Rands

Hey everyone, just wondering how often do you get an alignment on your car? I'm wondering because when I took my wheels off I noticed that I got uneven wear on my tires (inner side was wearing out waaayyy faster than the outter). This was probably about 3-4 months ago when I got my car tuned, and shotly after I got my car aligned. I asked a guy from the service department and he suggested an alignment every year. Seems kinda excessive to me to get an alignment every year though. Your thoughts on this?

steven88

iTrader: (9)

its really hard to say....but for a performance car like an Evo...every year doesn't sound too excessive....evo tires typically wear out as fast as a year....

Do you have any Sears, Discount Tires, or Firestones near you? They offer lifetime alignments....typically $150 - $200 and it will last for the life of you owning the car....just go in every 6 months or whenever you hit a curb or pothole...boom get an alignment....it will easily pay itself off quickly

Also check online for any coupons...I know Firestone typically has coupons...and you can sometimes score a lifetime for below $150 by using that coupon

DarwinX

iTrader: (12)

Depends on how many pot holes and big bumps you hit.

TJs98GT

id suggest checking it at least every 10k

dsmwin

if you're getting uneven wear, maybe you need a different alignment setting?

mlomker

iTrader: (1)

Sounds like you're the daily-driver sort and you want even tire wear? If so then the lifetime alignment and checking it 2x year seems fine to me. lol. It's free at that point. Performance tires also wear a lot quicker than an all-season. Rotating them at every oil change might not be crazy.

Us performance oriented guys get alignments that wear our tires unevenly on purpose! My performance alignment guy says that a single track day will throw it off. At $180 per visit to that guy, I'm thinking twice per year is enough for me as well. lol.

AJ@ECSMotorsports.com

I agree, hard to say..
There are several factors to consider..
Usually, if not always, I get an alignment done with I raise/lower the car, or change any major suspension component.

Also, of course, check the alignment when you feel your alignment is off or there is uneven tread wear.

Last, as a precaution, try to get one done on a regular basis, ever XX,XXX miles.

I used to have a 3-year alignment plan with Tires Plus for only $120ish if I remember (prices are up now, 150 i think). VERY worth it.. get it done when you want or need it done, and 3 years goes a long way as a typical 4-wheel alignment here costs $40 at a mom and pop shop, and $80+ at most corporate shops.

-AJ
ECS Motorsports

4B11AWD

iTrader: (1)

The inside of your tire will wear faster than the outside of your tire if you have a alignment with negative camber (which in turns helps your car handle better).

If you want "even" wear on the inside and outside of your tire, you'd have to get a "0+/-" camber alignment...which makes the car handle like crap.

Bighec

iTrader: (9)

I would do it once a year depending on how many miles you put on the car.

GTWORX.com

iTrader: (35)

No no no. A good performance alignment with a decent amount of negative camber can give you mostly EVEN tire wear. Too much will give you a lot of inner tire wear, but 0 degrees camber is not the answer for even tire wear.

A big part of it is the use of the car. Long commutes on the highway, you don't need much camber. If you do get the chance to hit some twisties often, dial in a little negative camber and you will get more even wear (and better handling). A lot of variables here including spring rate and tire choice, but -1 to -2 degrees of camber is usually just fine.

Toe wears tires more quickly than camber. 0 toe is crucial for good tire wear and I often prefer it for handling as well, though sometimes it can be played with.

I have seen cars with over -2 degrees of camber with perfectly even wear.

- Andrew

mlomker

iTrader: (1)

I've experimented with and without toe and it didn't help enough to justify the wear. Most of my uneven wear was due to that experiment with adding some toe.

Most of us run -2.5 or so in front. What that does to your tires depends on your mix of track and daily driving. If I did nothing but commute then I'd probably just stick to the standard -1.2 or -1.4.

The whole point of my post was that Firestone can do that alignment for you...no point in wasting money at a race alignment shop if the car is mostly street.

GTWORX.com

iTrader: (35)

Gotcha. It was late and I'd had a few.

- Andrew

Rands

Ah okay cool, thanks for the tips everyone. I'll keep all these tips in mind.

journeymansteve

I've got 44,000 miles and haven't had to touch the alignment. I have plenty of potholes, nothing so bad as to break anything, but also tend to navigate around the bumpies mostly. I've not had a lot of great "LUCK" with alignments on any cars, and especially bad luck when aligning FWD cars. So until I have a pull, I'm leaving mine alone. Or if I lower it and tweak the suspension with new coilovers perhaps. THAT is on my to-do list and will definitely get an alignment.

I'm on my third set of tires (OEM's actually have a little life in them, saving them for HPDE abuse); the ASR's are perfectly even, can't tell which was which when I had them all broken down for the last HPDE. The other set that I cooked were some Z1's that had some nasty cuts and cord showing after a really fast couple of days at a warm HPDE weekend. Other than HPDE abuse, I have NO tire wear uneveness.

YMMV.