Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
06-19-2012, 01:38 PM
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Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
What's up guys,
I've noticed that my 07 EX Civic has been leaning to the right when I let go of the steering wheel. I took it to Just Tires to get a free "alignment inspection" and sure enough it needed a alignment. Along with the alignment I got the tires rotated...They told me to come back in an hour and the car would be done. After about 45 mins I get a phone call saying that the front left camber was bent/broken.
I was like wtf? camber broken on a stock car? with no major accidents?
So I walked back to Just Tires and talked to the dude directly and this is when he showed me the picture thats in the bottom (the BEFORE measurements) He told me that the Left Front camber was the one that was broken and in order to get a proper alignment I had to pay $135 EXTRA for them to swap in a new camber. $50 in parts and $85 in labor.
I told him I didnt have the cash to get it replaced right there and then, so he went on and did the rest of the car and put it to specs without fixing the left camber ofcourse. In reality, I wanted to get the opinion of all of you because to me something smells a little fishy.
Oh and once done, I took the car home and it rides like ****. It sounds as if a tire has a bump on it and every time it spins you hear the thud
what do you guys think? is there any way I can jack up the car and check the camber myself?
Any input is appreciated, thanks guys!
I've noticed that my 07 EX Civic has been leaning to the right when I let go of the steering wheel. I took it to Just Tires to get a free "alignment inspection" and sure enough it needed a alignment. Along with the alignment I got the tires rotated...They told me to come back in an hour and the car would be done. After about 45 mins I get a phone call saying that the front left camber was bent/broken.
I was like wtf? camber broken on a stock car? with no major accidents?
So I walked back to Just Tires and talked to the dude directly and this is when he showed me the picture thats in the bottom (the BEFORE measurements) He told me that the Left Front camber was the one that was broken and in order to get a proper alignment I had to pay $135 EXTRA for them to swap in a new camber. $50 in parts and $85 in labor.
I told him I didnt have the cash to get it replaced right there and then, so he went on and did the rest of the car and put it to specs without fixing the left camber ofcourse. In reality, I wanted to get the opinion of all of you because to me something smells a little fishy.
Oh and once done, I took the car home and it rides like ****. It sounds as if a tire has a bump on it and every time it spins you hear the thud
what do you guys think? is there any way I can jack up the car and check the camber myself?
Any input is appreciated, thanks guys!
06-19-2012, 01:52 PM
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06-19-2012, 02:18 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
Holy **** you got taken for a ride. The bottom pic is the before????
They purposely added toe to screw you over. Those tires will be gone within a month with those specs. Toe is the biggest tire killer, you could have driven on that front camber forever, and with the toe in spec, it would have been fine.
Plus you can't really "break" a camber arm. You can bend it, but ****. IDK how it'd happen without any accidents or without hitting a curb or something.
I'd go back and DEMAND my money back, and tell them you want the car put back to the exact specs it was before you came in. You're WAY worse now that you were when you showed up.
Honestly, I'd be livid if that happened to me.
They purposely added toe to screw you over. Those tires will be gone within a month with those specs. Toe is the biggest tire killer, you could have driven on that front camber forever, and with the toe in spec, it would have been fine.
Plus you can't really "break" a camber arm. You can bend it, but ****. IDK how it'd happen without any accidents or without hitting a curb or something.
I'd go back and DEMAND my money back, and tell them you want the car put back to the exact specs it was before you came in. You're WAY worse now that you were when you showed up.
Honestly, I'd be livid if that happened to me.
06-19-2012, 02:42 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
Holy **** you got taken for a ride. The bottom pic is the before????
They purposely added toe to screw you over. Those tires will be gone within a month with those specs. Toe is the biggest tire killer, you could have driven on that front camber forever, and with the toe in spec, it would have been fine.
Plus you can't really "break" a camber arm. You can bend it, but ****. IDK how it'd happen without any accidents or without hitting a curb or something.
I'd go back and DEMAND my money back, and tell them you want the car put back to the exact specs it was before you came in. You're WAY worse now that you were when you showed up.
Honestly, I'd be livid if that happened to me.
