Alignment - Do it Yourself? Why or why not
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 5,561
Likes: 448
From: Atlanta metro Ga.
There are links here and on the Internet on how to do this, but honestly with what our tires cost, it's a silly way to save 100 bucks.
You should find a decent, competent shop, they should charge you approx. 75 dollars for the service, or you can go to an esoteric shop like I do, where they discuss the use of the car, spend about an hour doing the alignment, making sure it is perfect. That service costs me about $100.
You should find a decent, competent shop, they should charge you approx. 75 dollars for the service, or you can go to an esoteric shop like I do, where they discuss the use of the car, spend about an hour doing the alignment, making sure it is perfect. That service costs me about $100.
Instructor
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 222
Likes: 1
From: Rapid City SD
Exactly! Try to do your own alignment when it's only between $100-120? When your paying between $1000 and $1600 for new tires, why would you chance not doing right? Not worth the trouble to me.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 1,173
Likes: 1
From: Aguila AZ
Some of us are competent enough to do our own alignment. I use the Longacre camber/castor gage with magnetic base and gives very accurate results. You can find them on Ebay for about $100. I made my own toe plates and I can do the allignment on all my cars and all my friends cars if I want... I can also experiment with different settings and I can do it at the track. It takes only one allignment to cover the cost of the tool...
Shirl Dickey
Shirl Dickey
Pro
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 538
Likes: 0
From: Edmond Ok
It would take me too long to learn how to do an alignment, and then too long to do it. Cost around $100 or so and takes total time around 1 hour (Including BS time).
Down side to doing it yourself is if it is wrong, you won't know it is wrong till the tires tell you it is wrong. With other things, like brakes, oil pressure sensor, shocks, etc you know if it is write or rong on the test drive.
Advanced
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 67
Likes: 0
From: Phoenix AZ
allignment
I bought my Z06 used on ebay and it had a "custom" allignment. I flew to the sellers city and drove it back home. Vette hade 4 NEW tires on it when I left. By the time I got 2000 miles down the road, the new front tires were totally trashed. It cost me $500 for 2 front tires and $100 for the allignment. I watched the tech do the allignment, and the slightest pressure on the front changed the allignment during the process. The eqpt was VERY sensative!!
My point is the tires are too costly to attempt a self allignment. So far, (another 1000 miles later) my Vette tracks perfectly
and the tires wear perfect as well.
My point is the tires are too costly to attempt a self allignment. So far, (another 1000 miles later) my Vette tracks perfectly and the tires wear perfect as well.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,094
Likes: 5
From: The 7th layer of hell - Western Washington
Definately go to a shop to get your alignment done. The equipment is extremely sensitive and can adjust caster/camber/toe to within .01 inches/degrees. If you tell the shop what kind of driving you do they can adjust all three of these aspects accordingly for all 4 wheels. As long as you aren't popping curbs or have loose slignment parts (which they will require you to replace before the alignment) the alignment will stay true at least as long as you have 2 or 3 sets of tires. Also make sure that you ask for a print out of what specs were before the alignment and what they were after the alignment. This not only will keep them honest because they will have to show you the end result, but if the car feels different after the alignment you can tell where the major adjustments were made and bring it back to have things corrected accordingly.
Race Director
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 10,084
Likes: 3,055
From: CA
While it's true, alignments are not particularly expensive, plenty of us have had bad alignments, which can also trash tires. I would like to get a setup to do my own alignments, too. The roads are terrible in California now (all money is spent on illegals, lazy people, and useless pork projects, rather than infrastructure), and I don't want to take it in everytime I hit a pothole, or manhole cover that the pavers "forgot" to lift.
Bring on the alignment info for use DIYers!
Michael
Bring on the alignment info for use DIYers!
