Alignment and Balance
Thread Starter
5th Gear Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 3,115
From: Pineapple under the Sea
The body shop said they adjusted the toe.. I did not give it a good test drive as it was right during rush hour when I got out of the shop. I'll see how it is tomorrow. I do think the tires are out of balance also, because the front feel as if the tread is not being worn evenly, in simplified terms, wobbly lol.
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 245
From: Indiana
If I may, if you walk in to you dealership with the notion that it is a, "stealership", you will not be happy with the work or the price. I'd recommend you go elsewhere.
The price quoted is more than fair and is the going rate for a thrust angle alignment along with rotating and rebalancing the tires. Alignment checks should be done about once per year and the rotation/rebalancing of the tires should be done every 6,000 miles/6 months, whichever comes first. You can purchase a lifetime package for all of these services at your local Firestone auto center and have your car re-aligned with the tires rotated/balanced whenever you need.
Tires need rebalancing because as they wear, they don't wear perfectly even across the tread and will slowly get out of balance. It's an incremental process and not something you'd generally notice until after you have the tires rebalanced and you drive down the highway thinking to yourself, "Wow, this is much smoother"!
Tire rotations are important in order to even out wear patterns and extend the life of the tires. All this can make a significant difference in extending tire life and reducing the amount of money you'll spend on replacing tires.
By your description, it definitely sounds like an alignment and tire balance issue. I hope this has been of help. Keep us posted.
B.F.Goodrich T/A Certified Tire Specialist
The price quoted is more than fair and is the going rate for a thrust angle alignment along with rotating and rebalancing the tires. Alignment checks should be done about once per year and the rotation/rebalancing of the tires should be done every 6,000 miles/6 months, whichever comes first. You can purchase a lifetime package for all of these services at your local Firestone auto center and have your car re-aligned with the tires rotated/balanced whenever you need.
Tires need rebalancing because as they wear, they don't wear perfectly even across the tread and will slowly get out of balance. It's an incremental process and not something you'd generally notice until after you have the tires rebalanced and you drive down the highway thinking to yourself, "Wow, this is much smoother"!
Tire rotations are important in order to even out wear patterns and extend the life of the tires. All this can make a significant difference in extending tire life and reducing the amount of money you'll spend on replacing tires.By your description, it definitely sounds like an alignment and tire balance issue. I hope this has been of help. Keep us posted.
B.F.Goodrich T/A Certified Tire Specialist
Cut & Paste Expert
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 13,322
From: NW Arkansas
unless you lost a wheel weight. They do go out of balance
over time from wear but not in a months time.
The rims are aluminum and dont exhibit the 'bent" problems
that steel rims do.
If you cant visually see damage to the rim, it is not damaged.
If the tire is not missing any big chunks of rubber then it
are OK as well.
Check the rim edge for the wheel weights or any
signs of weights being there at one time but are
no longer there.
Moving the suspected wheel around and test driving
is bout your only recourse to finding the 'bad one'.
But dont pay for an alignment if the body shop didnt
do that when it was repaired. If the alignment is not
right, it was not repaired correctly.
I like the advertisment portion of your post there rodgerdodger.
Is that straight out of the BFG training manual on how to sell
front end alignments as well as tires?
Last edited by 157dB; Mar 13, 2010 at 09:08 AM.
Thread Starter
5th Gear Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 3,115
From: Pineapple under the Sea
Ok, thanks 157db. I will inspect my wheels and tires. The new setup should also arrive tomorrow, so I will look at my stocks and see if I can find anything out of the ordinary before they go into storage. Otherwise if the issue persists after the change, then it will definitely be something else.
Thread Starter
5th Gear Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 3,115
From: Pineapple under the Sea
Just a followup, I put on my new rims yesterday and the car feels different. I checked the old rims yesterday and only one of them had a weights and not even full set!! That might have been the one in the front driver side. My dad was helping out and he was rolling the tires in the garage so I couldn't confirm 100%, but the others didn't have any weights 
Thread Starter
5th Gear Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 3,115
From: Pineapple under the Sea
Seems to ride smooth after it starts to warm up. Was a little bumpy in the morning, but then it was cool and these are summer tires after all. Must be something with my old rims/tires.