They purposely added toe to screw you over. Those tires will be gone within a month with those specs. Toe is the biggest tire killer, you could have driven on that front camber forever, and with the toe in spec, it would have been fine.
Plus you can't really "break" a camber arm. You can bend it, but ****. IDK how it'd happen without any accidents or without hitting a curb or something.
I'd go back and DEMAND my money back, and tell them you want the car put back to the exact specs it was before you came in. You're WAY worse now that you were when you showed up.
Honestly, I'd be livid if that happened to me.
so according to them, the only one that is not within spec would be the driver side front tire. (-0.7)
06-19-2012, 03:02 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
Any shop I go to they SHOW me the broken part still on the car before they do any work. "Either bent or broken"? It's one or the other. Sounds like a shady bunch of shop workers.
06-19-2012, 03:04 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
The car was drifting to the side because of the toe, not the camber.
The lower control arm (the only control arm actually, since there is no upper arm) front bushing is probably shot, causing the bottom of the tire to be pushed out, creating the negative camber.
There is no "camber bolt" on that car, assuming it is stock. And if you already have a "crash bolt" (more correct term for an offset bolt to slightly adjust camber on a strut suspension) in there, he should have adjusted it for you. The normal way to adjust camber on that car is with a camber plate between the top of the strut and the chassis.
If you're going to get the bushing replaced, do both sides. If the bushing isn't so bad that the alignment changes radically while driving, I'd call it good enough for now. That tiny bit of camber, while outside of the factory range, is perfectly fine, and is still less than many cars come from the factory with.
And definitely find a more honest shop to go to from now on.
The lower control arm (the only control arm actually, since there is no upper arm) front bushing is probably shot, causing the bottom of the tire to be pushed out, creating the negative camber.
There is no "camber bolt" on that car, assuming it is stock. And if you already have a "crash bolt" (more correct term for an offset bolt to slightly adjust camber on a strut suspension) in there, he should have adjusted it for you. The normal way to adjust camber on that car is with a camber plate between the top of the strut and the chassis.
If you're going to get the bushing replaced, do both sides. If the bushing isn't so bad that the alignment changes radically while driving, I'd call it good enough for now. That tiny bit of camber, while outside of the factory range, is perfectly fine, and is still less than many cars come from the factory with.
And definitely find a more honest shop to go to from now on.
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06-19-2012, 03:26 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
I took our civic to get an alignment. it was pulling hard to the right. Guy said my toe rods were done. So I have him replace them and he aligns the car. STILL pulls to the right......I go back an they re-align it again. STILL pulls to the right. They then say its my tires so they flip them...STILL PULLS 
I give up
I give up
06-19-2012, 03:32 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
The car was drifting to the side because of the toe, not the camber.
The lower control arm (the only control arm actually, since there is no upper arm) front bushing is probably shot, causing the bottom of the tire to be pushed out, creating the negative camber.
There is no "camber bolt" on that car, assuming it is stock. And if you already have a "crash bolt" (more correct term for an offset bolt to slightly adjust camber on a strut suspension) in there, he should have adjusted it for you. The normal way to adjust camber on that car is with a camber plate between the top of the strut and the chassis.
If you're going to get the bushing replaced, do both sides. If the bushing isn't so bad that the alignment changes radically while driving, I'd call it good enough for now. That tiny bit of camber, while outside of the factory range, is perfectly fine, and is still less than many cars come from the factory with.
And definitely find a more honest shop to go to from now on.
The lower control arm (the only control arm actually, since there is no upper arm) front bushing is probably shot, causing the bottom of the tire to be pushed out, creating the negative camber.
There is no "camber bolt" on that car, assuming it is stock. And if you already have a "crash bolt" (more correct term for an offset bolt to slightly adjust camber on a strut suspension) in there, he should have adjusted it for you. The normal way to adjust camber on that car is with a camber plate between the top of the strut and the chassis.
If you're going to get the bushing replaced, do both sides. If the bushing isn't so bad that the alignment changes radically while driving, I'd call it good enough for now. That tiny bit of camber, while outside of the factory range, is perfectly fine, and is still less than many cars come from the factory with.
