96GTS]

"Tramlining is the tendency of a vehicle's wheels to follow the contours in the surface upon which it runs. The term comes from the tendency of a car's wheels to follow the normally recessed rails of street trams, without driver input in the same way that the train does. The same effect is sometimes called Nibbling."

Can't say I paid too much attention to the word Tramlining until I bought a Viper. Just learned about Nibbling, courtesy of the Interwebs!

Anyway, if your car wanders around on it's own while driving on imperfect roads, this thread might be of interest to you. Happy to report that my car no longer wanders anything like it used to. Here is my 3 step recipe for success, hoping it may help you:

Step 1 - Replaced/rebuilt all of my suspension components over the past couple of years. OK, big first step, let's just say you should have a good working suspension foundation to start with. Plenty of threads and contributors here to help you with your needs. The Viper is a fairly easy/receptive car to work on, put down the TV remote and get to work!

Step 2 - Biggest "fix" in replacing suspension components was adding the IPSCO Steering Rack Bushing Upgrade Kit. Boosted has just done a nice "how to" video on just this subject which you can find here:
https://driveviper.com/forums/thread...de-amp-Install

Step 3 - Consider getting an alignment per recommendations, which are not "stock". Just did this today, and I'm wondering why I didn't do it sooner. Holy buckets this has helped out considerably. I actually drove my car with one hand on the steering wheel today just because I could. Cannot yet tell you anything about chewing up tires yet, but I feel safer driving on those 2 lane roads with no shoulders... I went with the "street" alignment, and am up for the first HPDE event of the season in a couple of weeks, so I'll report my findings. Here's a link to the thread with alignment recommendations (Thanks Mark Jorgensen!):
https://driveviper.com/forums/thread...rysler-Dealers

Lastly, where did I get my alignment?? My local Les Schwab has a Hunter Alignment machine and had me out the door for $83 and a guarantee. They had zero qualms with not going "stock".

[mak1118]

I usually drive mine with one hand on the wheel, I shift with the other hand....

[ssmith71]

I definitely drive my 96 GTS with two hands on the wheel. It is the most "twitchy" car I have ever driven (except for a T192 Lola F5000 that was insane to drive on the track). Mine requires full attention especially on 2 lane roads, but I believe the suspension is all original. Upgrading the suspension was going to be one of the next things I do.

[dave6666]

Get new tires. Boom. Simple. No more whatever that word is. No suspension rebuild or bushings or other parts. Just new, modern tires.

[Horsepower junkie]

My 94 tracked like that, put new tires on went away.

[ssmith71]

Get new tires. Boom. Simple. No more whatever that word is. No suspension rebuild or bushings or other parts. Just new, modern tires.

So just put on Michelin PS (17") from Tirerack to replace my old date code Kumhos. Haven't driven it much with the new tires to see what the difference will be. Or are you talking about going to 19" rims and the tires for those? And do you mean then the less sidewall flex with the lower profile tires?

We do have a lot of potholes on our streets, seems like I am running a SCCA Solo event sometimes trying to dodge them!

[V1P3R]

Yep, tires! In my old GTS, did it a lot, new tires.... Gone!

[Bill Pemberton]

New tires , yes, but certain ones will still pull you around on rutted roads ---- primarily tires that are set up more for the track ( Dot Comp tires ) can still have some of this effect.

[Blue96GTS]

I concur with the new tires. Should have been another addition to my list! I'm running 19" rear, 18" front Gen 5 rims with Pirellis. New tires were not the 1 step cure for my woes, although they helped. The IPSCO bushing unit did wonders for MY car, and the alignment was the final piece which brought MY car up to it's potential.

Of course, your experience may vary!

Simple message I'm trying to get across - if your older Viper darts aimlessly about while prowling the wavering roads, there is help.

Good Pic 3.jpg

[98RedGTS]

I'm curious of how much the 5.5-6 degrees of casters helps this as well. That should help keep things straight as well, right?

Kind of surprised at the camber settings that were recommended. I just set mine at .6 degrees camber front and rear. Looks like I have some more work to do on the fronts.

[Boosted Motorsports]

Thanks for the reference! Hope it simplifies the job!

As for the car wandering the road, the handling and tracking of my car is absolutely incredible after upgrading and tightening up all the OEM rubber suspension components with new coilovers, Toyo R888, and a proper alignment.

It is important to take your car somewhere that has experience and the tools to check rear caster as most places do not do this. It is typically measured with a special tool that is placed at a right angle to the hub/spindle assembly on the rear wheels.

I can easily drive with one hand and the car handles like it is on rails. Feels like a big go-kart now!

[ryanorielly]

Hi New viper owner, just came across this thread and i can say a fresh alignment and new tires have eliminated the tramlining completely. I too can now drive with one hand on the wheel.