Michael
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,094
Likes: 5
From: The 7th layer of hell - Western Washington
Originally Posted by Michael A
The roads are terrible in California now (all money is spent on illegals, lazy people, and useless pork projects, rather than infrastructure
Michael
Michael
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 6,038
Likes: 3
From: Charlotte North Carolina
The best deal I've found in Charlotte is tire Kingdom. I paid $99.00 for a "year long alignment" deal. Basically, I paid for one alignment and can come back as many times as I need to in a year for no additional charge. I've used it 3 times since the initial alignment. one time because I got new tires, one time because I installed C6 Z06 shocks and just two weeks ago when I switched wheels. Well worth the price.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 2,800
Likes: 356
From: Northville, MI
Unless you are going to track the car or heavily autocross the vette, then go to a good alignment shop. The problem with many tire stores is the lack of good techs who work on 4 wheel independent suspensions and who regularly check the accuracy of their equipment. Even laser alignment racks need to be periodically updated.
For a simple DIY, do a search on David Farmer and alignment. A few years ago he did an excellent write up. For more advance alignment HARDBAR.com has a new toe alignment tool that can also be used with a camber caster guage that works very well.
For a simple DIY, do a search on David Farmer and alignment. A few years ago he did an excellent write up. For more advance alignment HARDBAR.com has a new toe alignment tool that can also be used with a camber caster guage that works very well.
Drifting
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 1,895
Likes: 84
From: Darien IL
It's not rocket science like most people would like you to believe. Most racers just use a camber gauge and strings.
I do my own. The hardest part is torquing the cam bolts. You need to have car on a lift or over a pit to do this.
There are a lot of guys that complain about camber changing after racing, but I suspect this is due to never really getting these bolts toqued properly. I drive mine hard on the track and have never had the camber settings change.
I don't like alignment shops, because they have a tendency to do the minimum to make the car go in a straight line.
If your tires are not wearing funny or your not racing, why bother?
I do my own. The hardest part is torquing the cam bolts. You need to have car on a lift or over a pit to do this.
There are a lot of guys that complain about camber changing after racing, but I suspect this is due to never really getting these bolts toqued properly. I drive mine hard on the track and have never had the camber settings change.
I don't like alignment shops, because they have a tendency to do the minimum to make the car go in a straight line.
If your tires are not wearing funny or your not racing, why bother?
Last edited by UstaB-GS549; Sep 1, 2006 at 10:35 AM.
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 3,726
Likes: 368
From: Montoursville Pa
Originally Posted by UstaB-GS549
It's not rocket science like most people would like you to believe. Most racers just use a camber gauge and strings.
I do my own. The hardest part is torquing the cam bolts. You need to have car on a lift or over a pit to do this.
There are a lot of guys that complain about camber changing after racing, but I suspect this is due to never really getting these bolts toqued properly. I drive mine hard on the track and have never had the camber settings change.
I don't like alignment shops, because they have a tendency to do the minimum to make the car go in a straight line.
If your tires are not wearing funny or your not racing, why bother?
I do my own. The hardest part is torquing the cam bolts. You need to have car on a lift or over a pit to do this.
There are a lot of guys that complain about camber changing after racing, but I suspect this is due to never really getting these bolts toqued properly. I drive mine hard on the track and have never had the camber settings change.
I don't like alignment shops, because they have a tendency to do the minimum to make the car go in a straight line.
If your tires are not wearing funny or your not racing, why bother?
Most shops will put the alignment within specs. how ever there is quite a bit of room to play within specs. and have it technically right but not just what it ought to be.the hard part about the whole thing is to get a shop that will make it match up side to side and push the settings toward what your use or driving style needs.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 9,298
Likes: 4
From: American Canyon Lethal Injection
Originally Posted by Dan_the_C5_Man
There are links here and on the Internet on how to do this, but honestly with what our tires cost, it's a silly way to save 100 bucks.
You should find a decent, competent shop, they should charge you approx. 75 dollars for the service, or you can go to an esoteric shop like I do, where they discuss the use of the car, spend about an hour doing the alignment, making sure it is perfect. That service costs me about $100.
You should find a decent, competent shop, they should charge you approx. 75 dollars for the service, or you can go to an esoteric shop like I do, where they discuss the use of the car, spend about an hour doing the alignment, making sure it is perfect. That service costs me about $100.
Sounds like words of a "Drill Sargent" 