And definitely find a more honest shop to go to from now on.
I was looking at the toe specs more in detail and noticed that they adjusted some with minor changes only. For example the driver rear toe was at 0.19 degrees, then it was adjusted to 0.05 degrees. Which is a big difference BUT the specs for this car are 0.04-0.16 and they put it at 0.05 degrees. BARELY within spec. Why didnt they adjust it to 0.10 degrees? which would have been right in the middle of the specs? How long will it take for the toe lose its place in the correct specs?
Hold on, so there is no "camber bolt" to begin with? Yeah it is stock too btw. Sorry, I dont know much about these newer models, Im more of a eg, ek, dc type of a guy. So then why would the guy tell me that the frikin camber bolt was bent/broken?
I cant take a look at the car right now since my gf took it to work, but when she comes back you better believe I'm going to check out the bushings and see if it has a bolt or not to begin with...
06-19-2012, 03:34 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
I took our civic to get an alignment. it was pulling hard to the right. Guy said my toe rods were done. So I have him replace them and he aligns the car. STILL pulls to the right......I go back an they re-align it again. STILL pulls to the right. They then say its my tires so they flip them...STILL PULLS
I give up
I give up
06-19-2012, 03:47 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
Bastards.
Assuming that my car does not have any "camber bolt" (which I'm going to check as soon as my GF gets home) I should go back and demand they put the left front tire within spec? I mean, my car rides worse, my GF just textd me and said the steering wheel shakes while she drives, so that has to be it correct?
My bad bro, misunderstanding, I meant it as look at the bottom pic, (the "before" measurements) this way you look at the ones that say before, and not current.
Assuming that my car does not have any "camber bolt" (which I'm going to check as soon as my GF gets home) I should go back and demand they put the left front tire within spec? I mean, my car rides worse, my GF just textd me and said the steering wheel shakes while she drives, so that has to be it correct?
My bad bro, misunderstanding, I meant it as look at the bottom pic, (the "before" measurements) this way you look at the ones that say before, and not current.
06-19-2012, 03:56 PM
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06-19-2012, 04:09 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
might as well, this is bullshit. Lucky I didnt know much about the suspension on these cars if not I wouldve gone off on them right there on the spot.
06-19-2012, 04:15 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
Part 5 is what I would inspect first. Part 8 is what would be replaced with a crash bolt to adjust camber. Either way, camber isn't adjustable stock.
Lastly, $50 in parts? The factory crash bolts are $9 each. $85 in labor to swap 4 bolts? Talk about skipping the lube...
06-19-2012, 04:26 PM
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06-19-2012, 04:28 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
That really makes me think "trashed bushing". Or possibly damaged tie rod ends or bearings.
It's a strut based suspension. The only place a single bolt could adjust camber is where the knuckle mounts to the strut, and even then, only if a crash bolt was installed in place of one of the stock bolts.
Part 5 is what I would inspect first. Part 8 is what would be replaced with a crash bolt to adjust camber. Either way, camber isn't adjustable stock.
Lastly, $50 in parts? The factory crash bolts are $9 each. $85 in labor to swap 4 bolts? Talk about skipping the lube...
It's a strut based suspension. The only place a single bolt could adjust camber is where the knuckle mounts to the strut, and even then, only if a crash bolt was installed in place of one of the stock bolts.
Part 5 is what I would inspect first. Part 8 is what would be replaced with a crash bolt to adjust camber. Either way, camber isn't adjustable stock.
Lastly, $50 in parts? The factory crash bolts are $9 each. $85 in labor to swap 4 bolts? Talk about skipping the lube...
Wait, you got me confused a bit now, so should my car HAVE a bolt, or have NO BOLT stock from the factory? the #8 bolt is the one I was going to look for, kinda like in this pic
06-19-2012, 04:41 PM
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Re: Is Just Tires trying to rip me off? Alignment issues
ok, so when I go back and they try to go at me about that bolt being the problem, which Im pretty sure thats what theyre going to do, I tell them that you cant even adjust camber through that bolt, the only way to adjust from that bolt would be if its aftermarket. Right?