Well I took my 95 Del Sol to Big O Tires for an alignment about 4 months ago because the tires were not wearing very evenly. They charged me close to $200 for the alignment and a new camber kit for the back end. When I first picked it up it drove good as it always had but now its pulling pretty hard to the left. I called them and told them what was up and I have an appointment for them to take another look at it tomorrow which I think should be free but they will probably try and charge me for it. I am tempted to call and cancel it and take it to the dealer. Anybody know what a Dealer would charge for an alignment? If they cant get it right I'm sure nobody can. I know things happen and nobodys perfect, and they could have just forgot to tighten something but it always drove fine until they worked on it. So should I go back to Big O or the dealer?

thanks

 

Start by taking it back to Big O. Verify that any further work would still be covered by a warranty.

 

^^
That, basicly.

I reccomend Firestone lifetime alignments. I have one, and its was $173 and some change, I feel it was deffinetly worth it. You can take your can in whenever you please and it will be free. Basicly pays for it self in 2-3 alignments.

Did they give you a print out after the alignment? If so scan it and post it, or just post the numbers on it.

 

When you say "pulls to the left" are you saying the steering wheel is crooked to the left as your driving straight? or does the car actually drift to the left? Pull doesn't necessary mean its alignment related, you said it was fine when you first got it back so that leads me to think its a radial pull. cross the front tires and see if the pull goes away or starts pulling right to eliminate this possibility. Defiantly go back there and get it straightened out since you paid good money and your having an issue

 

Ok I guess we will go see what Big O says Tomorrow. I dont think I have a Firestone alignments any where near me but thanks for the suggestion. Yeah I did have a paper and it said they were all in spec. If I find it I will post the numbers.

If you let go of the wheel it will pull it into the other lane. I double checked all the tire pressures. I have been told even if its not a directional tire its a bad idea to change half worn tire side to side. So I always rotate them front to back and keep them on the same side and keep them turning the same direction. I bought all 4 brand new tires about 6 months before I had it aligned so I don't see how it could be a tire issue.

 

Alignments are brutal, either you hand over your firstborn as payment at the dealership or it's at some shop and they rush through it. After hitting a pothole in the 'hood I've had moderate pull to the left and have been procrastinating until someplace decent pops up.

 

dealer only cost 60 bux... im not too fond of Firestone they tried to charge me for 2 new tires because they were alil dry rotted and on the back of the car and they charged me for an alignment that was barely off at 40k miles. they barely adjusted it and charged me for an alignment i was pissed i highly don't recommend Firestone id go to a dealer for 60 bux.

 

Are you freaking kidding me!?

The dealer would have done the same thing, you cannot expect anyone to perform an alignment and do it for free!

 

Yes, plain and simple. A Honda "mechanic" or "tech" knows a Honda the best, after all it is what they work on regularly.

Usually $69 at Honda.

Any service center should suggest an alignment when they work on the suspension or replace tires. Regardless of a steering wheel being center or a car driving straight, as these are not definite indicators of a car being aligned properly.

Just make sure you ask for a specification print out, every time.

 

so you took your car to get an alignment and they did it for you. you're complaining because you had to pay for it? however small the labor is doesn't mean it should be free. If the alignment wasn't that bad in the rear, why take it to them? don't slam a company for charging you for legit work. that's how shops get bad reps for no reason.

 

he just gave me a bunch of shyt that cars are knocked out of alignment when delivered and tied down on the trucks. when a car is delivered to someone im sure with all the check list they have they would check the alignment. i got a print out most the specs were barely out .1 and were barely changed. the tires had no premature wear or any signs of a bad alignment @ 40k. i understand new tires could throw an alignment off some but that's just ridiculous. i barely drive the car aggressively or hit any pot holes within that 40k. i sat outside the shop when they called about doing an alignment they parked my car within 10 mins of the call and didn't call me back for 40 mins to make it look like they did something. that's why i don't mess with Firestone anymore and why i dont want their lifetime alignment. ive had tires changed before and had an OPTION to get an alignment not pressured to get an alignment. they gave me no choice and did it anyway. i took it there to get tires only i did not ask for an alignment

 

I also have a lifetime alignment at Firestone since I'm always changing the height of my car. I haven't had any issues with them at all. You just have to know how to deal with them. I wait in the area the whole time, watching my car patiently. I know that it's their job to sell their product, but all you have to do is say no for pete's sake. They're going to try to charge you all they want, but if you have some ***** on you you'll be ok. If you cannot stand the constant pestering, then go spend your money somewhere else. My lifetime alignment has already paid for itself twice.

