Can anybody recommend a place to get an alignment done?

[indy_500]

I'm getting new tires tomorrow and I can visually see that my front tires do not sit straight and need to be aligned. I'm getting the tires from Fleet Farm but their alignment guy is booked for tomorrow morning. I'm wondering if there is any better and/or cheaper place to get my front end aligned? It is going to be $15 to get it checked out and if it needs to be aligned (which I know it does), its $70 and they take off the $15 fee.

 

[whitedust]

Seems steep I pay $55 for alignment correction on my Tahoe & Truck @ local body shop & always dead on improvement. Alignment with new tires is smart money but hope it is not your ball joints have those checked or you will wreck the new tires.

 

[Hoosier]

You usually get what you pay for with this type of work. You are smart to ask for referrals. I had a 97 Blazer a while back and when I dropped if off for an alignment, they check and determined it needed ball joints. A less experienced or honest shop probably wouldn't have known that or told me, and just took my money instead.

 

[anonomoose]

I know that the price depends upon where you are and what you are aligning.

Some cars need all 4 wheels.

Also I have heard that you should put a few miles on the tires before doing alignment. Apparently the tires need to take a "set".

Also tires warn badly may NOT be from alignment but a bunch of other components the keep the wheel tracking right, ball joints, tie-rods, etc.

Maybe if you specify where you are and what you are working on, some of the guys that do this stuff can be more helpful.

 

[indy_500]

Maybe if you specify where you are and what you are working on, some of the guys that do this stuff can be more helpful.

I'm in the Appleton area (WI) and have a 98 GMC Sierra. My Friends dad thinks the ball joints seem ok, and it just needs to be aligned. I'd hate to take it somewhere and tell me I need new ball joints since I can do that myself and that they won't align it until they are replaced...

 

[xcr440]

its $70 and they take off the $15 fee.

Seems steep I pay $55 for alignment correction on my Tahoe & Truck @ local body shop & always dead on improvement.

I'd say 70-15=55=Same exact price! But maybe my math is off.

 

[anonomoose]

I think he means that if he stops at inspection/analysis, $15...if he opts for the alignment, $70 with credit for the $15 paid.

 

[whitedust]

I think he means that if he stops at inspection/analysis, $15...if he opts for the alignment, $70 with credit for the $15 paid.

Yep that is how understood it still $70 when smoke clears.

 

[indy_500]

Yep that is how understood it still $70 when smoke clears.

correct

 

[jeff]

mileage on tires has NOTHING to do with alignment. You are only adjusting the toe and or caster/camber of the front end not the tires themselves.

 

[whitedust]

Ha Ha.... ok don't algin with new tires spend you money as you wish. Me I'll aglin very time & think Indy is doing the right thing.

 

[jeff]

you dont seem to understand. Good idea to buy new tires. However some people seem to think that you NEED new tires to make the alignment correct, when infact the tires have nothing to do with the actual alignment process. just like the tire size also has no effect. The lazer heads are attched the the outside of the rims of the vehicle, not the tire.

 

[indy_500]

you dont seem to understand. Good idea to buy new tires. However some people seem to think that you NEED new tires to make the alignment correct, when infact the tires have nothing to do with the actual alignment process. just like the tire size also has no effect. The lazer heads are attched the the outside of the rims of the vehicle, not the tire.

I did not buy the tires to correct alignment, but I needed new tires to begin with. My old Cooper Discoverer ST's had 4/32 left, brand new they have 18/32. 2 of them were terribly worn on the outside, and the other 2 were terribly worn on the center. I went with Cooper Discoverer ATR's, much less aggressive but still enough of an "all-terrain" tire for me.

 

[xcr440]

Well, I guess I read and figured $15 for "inspection", then if aligned, you get $15 towards the $55 alignment, guess my math was wrong!

And as for worn on the outside, and worn in the center, that is a tire pressure issue, not an alignment issue, unless they are worn on just one side.

 

[tealracing16]

Indy thats about right for this area, I live in GB. Anyway if your tires are wearing on the outside it could be the balljoints. Pick the tire off the ground, grab the top and bottom of the tire and try to "rock" it back and forth. If there is looseness then your ball joints are probably bad. A toe in condition could also cause your tire wear though. Any tire/muffler/repair shop can do this work. I did it at LeMieux when I worked there and I had never done an alignment before, the machines are pretty idiot proof nowadays.

Just find a shop that can get it in. Midas/CarX any of those places do this stuff pretty regularly but a dealership will have ASE certified if that matters to you. Even if he is booked the day of your install, get them done within a few days if your not going to drive a lot, 100 miles shouldn't matter that much.

On a sdie note I bought the same tires for my Suburban last fall and love them. I got them at Fleet and got an alignment done right away. Glad I did because they had to add a shim kit to the camber it was off so much felt like the front wheels were gonna come off.

 

[G]

If it is any kind of shop at all they will check the balljoints when installing new rubber. If your tires are properly inflated and show no odd wear patterns and your vehicle goes straight down the road you don't need an alignment. Go buy some air fresheners instead if you have to spend some money. Indy - how much did you pay for your new Coopers? I just bought some Cooper Discoverer R/T 3s for my pick-up. $777.00 installed. I about pooped.

 

[indy_500]

If it is any kind of shop at all they will check the balljoints when installing new rubber. If your tires are properly inflated and show no odd wear patterns and your vehicle goes straight down the road you don't need an alignment. Go buy some air fresheners instead if you have to spend some money. Indy - how much did you pay for your new Coopers? I just bought some Cooper Discoverer R/T 3s for my pick-up. $777.00 installed. I about pooped.

I paid $458 installed...

 

[indy_500]

Guy who did the alignment could not believe how little play there was in the ball joints and tie rods for being a 98 with 170k. The tires look visually 75% better than what it looked like before (they sit more straight up and down). I have 500 miles on the truck already. No coolant loss or burning oil. It shifts slightly hard if I'm accelerating like a grandma but other than that, I still can't believe I got this truck for $1600!

 

[snoluver1]

One thing I can tell you guys after working in the business for many years is, you get what you pay for, and usually less than you paid for. All the big box places like Fleet farm, midas, NTB, etc, are only going to do a "toe and go" as it is commonly referred to. Meaning, they adjust the front toe and nothing more for $55. Even if they tell you they did more, most of the time its BS. I have seen more times than I can count, guys hanging their weight off the sway bar to get the alignment "in the green" and then hit save on the computer so as to print out an alignment sheet that is within tolerance! This is VERY common practice for hack mechanics which, unfortunately, is the great majority of them. A good mechanic is a rare commodity these days. If you find one, make sure you tip him well, because he doesn't make any money. If he's honest, he can barely feed his family, and only does it because he loves it, or too scared/old to get out of the business.

 

[indy_500]

I took it to les stumpf ford...