To the poster above, if they did an alignment for you when you did not want one, hooray! They cannot charge you for service you declined, so if you paid for it, shame on you.

 

Sears auto they have a six month warranty...

 

Brake Check has a lifetime alignment for $100 around here. Too bad my car is too low to get on their rack

 

First thing you should check is tire pressure. If it is uneven by more than a few pounds around the car, that will definitely do it. It doesn't matter whether you get the alignment done at Honda or Jimbob's backyard shop. I'm going to get flamed for that last remark. Your most important thing is to find an alignment guy who seriously knows what he's doing. If you don't have a buddy who seriously knows suspension (not just some guy with drop coils) who can recommend a shop, you're pretty much at trial and error. One way you can tell you're at the wrong shop is if they add 3 weights to a tire when balancing it.

 

it could also be the front lower control arm bushings

 

if your in the houston area I could do the alignment for you 40$. I work @ honda. LCA bushings can cause a pull after being worn out. (suspension sag) when u go to do the alignment the alignment angles may be correct on the car but ive seen where the LCS bushing get torn from dropped hondas and vehicle will still pull to one side. check your LCA bushings front and rear, outer/inner tie rods for play, ball joint play on the upper/lower control arms,tire psi, tire tread,

 

Im sorry, but I really dont belive any of this.

If a shop performed something on your car without permission, that is a completly different story, but It just doenst add up.

No way in hell they did the alignment in 10 minutes.

 

soooo many good points in this post

4 months of driving a 16 year old car = a lot. it could very well be out of alignment again. but more likely something is wrong with your suspension and even more likely so if the car is lowered.

any trained monkey with an adjustable wrench in hand can perform an alignment perfectly. but most places fly through and don't look at bushings or anything. especially someplace like big o tires, they are just looking to up-sell bad balljoints on work vans and brake jobs to make their days hours. have them bring you out in the shop and look over all the bushings and joints. it'll only take a second. just don't be surprised if they find something and the $ involved in replacing it.

i'd lean towards your trailing arm bushings being totally worthless, a couple tires low on air, and probably a ball joint or two being shot in the front.

 

i'm with 98civdx. i just don't believe they did an alignment without telling you. If they did the job without telling you, then you don't have to pay for it. Law states that they have to let you know what they will do to your car and how much it will cost before they work on it.

 

I never thought about a lifetime alignment. I would imagine it's non-transferable though and I change cars too much to make it worth it (2-3 alignments = more than 1 year haha).

 

No, it is not.

It is a really good thing for those who need an alignment now, but plan to replace some suspension stuff down the road, or like to change your ride height a lot, ( I do)

 

Well I just got done waiting 2 hours in Big O and the main thing they found was the Toe on the back was way out and the steer ahead angle was out. Before the work I had -0.06 Steer ahead, -0.05 toe on the left rear and -0.28 toe on the right rear. With the work done I have 0.0 steer ahead, 0.10 left rear toe and 0.12 right toe. I understand a little about suspensions but I am not sure what is right for this car, do these numbers seem right? It used to pull to the left pretty hard and now it seems to lightly pull to the right which I am not too happy with, but it is better. Also coming home I was doing about 80 coming up a hill I hit a gentle dip in the road and it seems like it wants to swerve and go both directions which seems odd too.

I will give it a few days and see what I think of it. It is better but I think I will end up at the dealer in the next couple weeks.

 

seems like lower ball joints are shot. i kinda have this same problem with mine just procrastinating with little funds i have.